Özil will run the show against Bournemouth if Xhaka starts

Match Preview: Arsenal vs Bournemouth – Premier League – 27.11.2016

My last preview didn’t pan out so well. I was utterly convinced we’d be a much more rounded attacking force against PSG with good width and a target man in the middle and largely we were but, as has been the theme in this par-for-the-course November, we failed to control the midfield.

I am a huge fan of Francis Coquelin but he is the only consistent in a host of poor midfield performances in the past few weeks. His partnership with Santi Cazorla is dreamy and our diminutive wizard moves the ball through to Özil better than anyone whilst Coq harries around breaking skulls and mopping up behind himself. Without Cazorla to elevate the technical level in our midfield, Coquelin’s deficiencies on the ball are put under a spotlight.

Our midfield was good against PSG but that’s all, just good. Paris had a great midfield and that made ours look rather ordinary. There was confusion over who should be doing what and at times we had a top class box-to-box midfielder playing as a DM and a top class DM playing as a box-to-box – it was bizarre. The same happened when Coquelin was partnered with Elneny and again with Xhaka. I think there comes a point were we have to consider dropping Coquelin and giving a different partnership a chance to fill the Santi void.

I am a believer in the potential of Xhaka and Ramsey together and this weekend’s match against Bournemouth is the perfect chance to try them out in a competitive environment. Despite not setting the world alight on loan at the Cherries, Jack Wilshere will be surely missed in Eddie Howe’s midfield this Sunday and the odds are against AFC Bournemouth even if Jack were eligible for this game.

As a side note I think it is a shame Jack can’t play against us. I think if a player is out of loan they should be able to play in all the matches and it would also be a good opportunity for Jack to show us what we are missing. I understand the arguments for the status quo but I also think at some point we have to trust the players to be professional and play for the shirt they are wearing, not the one they wished they were.

So, with a less technical midfield to face the requirement for Coquelin’s talents is less and that does afford us the opportunity to see what other combinations can do. I think a midfield with Aaron Ramsey in it already carries an additional threat but if we want to get the ball into Özil we need someone with vision and that’s Granit Xhaka. Against PSG our midfield had good energy but it lacked the quick, incisive passing to advance midfield that Santi offers us but I think Xhaka can offer that as well as some physicality and bite.

Apart from that the only change I would make is bringing Walcott back into the starting line-up for Alex Iwobi. The youngster has looked out of sorts for a while now and we cannot afford to lose any more ground by carrying him through his lull. It is also tempting to say Debuchy should start as Jenkinson has sadly shown he just isn’t up to the level this squad is at now but it’s probably not wise to make too many changes and other positions take priority.

If we start with the right deep midfield combination and get the ball into Özil more than we have I think he’ll absolutely run the show. I’m not confident of a crushing win here but I do think it will be comfortable.

Predicted Line-up

Cech; Jenkinson, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Ramsey, Xhaka; Özil; Alexis, Giroud, Walcott

I expect to see substitute appearances from Oxlade-Chamberlain, Elneny and Iwobi.

Match Quote

“It’s important that we find our simplicity, speed and pacy combinations back. We missed that fluency, and that security in our decision-making that made us dangerous in the final third a little bit.” – Arsène Wenger

Last 3 Meetings

• Bournemouth 0-2 Arsenal (07.02.2016)
• Arsenal 2-0 Bournemouth (28.12.2015)
• Arsenal 3-0 Bournemouth (27.08.1997- League Cup)

Form Guide

Arsenal
DDDWW

Bournemouth
WLLDW

Opposition watch

Bournemouth are doing well in their second season and are currently sat in 10th. They’ve been in relatively standard form for a mid-table side owing largely to their defensive prowess. Only twice have they conceded more than two goals; Man U hung three on them on the opening day, and Man City bullied them for four in mid-September. Beyond that, they’ve been solid if not impregnable so I wouldn’t be surprised to see us struggle to break them down.

Factfile

• This will be only the fourth competitive game between the sides.
• Olivier Giroud has scored seven goals from eight shots on target in his last eight Premier League appearances.
• Bournemouth have hit the woodwork 13 times in the Premier League this season – six more times than any other team prior to the latest round of matches.
• Arsenal have won all three of the previous encounters, scoring a total of seven unanswered goals.The Gunners won both meetings last season 2-0, with Mesut Ozil scoring in each game.
• Victory at Stoke gave the Cherries their first Premier League away win since April, and their first clean sheet on the road since February.
• The Gunners have lost just once in 22 Premier League games but have drawn three of their last four top-flight matches.
• Only once before have Bournemouth won back-to-back away games in the top flight – against Chelsea and West Brom in December 2015.
• Arsenal are one of two Premier League sides yet to concede in the opening 15 minutes this season, along with West Brom, and are the only team yet to trail at half time.
• Since the start of the 2014-15 season, Arsenal have won 65.5% of the Premier League matches in which Santi Cazorla has started (36 out of 55), compared with 39.4% when he has not (13 out of 33).
• Arsene Wenger and Eddie Howe are the Premier League’s longest-serving current managers at their clubs: 20 years and four years respectively.

Courtesy of Opta & BBC Sport.

Prediction

We won the last two matches against AFC Bournemouth 2-0 and I think we’ll do the same here.

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