Kai Havertz was signed to replace Granit Xhaka as Arsenal's left-sided No 8 but uncertainty remains around the position and injuries are mounting. watch Newcastle vs Arsenal, live on Sky Sports Premier League from 5pm on Saturday; kick-off 5.30pm
Saturday 4 November 2023 22:30, UK
Mikel Arteta is facing a midfield selection dilemma ahead of Arsenal's meeting with Newcastle, live on Sky Sports on Saturday, as he continues to look for balance in the centre of the pitch.
The Gunners boss, already without Thomas Partey due to a muscular injury suffered shortly after he returned from a groin problem, has also lost Emile Smith Rowe due to a knee issue.
"He will be out for weeks," Arteta said of the 23-year-old at his press conference on Friday after he missed the Carabao Cup loss to West Ham. "How many weeks will depend on how he progresses. It's a big blow because he was getting some momentum."
Smith Rowe made his first Premier League start since May 2022 in Saturday's 5-0 win over Sheffield United but his injury, together with Partey's, leaves Arsenal light again as they head to St James' Park, with particular uncertainty around the left-sided No 8 role.
Arsenal's injuries have intensified the focus on Kai Havertz but Arteta was dismissive when asked whether he was concerned about the former Chelsea player's form in his press conference.
"I'm not going to pick out any individual," said the Arsenal boss. "We play as a team. When we play to our best, it's the team. When we don't, I am the maximum responsible for that."
Arteta has offered unwavering support for Havertz since his £65m arrival in the summer but adapting to his new role on the left side of the Spaniard's midfield has proved difficult.
Havertz started Arsenal's first four Premier League games of the season in the position as Arteta initially resisted external pressure to drop him, but since then he has only started two of six, his best contributions coming when he has been pushed up front.
The £65m fee ensured expectations were high following his arrival at the Emirates Stadium but replacing Granit Xhaka was never likely to be easy given how important he had become in the role.
Xhaka enjoyed his best season at the club last term, embracing the task of taking on more attacking responsibility and starting all but two Premier League games, scoring seven goals and providing seven assists before moving to Bayer Leverkusen.
Arteta was keen to emphasise that Xhaka himself needed time to adapt to the left-sided No 8 role when asked on Friday about the Switzerland international, who is continuing to impress for Bundesliga leaders Leverkusen since making the switch to Germany.
"Granit was a key player, he played almost every game for us," said Arteta. "We knew it was going to take some time, and it did, especially when I changed his role. There were a lot of questions about it, then he was in a great way. Here, it will happen the same."
The hope is that Havertz will come to terms with it in time, but the 24-year-old is a different type of player to Xhaka. It is already clear that his interpretation of the role differs too.
Havertz is less involved in Arsenal's general play and build-up, getting fewer touches and making fewer passes. He does, however, offer greater physicality, particularly aerially, which helps to make him an effective attacking outlet. He also attempts more shots.
His only goal so far has come from the penalty spot, against Bournemouth, but the idea is that a player who scored freely in Germany and played as Chelsea's No 9 will eventually show himself to be a considerable upgrade on Xhaka in terms of goal threat.
In the meantime, though, his vastly different profile, and his struggle to adapt to a midfield role having played as an attacker throughout his time at Chelsea, is giving Arteta a conundrum.
If Arteta decides against starting Havertz on the left of his midfield at St James' Park on Saturday, he could opt to move Declan Rice into the position, but that raises questions too, particularly with Partey unavailable to step in at the base of midfield.
Jorginho is next in line in that position but the 31-year-old's recent performances have been mixed. "I thought Arteta got it horribly wrong at Chelsea," said Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson this week.
"You have to play Declan Rice in the centre of the midfield. He pushes the team forward and you saw that when Jorginho went off. Rice moved into the middle and Arsenal began to get on top of Chelsea."
Arsenal were trailing 2-0 at the time of Jorginho's withdrawal but went on to salvage a draw. It is also worth noting that their winner against Manchester City came after the Italy international had made way for Partey, whose long pass helped set up the goal.
