Where does he fit?
With the long awaited and much anticipated news that Pierre Eric Aubameyang is on his way, barring any last minute hitches, to North London we have asked our regular Gunners Town writers and contributors to consider how he will fit in. Where does PEA’s arrival potentially leave or previous record signing. Alexandre Lacazette and how they might like to see him utilised and in which formation.
So here is Part 2 with the second group of GT Crew members playing Wenger for the day and selecting their own 1st eleven and how they would line up…
First up is our resident Welsh blogger, Nige (aka @OldManGooner) who also runs the @ArsenalNWales account:
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Nige: I’ve picked this team for the following reasons :-
The backfour is picked for the obvious reasons as think they are our best defenders, I would then have Elneny sitting in front of the back four to protect them as and when the situation arises,for example this formation allows Bellerin and Monreal to be able to be used on the wings
In front of Elneny I would have Wilshere & Ramsey because Jack is one of the best midfielders in the league and I would have Ramsey because he is more disciplined than Xhaka and offers more of a goal threat.
Up front I have Ozil, Aubameyang & Mkhitaryan. Whilst Aubameyang would play in the middle I believe Ozil & Mkhitaryan are able to interchange between left and right to support him.
Next up is Alex Burns (@alexburns88)
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Alex: The potential incoming of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has many of us Arsenal fans wondering where will he fit in? Will he be put out wide? Will he partner Lacazette? Will Lacazette be dropped altogether? Well I think it is very difficult to fit so many attacking options into this Arsenal team, and with Aubameyang’s best form coming from a central position I believe you have to play him there in our first choice formation.
Alex Lacazette has struggled to meet the high standards he set earlier on in the season and with his lack of goals recently you can see why Arsenal have made Aubameyang a target. However, I am impressed with Lacazette’s technical ability and I believe he will be able to use his dynamism to cause problems out wide but coming centrally in the final third.
The athleticism of Monreal rotating with Kolasinac will give width to our left hand side meaning Lacazette will contribute heavily from central areas and in tight spaces in the final third. I have watched us many times this season and seen Lacazette calling for the ball in behind from any one of our midfield pivot players and he has hardly been played in which is definitely an issue, however I think the presence, pace and instinct from Aubameyang will give us a real edge going forward and that is my reasoning for him being a centre forward for us.
And lastly, Gunners Town co-owner, Paul (@invinciblog)
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Paul: I think this lineup would maximise our creativity, which would help Aubameyang hit the ground running. I’d like to see Ozil and Mkhitaryan having the freedom to move around the park, creating space for themselves and others.
Elneny may prove to be useful in that central DM role, seamlessly switching between a back 4 and a back 3.
Jack and Rambo have had successful partnerships before – and a mature Jack could help us in the transition from defence to attack, as Santi did. Rambo’s box-to-box tendencies and finishing skills could help overload stubborn defences.
This team is certainly capable of some extreme Wengerball with purpose – which is an aspect of our game that has been slowly lacking of late.
So that concludes Part 2 of “How to best incorporate Aubameyang in the Arsenal 1st Eleven”.
Interesting observations ..
Every formation has Koscielny, Mustafi and Monreal, our best 3 defenders and Nacho features whether a 3 or 4 is selected.
Elneny has seemingly brought himself to the fore in minds, with recent displays, being selected ahead of Xhaka in two of our three writers selections.
All three teams feature Aubameyang alongside Ozil and Mkhitaryan – but Lacazette only makes one of the teams, playing out wide.
In all selections – again!!
Oh yeah and Super Jack is still an ever present 🙂
Thanks for reading – let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
I was eleven-and-a-half. My family had just emigrated from Rhodesia to South Africa. All the kids on my street supported United or Liverpool, because of their Southern African goalkeeper connections: Bailey for United and Grobbelaar for ‘Pool. Problem was: I didn’t like the colour red – so when FA Cup Final day came around in 1979, I supported the team in yellow, even though their name sounded like “Asshole”. At the final whistle, I had bragging rights and a team that had won my heart.
Then I discovered that the Gunners also wore red. Luckily, I remained loyal, and the Arsenal has kicked my heart around ever since… (apart from a few lost years in the ’90s and early ’00s, when I was busy doing grownup things as a composer in Hollywood).
Abandoned invinciblog.com to launch this site with 1 Nil Down 2 One Up blogfather Dave Seager – and we have used this platform to help launch the writing careers of a number of amazing Arsenal bloggers.
You can not include Rambo in our first team anymore. He can’t retain the ball. All he brings is the engine.. What did Walcott teach us about these one trick ponies??