Chelsea v Arsenal: One big game, five big questions

Sarah Winterburn

It’s a London derby on a European stage, and one which pits two of the Premier League’s newest managers against each other. Questions have been asked of Unai Emery and Maurizio Sarri this season but despite negativity from certain quarters, both have the chance to end the campaign with silverware.

For Emery, victory would also come with the Champions League qualification his Arsenal side were unable to secure in the league. Opposite number Sarri has faced criticism despite leading Chelsea to third, so this would be a chance for him to silence a few snipers, even though doubters would remain.

Tactically both men were lauded on arrival in England. Emery is a Europa League specialist having won it three years in a row with Sevilla, while Sarri came to Chelsea on the back of leading Napoli to three of the best league seasons in their history, albeit without lifting a trophy due to Juventus’ dominance of the division.

Eyes will be on both men in the final, and their performance here will shape the narrative of the summer…

 

1) Can Jorginho control the game?
When Maurizio Sarri made the move to London from Naples, he chose to bring with him a tactical lynchpin rather than an obvious star player. Brazil-born Italian international Jorginho is the player who, in theory, knits everything together in Sarri’s system. But that means when there has been criticism of Sarri’s tactics, some of it has fallen on the shoulders of the midfielder.

No player in Europe’s top five leagues has completed more passes than Jorginho this season. His total of 2782 passes shows how central he is to his team’s possession approach, and also that he’s heavily relied upon to play almost every game as the club don’t really have anyone else Sarri trusts for this role.

At his best Jorginho is the wall off which other players can bounce their passes, progressing up the pitch using short but direct combination play. It’s his job to link up with everyone from the goalkeeper to the attacking midfielders and his lack of assists – he has none this season – doesn’t necessarily mean a lack of creativity.

But when things are going wrong he can cut a frustrated figure, reflecting the agitation of his manager on the touchline as he struggles to link up with team-mates to execute Sarri’s plan. If Jorginho looks like he’s playing well then Sarri’s plan is working; if not, then something’s amiss and Arsenal have a chance.

 

2) Three or four at the back for Arsenal?
For the business end of their Europa League run, Arsenal have opted for a 3-4-1-2 formation which has seen them work their way past Valencia and Napoli into the final.

Gunners boss Unai Emery has a number of formations he can utilise and he has in fact used a back four in the majority of Premier League games late in the season, but one absentee may force his hand.

When Emery uses a back four, Henrikh Mkhitaryan nearly always takes a place in the starting XI, but the Armenian’s absence for political reasons, plus the Spaniard’s tendency to favour a back three in Europe, could point towards a trio of centre backs.

However, if he sees this more as a Premier League game – after all, it is against an English opponent – he could ditch his European plan in favour of something he’s used domestically. He has opted for a back four in both games against Sarri’s side this season, with a 4-3-1-2 defeating them at the Emirates, so he could be tempted to go that way again.

 

3) Will Lacazette and Aubameyang start together?
Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have scored 50 goals between them for Arsenal in all competitions this season, and there’s no doubt that the Gunners pose much more of an attacking threat when both are in the side.

In the Premier League this season they have scored 48% of their side’s goals, and even though starting with two up front can mean less emphasis is placed on defending, Arsenal don’t seem too effective in that department regardless of how many attackers they play.

So at this moment in time they might as well emphasise their strengths, putting pressure on a Chelsea defence which is also prone to mistakes when pressed from the front. Arsenal will miss the energy of Aaron Ramsey, but when it comes to picking holes in an opposition back line, there are few better than the mercurial Mesut Ozil.

Using Lacazette to pull the Chelsea defence around, while Aubameyang latches onto Ozil through balls, might be the way to go, but regardless of who is delivering the bullets, Arsenal will have a better chance of hitting the target if their two sharp shooters start together.

 

4) Can predictable defeat unpredictable?
Everyone knows how Sarri will set up — a Sarriball 4-3-3 — but no one knows which Chelsea will turn up performance wise.

On the other hand everyone knows what to expect from Arsenal – some exciting attacking play with just as exciting defending (for the opposition and the neutral) – but their shape and line-up can be more difficult to predict.

A team’s tactics aren’t all about the shape and formation they use, but with Sarri sticking to his usual plan all season, the formation used by Emery will set the tone for this game.

 

5) Will Hazard make the difference?
This could be Eden Hazard’s final game for Chelsea, with the annual rumours of a summer move finally sounding more concrete. If it is his final game for the club the Belgian will be even more determined to win a trophy, and the defenders he’s facing could be in for a difficult evening.

Coming up against a back three could isolate him against the error-prone Shkodran Mustafi and he could have plenty of joy cutting in from the left, while if the opposition opt for a back four he could find space behind the full-back and isolate a defender that way.

There are few better than Hazard at beating a player in a one-on-one battle, so getting him into these situations, via the Jorginho building block mentioned earlier, will be the best chance Chelsea have of lifting the trophy.

From an Arsenal point of view they will need to protect their defence by sticking a defensive midfielder on Hazard, whether that be Matteo Guendouzi or Lucas Torreira; someone will need to help out the defence to avoid those key one-on-one battles.

 

James Nalton – follow him on Twitter

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