As Merson mentioned, though, the bigger issue with pushing Rice into the No 8 role is what you lose further back. His athleticism and awareness help to provide defensive security. Playing deeper also allows him to control Arsenal's build-up play.
That is another area in which the 24-year-old excels and another factor which may well deter Arteta from moving him out of the role when Arsenal go up against Newcastle this weekend.
If not Havertz or Rice, then who? Fabio Vieira is another option.
Arteta has talked up the Portuguese playmaker's potential on numerous occasions since his £34m arrival from Porto at the start of last season but he remains on the fringes of the team.
After a bright start to the campaign, during which he provided assists from the bench in games against Fulham and Manchester United, the 24-year-old has struggled for playing time.
There was a goal from the penalty spot after his late introduction against Sheffield United last weekend but he has only started two Premier League games. The last of those, against Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium, saw him taken off at half-time.
Vieira possesses considerable technical quality. On a rare start against West Ham in the Carabao Cup in midweek, he added another assist, for Martin Odegaard's late consolation goal, from one of three chances created over the course of the game.
But question marks remain over his physical robustness and those doubts are sure to be at the forefront at Arteta's mind for the kind of test that awaits his side against Eddie Howe's Newcastle.
In 45 minutes against Spurs, Vieira only regained possession once. Despite playing the full 90 minutes at the London Stadium on Wednesday, he did not make a single tackle or interception and only retrieved possession for his side on three occasions.
In the cauldron of St James' Park, a ground described by Arteta as "one of the toughest places to go" in the Premier League on Friday, it appears unlikely he will consider Vieira as a starting option in an increasingly problematic position. The conundrum continues.
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Former Arsenal star Paul Merson says the Gunners are going in the right direction but need to win the Premier League title sooner rather than later to go down as a team remembered in the club's history.
He told Sky Sports: "It's alright having a good young team, who are continually impressing, but you've got to win something. Unless they do, this team won't be remembered. No one talks about teams that don't win leagues. It's harsh but that's the reality.
"I do feel sorry for the Gunners because they are having to contend with the juggernaut that is Man City. But our young Arsenal team won the league when Liverpool were about. For people old enough to remember, if you finished above that Liverpool team you won the league. That's exactly the same as Arsenal now.
"If you look at Arsene Wenger's famous title winning teams, Manchester United were about then. No title win is a gimme.
"This current team have to find a way. they have to go on and win the Premier League sooner rather than later. That's the only way they go down in the history.
"It's such a hard thing to do. Getting your hands on that first title is a huge challenge but then getting your hands on the second one is also just as hard. We wax lyrical about this Arsenal team, and rightly so. But, in the end, they have to turn it into something."
This is a fixture where the temperature gauge is developing from 'lemon and herb' to 'extra hot'.
Both meetings last season between these two fiery teams that like to play on the edge had significant beef with 54 fouls committed and 12 yellow cards shown across the two fixtures. With the outright market hard to call, the fouls markets are where my punting instincts have been drawn to under the floodlights in what should be a raucous atmosphere at the cathedral of football. Just the raw numbers in terms of fouls committed make the 27 or more fouls to be awarded rate as an exciting option to follow with 11/4 with Sky Bet readily available.
Also, Dan Burn is bound to have trouble containing Bukayo Saka in one-on-one situations.
The full-back has been dribbled past 16 times this season - the only defender to have been dribbled past more is Pedro Porro. With Burn's position coming under threat down that flank, like last weekend where he made four fouls vs Wolves, Burn could be in an aggressive mood and that makes him a play in the fouls market. It's 4/1 with Sky Bet for him to repeat the feat of the corresponding fixture last season where he made three fouls when faced with stopping Saka.
Saturday November 4: Newcastle (A) - Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm (live on Sky Sports)
Wednesday November 8: Sevilla (H) - Champions League, kick-off 8pm
Saturday November 11: Burnley (H) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
Saturday November 25: Brentford (A) - Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm (live on Sky Sports)
Wednesday November 29: RC Lens (H) - Champions League, kick-off 8pm
Saturday December 2: Wolves (H) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
Watch Newcastle vs Arsenal on Saturday Night Football, live on Sky Sports Premier League from 5pm; kick-off 5.30pm
