To solve Arsenal's 'attacking problems', Mikel Arteta has implemented a new tactical shape.

Let's review it.

A thread 👇 Arsenal's new shape has been coined the 3-diamond-3.

Instead of a fullback inverting into the pivot, the emphasis lies on Ødegaard to connect the defence and attack together as he drops from high to low.

His movements trigger others to occupy different lanes in the front 5.

I have been critical of the 3-1-6 in the past because of the volume of players that can become congested between the lines, the over-reliance on fluidity within it that harms positional play, & the vulnerability of it in transition.

But Enzo Maresca uses it very intelligently 👇 Pochettino and Potter tried to use the 3-1-6 at Chelsea but it didn't work.

Why?

Because they tried to do it with an overlapping fullback, unlike Maresca with two natural wingers. The balance is better with the fullback inside.

Maresca's build-up & press is also much superior.

If we’re talking pure quality and attributes alone, elite clubs looking to sign Rashford makes complete sense.

But we’re not just talking quality and attributes.

If that was the case Amorim and Manchester United wouldn’t want to get rid of him..

We’re talking about his desire. If Manchester United haven’t been able to get him to work as hard as possible for as long as he has been there, then how could Pep, Slot, Arteta, Maresca, Ange, or whoever the hell else do it?!

These guys have the same beliefs as Amorim.

Work with 100% intensity. No exceptions.

To prevent wingbacks receiving in 1v1 situations on the flank with regularity, Amorim would be smart to consistently use a dynamic where the wingback inverts into the half space between the lines which allows the inside forward to hold full width.

Harder to mark + solves issues. Look at Chelsea as an example.

Gusto inverts between the lines and it allows the double pivot to remain in tact and the winger to hold the width as opposed to someone like Rashford or Garnacho playing inside the game when it doesn't suit them.

Same shape but better balance.

Ruben Amorim's current game model is flawed.

Mikel Arteta's game model is, and always has been, elite.

This is one of the most poignant threads I have ever written...

A tactical breakdown of Arsenal vs Manchester United 👇 Amorim wants his centre backs to step out and press players dropping between the lines, but:

Situation #1) De Ligt doesn't want to jump. Rice is found.

Situation #2) Maguire doesn't want to jump. Havertz is found.

Situation #3) Mazraoui doesn't want to jump. Ødegaard is found.

Thinking about the Arsenal-United game.

Can't help but worry for Amorim's team.

Good lucking building out from the back under the lights at The Emirates with your middle centre back facing his own goal at the edge of or IN his own box with little width ahead of that in attack.. Arsenal are unlikely to go man-to-man at all times, either, & that presents itself as an opportunity for United, but I'm not sure Arsenal need to when considering the context of the game, their physicality & United's lack of technical quality.

Use a +1 deeper to manage Rashford.

Arsenal destroyed West Ham.

Julen Lopetegui's man-oriented mid-block was consistently exploited by Mikel Arteta's tactical acumen.

De Zerbi used the same defensive approach at the end of last season & lost 3-0.

We saw similar methods of exploitation in both games..

THREAD! 🚨 Here we see Soler, Paqueta, and Souček marking Arsenal midfield 3.

That man-to-man defensive approach opens up passing lanes into the frontline because there is no zonal defender screening the defensive line.

That makes West Ham vulnerable to 'up-back-and-through' patterns.

Arsenal should be held to the standards of the absolute elites.

Why?

Because they are capable of greatness.

For this reason, I critique their 5-1 win away at Sporting. Yes, critique. Arsenal were special, but I believe that they are capable of even more..

A tactical thread 👇 Arsenal pressed in zonal turned man-to-man fashion from Sporting's goal kicks.

As ever, they forced the press to Sporting's left hand-side and Arsenal's right hand-side.

Why?

Because Ødegaard is their best presser. He presses the LCB whilst arcing his run to manage the #6.

Enzo Maresca is top.

Leicester aren't a great pressing team but he totally nullified their press tactically.

Instead of Cucurella inverting into the pivot (which Leicester would have prepared for), he played on the last line with Félix inside.

It dragged McAteer back all game. The concern with the 3-1-6 is that Caicedo is vulnerable in transition but Leicester lacked numbers high up the pitch because of the demands placed on McAteer to get back and help out.

Oftentimes Leicester looked up and had nobody to hit, even though Caicedo was exploitable.

Arsenal's positional play suffocated the life out of Nottingham Forest.

A Tactical THREAD! 🚨 Arsenal went back to 'old-ways' against Nottingham Forest.

Instead of a relational style where players had freedom to drift outside of their typical zones, Arsenal were more rigid positionally.

It was a 3-2-5/2-3-5 base with the fullbacks inverted (into defence or the pivot).

Instead of defending in a back 5 against relative giants away at Spurs, Kieran McKenna's Ipswich were brave and defended in a back 4.

