Arsenal have brought in Fabio Vieira from FC Porto to help them unlock games, especially when the men in white socks see plenty of ball with the opponents sitting either on a low-block or on a hybrid of low & mid-block – something the Gunners have struggled to do for a while now. The days of technical midfielders who could pass the ball into the net after being on the end of a few feather touch play seemed long gone for Arsenal with the crop they had in the middle of the park, but Mikel Arteta has been vocal about reigniting that technical spark in the midfield which not only helps the Gunners to unlock games but also is an advocate to dominate them beautifully.
The incoming of Fabio Vieira has such implications; if you look at the passes he makes to break those defensive lines can prove a nightmare on its own not only for a defender or two but for a system of maintaining that line to subside space. Arsenal have (although not official yet, but its no more a secret) brought in Gabriel Jesus to lead the front line in the upcoming season, and this shows how all the transfers Arsenal are making are not only interconnected but are also immaculate in a system. Jesus is known to make those runs in-behind defence – mainly bisecting the centre-backs to get some breathing space right in front of the goal and is an ever-present runner on the far-post when the possession is laid through to the wide areas in zone 13 & 15 of the pitch, this is where someone like Fabio Vieira can play his pass and help the Gunners’ get an instant threat on goal without any high risk and yet with a highly probable reward.
Alongside Fabio Vieira, Arsenal are also said to be interested in bringing Youri Tielemans to the Emirates. The Belgian may have his dampers defensively time and time again but he does, again, bring that much-needed quality on the ball in the final third. Youri is not only about moving the ball around, he also has a knack to pick up passes and spaces that help split defensive lines.
Arsenal are expected to want to keep the ball for ninety minutes – and playing a high-risk game to rely on the short passes of Martin Odegaard to create a goal-scoring opportunity has proved to hit back on multiple occasions. These transfers not only make sense as regards with the system that Mikel has employed but also bring the infamous technical quality to Arsenal’s midfield – something the Gunners’ faithful will be excited about.
