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Unai Emery and his 25-man squad are back from their Singapore excursion and the team must be relieved to come back to friendlies that are much closer to home: one in Dublin against Chelsea and the other in Stockholm against Lazio.
Undoubtedly, our interest in the Singapore games was heightened by the fact that Arsenal is being led by a new manager for the first time in 22 years. Fans have been waiting to see the kind of work Emery will do with the team tactically and the changes he will make.
In Singapore, the team faced off against Spanish side Atletico Madrid and French giants PSG in two credible performances.
Here is a list of observations from Arsenal’s pre-season games in Singapore:
1. Unai Emery's tactical approach
While it yet to be seen how things will be done in the domestic league, during the 2018 International Champions Cup (ICC) at Singapore recently, Emery showed off not only his tactics but also gave subtle suggestions of what is to come in the new season.
Unai Emery is known to be one of the most studious coaches in football. Meticulous in his preparations, he is highly-demanding of his players and staff on and off the pitch. The boss seems to favour pressing football, similar to the one he practised at PSG, putting importance on "position of the ball and pressing if you haven't got it": any pattern to make the opponent concede possession. Improving the team off the ball sounds like a decent alternative to save Arsenal defensively, as it will facilitate better protection high up the pitch.
Like Wenger, Emery favours ball possession but unlike Wenger, he will probably deploy a team that high-pressing high-energy football on a regular basis. Under Wenger last season, the team flourished in games played high up the field, the North London derby against Spurs at home last season is an example.
Although Emery began with a 4-3-3 against Atletico Madrid in Singapore, it is likely he will with something closer to his favoured 4-1-4-1 once the Premier League starts rolling. The system will allow the team to attack with numbers while not skimping when defending. The man himself admitted, ‘For me, the 4-1-4-1 is the system which facilitates that type of pressing.’ Either that or he will stick to what has been the best choice for the players recently: 4-3-2-1.
2. Will Guendouzi play for the first-team?
Arsenal's head of recruitment, Sven Mislintat should be one happy man, after seeing Matteo Guendouzi in action for the gunners. The 19-year-old French midfielder was lauded for his performances against Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain during Arsenal’s pre-season tour of Singapore.
With an eye for passes, the young Frenchman is incredibly poised on the ball, despite getting pressed by Atletico players in the first game. Granted, he was a bit rough in the game against the Spanish side but he completely rectified himself against PSG, frequently asking for the ball and distributing it impeccably. Fans have even gone ahead and dubbed him the next Sergio Busquets.
Although the youngster has ingratiated himself to his new teammates, it is yet to be seen whether he will be off to play for the under-20s or whether Emery puts faith in him with a first-team inclusion.
3. Exciting bunch of academy players
The Arsenal youngsters stole the spotlight at Singapore with their vibrant and exciting game presence.
Despite their inexperience (proven in the penalty shootout against Atletico Madrid) being the prime drawback, the teenagers are still putting in a fight and proving themselves to Emery.
19-year-old Nelson announced himself as an attacking threat with his dangerous, surging runs. Guendouzi impressed with his composed play and outstanding ball distribution. Arsenal wonder kid Smith-Rowe, arguably the star of the tour, scored a memorable 20-yard strike against Atletico Madrid.
Of course, each of them will be vying for a spot in the first team but it's likely Emery will focus on his senior players come the new season. It's probable they will be given a chance at the Europa League group stages but a Premier League debut is still a stretch.
4. The centre-back dilemma
The Arsenal defence has been questionable (they conceded more goals in the Premier League than Burnley and Newcastle last season) for a long while now and there was very little to see defensively from the games at Singapore.
Rob Holding was incredibly unconvincing in the game against Atletico Madrid giving up the one goal that the Spanish side scored.
Despite having gone on a 19-match unbeaten run, Shkodran Mustafi has been struggling with consistency. The defender has the potential of being up there in the top tier which is why Wenger brought him in for 35 million in the first place.
We're yet to see how Emery is going to fix the problem. He's already brought in reinforcements - Sokratis Papastathopoulos is a much-needed signing. He will probably pair up with Mustafi while Laurent Koscielny remains injured for the year, while Hector Bellerin will remain on the right and Kolasinac or Nacho Monreal on the left.
30-year-old Sokratis is also doing pre-season interviews right instilling confidence in teammates and fans alike.
"I feel very good and I’m working on the pitch and also off the pitch to help all the young guys to be very good with us. I am here to show I am first a defender and after that comes everything else", the defender said.