Attack was the primary form of defence, and it all stemmed from how their wide players nullified Spurs' inverted fullbacks.

A tactical thread 👇 Ipswich defended in a 4-4-2 against Spurs' shape with two inverted fullbacks & Bentancur in the single pivot.

The objective of the front 2 was to force Spurs to one side, close the passing angle off to the far-side centre half, & match up on the side in an aggressive mid-block.

We are seeing a trend with Liverpool.

Their press consistently gets beaten, but they consistently win games regardless.

Slot's press may not be flawless, but it's still good. It's not easy to exploit - but, if you do, Liverpool have a +1 in the last line with elite defenders. They also sprint recover from behind the initial lines of pressing.

And, as a consequence of pressing in a 4-4-2/4-2-4, they consistently have 4 players high up the pitch in transition.

And that's where they kill you with top class midfielders who can find unstoppable forwards.

Ange Postecoglou is a top manager and Spurs are a top team, but they have stood still in comparison to last season.

A thread. Ange's Spurs are still a really impressive team.

The in-possession structure epitimises 'fluid rigidity'.

Key zones are consistently occupied but they are incredibly dynamic in relation to how the #8's and inverted fullbacks consistently interchange.

They are v. hard to press.

Fabian Hürzeler's Brighton were incredibly impressive against Liverpool.

It was one of the best tactical displays I have seen all season - Roberto De Zerbi-esque in many ways, except with extra added elements of pragmatism that made Brighton even better!

An analytical thread 👇 Hürzeler's team started off in a De Zerbi-esque 4-2-4 build-up.

The idea was to overload Arne Slot's zonal marking schemes.

Liverpool defend with Szoboszlai splitting the two #6's and van Dijk often being cautious positionally in the last line instead of going man-to-man.

Slot's Liverpool may be a little more rough around the edges than City and Arsenal, but their tactical base is top & their collective quality is unstoppable.

For these reasons, I can't rule them out of a title race or as legitimate Champions League contenders despite concerns 👇 Arne Slot's Liverpool remind me of Klopp's Liverpool last season.

Elite quality, the on-ball principles are top, and the press improved a lot in the Leipzig/Arsenal game.

Only concerns = Slot's consistency in pressing tactics + the consistency of Gravenberch, physicality in MF.

Rúben Amorim.

A constructive analysis identifying how likely he is to succeed at Manchester United.

A JUGGERNAUT THREAD! 🚨 As much as there are positive characteristics in Amorim's preferred use of system at Sporting, there are tactical holes that can be exploited, both in and out of possession.

One of Sporting's biggest flaws is how these use their middle centre half, Diomande, in the build-up.

Rúben Amorim to Manchester United...

An analytical thread on Amorim's Sporting team, his tactics, and how they translate to the Premier League.

THREAD! 🚨 Manchester United had some blatant identity issues under Erik ten Hag.

They often tried to press but failed - this saw them defend in a passive mid-block towards the end of his tenure.

They also mixed between playing out and kicking it long in totally different structures..

Blah, blah, blah.

Red card chat 🥱

Let's talk tactics when Arsenal had 11 men. That makes a hell of a lot more sense to do because that is, after all, the state Arsenal will be in for 99% of the rest of the season, and that determines their likelihood of WINNING...

THREAD! 🚨 Arsenal played a well balanced tactical system against Bournemouth.

4-2-4 in the build-up which often looked like a 3-4-4 as Raya played in the middle of Saliba and Gabriel.

Higher up that 4-2-4 became a 3-2-5/2-3-5 (White tucked in, Calafiori inverted, Rice/Merino high #8's).

Arsenal are not identifiable through one set tactical shape.

It's best to separate the new iteration of Arteta's Arsenal into three simple categories:

- The build-up,
- The offensive triangle on the left,
- And the offensive triangle on the right.

All of which form 'one' unit. Thomas Partey drops into the first line of build-up to overload PSG's first line of pressing. Calafiori becomes the spare man and Arsenal find him.

Partey drops into the first line of build-up, Gabriel becomes the spare man.

Rice drops, Partey moves up, now he's free.

Arne Slot's Liverpool have some tactical issues, both with and without the ball.

A thread 👇 When Liverpool build in a 4-3-3, Slot asks a lot of his players.

The absence of a second pivot player increases the distances between the teammates which means short, sharp, and snappy combinations in close proximity are not always possible.

The reliance on individuals is high.

Mikel Arteta's Arsenal have evolved.

Arsenal are no longer easily identifiable tactically.

So often we have seen Arsenal use positional play principles, and they are still there, albeit in an entirely different way.

Below, I review "The New and Improved Arsenal".

THREAD! 🔴⚪️ 'Rigidity' is a concept that centres around the consistent occupation of specific zones on the pitch.

Fluid rigidity, however, is a related but different concept that centres around the consistent occupation of specific zones on the pitch with freedom to alternate between zones.