Arsenal are so good at set-pieces it’s boring. Their long throw-ins are ridiculous. They need to find other ways of scoring.
Those are not our words but the words of various pundits and neutrals in recent weeks.
Mikel Arteta’s men have won all three of their Champions League encounters and sit top of the Premier League.
It’s not been a captivating start to the new campaign for the Gunners but they’ve been super effective. Their core strengths, namely set-pieces and their defensive record, have formed the bedrock of Arteta’s success in recent years.
Arsenal are as solid as they’ve ever been, conceding just one open play goal all term in the top-flight. Yet, with a reliance on dead-balls again, some wonder just how sustainable this model will be.
The fact is, that as Arsenal showed this week, they are not over-reliant on those situations and have a great deal more than that in their locker.
Despite what pundits say, they are not boring. You don’t beat Atletico Madrid, one of the most defensively sound sides in Europe, 4-0 if you’re dull.
Indeed, their win over Diego Simeone on Tuesday evening was a statement to the rest of their continent, and while they did score from two set plays, their performance in the final third was perhaps their most impressive of the campaign.
Gabriel, Viktor Gyokeres and Gabriel Martinelli found themselves on the scoresheet but truth be told, it was Arsenal’s midfield that helped springboard them to this win.
The progression of Arsenal's midfield under Mikel Arteta
At this current moment in time, it feels like this squad of Arsenal players are the most complete set they have ever had under the Spaniard.
The backline has been bolstered beyond belief and they now arguably have the greatest depth in defence across Europe’s top five leagues, ensuring that no matter who plays, they will be solid.
GK – Bernd Leno
RB – Ainsley Maitland-Niles
CB – Sokratis
CB – David Luiz
LB – Bukayo Saka
CM – Lucas Torreira
CM – Granit Xhaka
CAM – Mesut Ozil
RW – Reiss Nelson
LW – Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
CF – Alexandre Lacazette
The forward line has been less of a priority but when you spawn Bukayo Saka from the academy and sign Gabriel Martinelli for just £6m, there wasn’t a huge amount wrong with it until last season. No player hit double figures for goals for the first time since the 1923/24 campaign.
The midfield, however, has really taken Arsenal to the next level in recent years.
Gone are the likes of Thomas Partey, Jorginho and Granit Xhaka. They all play elsewhere now but in a bid to replace them, they have done so superbly well.
Declan Rice was never going to flop and indeed, despite setting the club back a whopping £105m, has been a game breaker.
His tally of nine goals and ten assists in 2024/25 was a career high, while that pair of free-kicks against Real Madrid will never be forgotten. In the words of Sky Sporters reporter Sam Blitz, he’s also now “the best set-piece taker in the world”. It’s hard to disagree with that statement considering all four of his assists this season have come from dead-ball scenarios.
He’s now surrounded by some of the best midfield talents around. Tempo-setter Martin Zubimendi, another Martin in Odegaard and Eberechi Eze all make the Englishman’s job easier by either sitting behind him in Zubimendi’s case or providing the creative spark as Odegaard and Eze do so well.
When Odegaard is fit, it really does feel as though the midfield has everything you could want: power, creativity, goals and reading of the play.
Arsenal's new Xhaka is playing his part
When Xhaka arrived at Arsenal in 2016 under the stewardship of Arsene Wenger, it was a deal that was met with scepticism.
The Gunners had spent £30m on a talent from the Bundesliga, a rather unknown one at that, and the opening few years of his time in north London were a rollercoaster.
Xhaka was a defensive midfielder by trade when he arrived but his defensive work simply wasn’t up to scratch, quickly becoming known as a walking red card, picking up two in his opening season.
While the Swiss midfielder’s discipline did improve, fans grew impatient with his displays over a number of years and it all came to a head under Unai Emery.
He was now the captain but was swiftly relieved of his duties after chucking the armband to the floor and gesticulating towards the Emirates crowd when he was booed off the field during a game with Crystal Palace.
Xhaka’s revival under Arteta, therefore, was quite the sight. The Spaniard gave him a freer role as a left-sided 8 and he repaid the manager’s faith by delivering the finest campaign of his career to date in 2022/23.
That season, the now 33-year-old scored nine times and registered seven assists. The redemption arc was complete, only for him to leave in the summer of 2023 for Bayer Leverkusen.
Now back in the Premier League with Sunderland, Xhaka has rolled back the years, providing three assists in his first eight matches for the Black Cats.
But, who embodies the spirit of Xhaka in the present Arsenal squad? You may well think the aforementioned Rice is a strong candidate but in Zubimendi, they have someone who delivers similar attributes.
Now, it must be stated, the former Real Sociedad star is certainly classier on the ball and more disciplined than Xhaka ever was in Arsenal colours.
Yet, there are certainly parallels. Xhaka arrived as a defensive midfielder, a deep-lying playmaker, before going on to become a threat in the final third.
The same can be said of Zubimendi. He was declared “the best #6 in the world” by some after his dominant display during Arsenal’s 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid.
Minutes played
73
Accurate passes
41/46 (89%)
Touches
56
Key passes
3
Big chances created
1
Accurate long balls
2/2
Accurate crosses
1/1
Distance covered
8.3km
Successful dribbles
1/1
Interceptions
2
Clearances
3
That he may well be, but the 26-year-old is also a threat in the final third, just as Xhaka became in the latter stages of his Gunners career.
Zubimendi has already scored twice in the Premier League, netting a brace in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
His vision and eye for a pass are simply awe-inspiring too. Xhaka was known for a defence-splitting pass but Arsenal’s new Spaniard is cut from a similar cloth in that regard.
He provided a delicious assist for Viktor Gyokeres’ first goal for the club in pre-season and has often been the man to provide the pre-assist.
It was Zubimendi’s lovely ball in behind the West Ham defence for Eze that eventually led to Rice’s goal in the game and to pinpoint another example, he very nearly provided a remarkable assist for Gyokeres again on Tuesday night, popping the ball up and playing it behind.
The Basque midfielder has been a sensational addition, billed as “one of the best Emirates era signings” by Arsenal podcaster and content creator, Jamie Kent.
He’s not had a bad game yet and perhaps saved his finest performance in the famous red and white for Simeone’s men earlier in the week.
The big-money summer arrival completed 89% of his passes, created that big chance for Gyokeres and left the field with three key passes. He also won three of his five duels.
An all-round package, there is a reason that former Ballon d’Or winner Rodri has said that he is “leaving him the keys to the [national] team.”
As aggressive and eccentric as Xhaka he may not be, but the passing range and ability to pop up with key attacking contributions are certainly alike. You may well argue that Zubimendi is the best of both Xhaka and Rice. What a mighty fine combination that is.