In the background of Manchester City’s headline-grabbing surge then stutter, and champions Chelsea’s alarming capitulation, both Manchester United and Arsenal have quietly been building momentum in 2015/16. Scrappy, tense and furious, this promises to be an exciting contest of narrowly congested midfields and direct, powerful attacks.
The chief creative operator for Arsenal is Mesut Ozil, whose ghosting movement across the final third and subtle ingenuity has contributed 4.8 key passes per game, more than any other Premier League player. The German has been accused of laziness in the past, but is flourishing in a free-role that has turned his walking and intermittent contribution into a deadly advantage; losing interest, defenders often leave Ozil in space.
Ozil has had a huge influence on matches this season, most notably against Stoke (left) and Leicester (right).
He could prove vital once again if Manchester United fail to improve upon their midfield performance against Southampton at St Mary's a fortnight ago. Sadio Mane operated in similar pockets of space and, with Michael Carrick and Morgan Schneiderlin still learning each other’s attributes, was able to affect the game from in between the midfield duo. A repeat of this at the Emirates and Ozil will run riot.
Mane received the ball in pockets of space vs Man Utd (left) with Carrick struggling at Southampton (right).
This weak spot is exacerbated by Arsenal’s overloading of central midfield (32% of attacks, highest in the division). Alexis Sanchez and Aaron Ramsay are both natural playmakers and frequently drift infield both on and off the ball, creating short passing triangles in congested central zones. The persistence of this tactic often causes a creative dearth against deep-lying and compact opposition defences, but may be perfect against United's new midfield. At the other end, Arsene Wenger will be wary of the left-focused threat (42% of attacks, the league’s highest) United’s new WMD attack brings. Francis Coquelin is often left scrambling across the back four with little midfield support, and this could prove costly if right-winger Ramsay over-commits to attack.
Most of Man United's penetrative attacks came down the left against Sunderland (left); right winger Ramsay has been known to leave this position vulnerable (vs Stoke, right).
Both sides boast pace but look to play with a high line and marauding full-backs; whether through the vision of Ozil or the dribbling of Memphis Depay, this game could see plenty of goals.
Arsenal vs Man United LIVE ANALYSIS with Stats Zone
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