2. Team Selection Dilemma
For the first time in years, Arsenal nearly have a clean bill of health, with only Jack Wilshere out for two months. This gives Wenger a plethora of first team players to choose from. This selection headache is for Wenger to deal with, and Sunday’s team displayed that Wenger clearly got it wrong. Wenger was predicted to go with the two players in the middle with two wide players with a player (Özil) sitting behind the striker. Wenger did exactly that with this time Cazorla to the left of Özil whilst Ramsey and Coquelin occupied central midfield. After Oxlade-Chamberlain’s tremendous pre-season form, he started to the right of Özil.
Wenger’s tactics were quite obviously flawed, with too many players drifting towards the middle of the park, forcing Arsenal to play very narrow. West Ham dealt with Arsenal’s packed central areas very well, with sixteen year old Reece Oxford, the shining light for the Hammers. Wenger has a decision to make, as it seems Cazorla, Coquelin, and Ramsey are all fighting for the places in the centre midfield. Cazorla showed that he is no longer effective out wide, and Ramsey & Coquelin offered no real stability in the middle against West Ham. Ramsey did link up well when he pushed forward, but Coquelin was left on an island when West Ham countered. Clearly some tactical issues there.