It has been 12 years since the last time Arsenal won the Premier League title. And it has been 20 years since Wenger was chosen as a manager. What happened 8 years ago?
After the second match of Granit Xhaka for Arsenal, Wenger compared him with Emmanuel Petite. He highlighted his condition, height, air fights and composure in the game. In that Wenger was not wrong. Xhaka with his left foot leaves an impression on the pitch. Xhaka is an Arsenal player, which the club lacked for a long time.
Players like him were part of Arsenal in his best years under Wenger. Emmanuel Petit and Patrick Vieira were the engines of the first title in 1998. Another two followed until Petit was replaced by Brazilian Gilbert Silva.
Petit and Vieira were a textbook example of that Wenger later abandoned. Patrick Vieira was one of the first players who the Frenchman and Petit came in his first summer. Later he left to Barcelona and nobody knew why.
Unlike Petit, Vieira was not replaced. In fact, the only arrival to the middle of the field was Alexander Hleb. Instead, two young players were given a chance – Cesc Fabregas and Mathieu Flamini. Two completely different type of players were given to play and the game of Arsenal has changed.
The reasons for this decision was speculation among fans of Arsenal for a long time. There were a lot of factors to consider. Wenger mainly used as an argument move to the new stadium, because of which the financing had to ease, limiting the capabilities.
Why Wenger decided to change the game in Arsenal’s midfield? The reason was the interplay of Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta in Barcelona, two low playmakers who managed to steal opponent’s ball without having won a physical battle.
Wenger adopted this style of play. A kind of kinship between the clubs can be seen in more or less regular transfers of players between this two clubs. When both teams met in the Champions League final in 2006, it could be taken as confirmation that these two clubs are on the right track.
Arsenal’s change has been clearly seen in the statistics. The team that was best in the number of tackles in the 2006/2007 season falls in this statistics downward each season in a row, while meanwhile increases the number of passes at the same time. Wenger’s vision to play like Barcelona thus adapted. At least partially. Wenger, in the matter of the fact never had enough typological players.
And Arsenal is now again the process of changing and slowly returning to the previous style of play. In the season 2014/2015 number of passes decreased, while the number of tackles increased.
Over the last 12 years, we have seen how the Arsenal tried to change the style of play and resemble more of Barcelona. Now, thanks to the player as Xhaka, it appears the revolution has ended, and Arsenal returns back to the time when they dominated every match. Could it be that Wenger finally learned?
source: skysports.com, foto: wikimedia.org