by It takes a lot of trained courage to watch Leroy Sane destroy the left side of your team, dislodge one of your staunchest defenders, and respond by throwing Oleksandr Zinchenko into the action.
Zinchenko is a great technician and one of Arsenal’s most successful players, but he is not known for his defense in one-on-one situations. So when he replaced Jakub Kiwior at half-time of Arsenal’s 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich, more than a few Arsenal supporters would have feared the worst.
Zinchenko, up against the Sane fly? Obviously there were risks. But from Mikel Arteta’s perspective, there were also huge potential rewards. Zinchenko cannot defend Kiwior, a natural centre-back, but he can do much more with the ball.
Arsenal were 2-1 down at half-time and needed control. Zinchenko, perhaps more than any player in Arteta’s squad, helps provide that discipline. His arrival on the break changed Arsenal’s shape with the ball, and helped them get back into a cup that might have eluded them in the first half.
The decision to bring on Zinchenko as one of three substitutes was crucial to Arsenal’s second-half comeback. The others were Leandro Trossard, who scored after replacing Gabriel Martinelli, and Gabriel Jesus, who scored after replacing Jorginho.
The difference between Zinchenko and Kiwior is huge. Zinchenko is basically a playmaker, while Kiwior is primarily a rough centre-back. By swapping Kiwior for Zinchenko, Arteta effectively added another midfielder to his squad and changed the way Arsenal built from the back.
With Kiwior, Arsenal started the game with four goals. He played as a traditional left back, while Ben White played as a traditional right back. By turning on Zinchenko, Arteta changed the left-back position into an inverted role, with the Ukrainian switching inside whenever Arsenal had possession. It was a change that made Arsenal quieter, more secure and more solid.
Zinchenko was able to slow down the game, or speed it up when needed, and was much more involved in the action than Kiwior was. In the first 45 minutes, Kiwior had 27 touches of the ball and completed 16 passes. In the second 45 minutes, Zinchenko had 52 touches and completed 35 passes.
The respective heatmaps of the change in approach are shown:
In recent weeks, some Arsenal supporters have worried whether the club may already be moving on from Zinchenko and Jesus, the two Manchester City signings who did so much to transform the team after after they arrive in the summer of 2022.
It’s a reasonable argument: Zinchenko’s form and fitness have been more erratic this season, and Kai Havertz seems to have overtaken Jesus as the main starting center option.
However, Tuesday’s meeting with Bayern served as a reminder of the quality and experience of these two players. For Zinchenko, midfield control is added. And in the case of Jesus, a chaos attack is added.
When asked about Jesus, Arteta speaks loudly about Brazil’s unpredictability in the final third, his ability to create chances and create goals out of nothing. The 27-year-old showed this skill during his 23 minutes on the pitch against Bayern, especially with his excellent assist for Trossard’s goal.
Receiving the ball on the edge of Bayern’s penalty area, Jesus was able to take three visiting defenders out of the game. His sensibility created space for Trossard, and his pass was measured brilliantly.
He was the perfect example of what Jesus, at his best, can bring to an Arsenal team. Close control, bravery on the ball and exceptional awareness in tight spaces. Havertz is a different type of attacker, more of a runner off the ball than a magician on the ball, and Arsenal looked much more dangerous when Jesus came into the attack.
Over a period of 86 minutes, Havertz took four touches in Bayern’s penalty area. Jesus, in just 23 minutes, took three. Jesus also created two chances (for Havertz) and finished three of his three attempts (Havertz did not attempt a single dribble). As with Zinchenko, the coming of Jesus ultimately changed.
Arteta’s third decisive move was Trossard, who has become one of the most effective substitutes in Europe since joining Arsenal from Brighton in January last year. His goal was his sixth as a substitute in all competitions this season – no player has scored more from the bench in Europe’s big five leagues this campaign.
Arteta has been criticized in the past for being too slow to use their bench. Against Porto in the previous round, for example, he made one change before the 105th minute. But against Bayern, the Arsenal manager went on the front foot, and his brave decisions paid off.
