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Arsenal Must Press to Protect Their Own Defence from Vardy and Musa
- Updated: August 19, 2016
You’d have got long odds against both of last season’s Premier League top two losing on the opening day of the new season, and anyone who did have a flutter will have been handsomely rewarded.
Leicester City kicked off the campaign with a terrible 2-1 defeat to newly promoted, steeped-in-turmoil Hull City, while Arsenal closed out the weekend’s play with an exhilarating 4-3 loss to Liverpool.
The results slide these two teams firmly under the microscope, as uncertain summers have no doubt plagued their preparations for the 2016-17 season, and an opening loss only serves to weaken the ground beneath. In Arsene Wenger’s case, it’s tempting to suggest there are already a few fissures on show.
It also heaps pressure on their contest this weekend, as both will be desperate to snap back to winning ways, yet both also have a number of questions to answer with regard to how they’ll line up and which personnel will take to the field.
Leicester City
There was an N’Golo Kante-shaped hole in Leicester City’s midfield last Saturday; his presence was sorely missed in a number of areas.
In 2015-16, the Frenchman he was a defensive monster, leading the Premier League in tackles and interceptions, according to WhoScored.com, and Andy King failed to exert himself in the centre alongside Danny Drinkwater.
Kante’s weaving dribbles from deep and understated linking of the midfield moves were missed even more, though, with King and Drinkwater a far less dynamic, mobile pair.
The question now is simple: Should Claudio Ranieri plug Nampalys Mendy (injured for Saturday, but bought as the Kante replacement) into this side and continue in a 4-4-2/4-4-1-1-esque shape, or should he shift systems and add a body to central midfield?
Robert Huth will likely be restored to the defensive line after serving his suspension, meaning Luis Hernandez, who had an awful afternoon at the KCOM Stadium last weekend, will drop to the bench. It also means Wes Morgan can go back to the RCB slot—he was moved to LCB to accommodate his new partner—and that will hopefully spark an improvement from him, too.
Demarai Gray flashed excellence against Hull but also made some poor decisions, opening the door for the more “reliable” Marc Albrighton to start should Ranieri feel it necessary.
Arsenal
Arsene Wenger told reporters at his pre-match press conference that he may take a gamble on the fitness of his returning Euro 2016 stars. Laurent Koscielny, Mesut Ozil and Olivier Giroud have all returned to training late and were not involved against Liverpool.
The motivation for playing Koscielny and Ozil …
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