Mikel Arteta Warns Teams “Will Suffer” If They Continue Low-Block Tactic

By The Editor
on 29th November 2023

Mikel Arteta issues warning…

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has warned opposing teams that they will “suffer” if they continue to deploy a low block against us as the Spaniard attempts to revitalise our attack.

After yet another 1-0 win in the Premier League at the weekend, our fourth victory by that scoreline this season, the discourse has leant towards our attacking play compared to last season.

We look rather stagnated in the forward line this term as the team struggles to create clear chances and win games by a wider margin.

Having said that, we’ve only scored four fewer league goals than at this stage last season, and Arteta has pointed to the respect teams show us with how deep they arrange their defensive block.

The boss said that if teams continue this tactic, they will have to be prepared to suffer as we suffocate them and force the game to be played in the opposition’s half.

“Last year it happened again, especially in the second-phase of the season,” Arteta said when asked about Martin Odegaard’s form against teams that sit deep (via HaytersTV).

“Again – for the same reason – we started to not score that early. But then teams are going to suffer a lot if they want to defend there.

“We are getting better and we have more and more resources, more ways to attack that situation and we’ll master it.”

One of those ways has been by supplementing the squad with an aerial threat during the summer which has led to us becoming one of the most physically imposing teams in the league.

Kai Havertz and Declan Rice, both of whom are comfortably above six feet, have given us the physicality and aerial ability to add another dimension to our game.

We are the most lethal team from set-pieces in the Premier League, while Havertz’s role as an attacking midfielder allows him to make late runs into the box to meet crosses – just as he did for the winner at Brentford.