by thebigbangtheo » Mon Jan 27, 2020 12:50 pm
As I may have mentioned before, when he was in Germany he wasn't a DM but played alongside one to provide those pass master/playmaker from deep elements at the base of the midfield, with the primary defensive and ball winning /'if your names not on the list your not coming in' bouncer role being that of his partner.
Now that a few more people have relented and to a degree acknowledged that a half decent player does indeed lurk within him like a version of the Hulk/Bruce Banner, does anyone else think that if he is to be retained beyond this season, it might be more productive to play him further forward in the no.10 role as an alternative option to Ozil?
Some of the best play that I've seen from him has come when in midfield for Switzerland when he seems to be deployed a bit closer to the attacking third of the pitch as opposed to the defensive third.
We know he possess the passing ability to do the role and as a by product might get to see 2/3 thundering shots from him each game, not to mention that on the occasions when he does lose the ball it will be a hell of a lot nearer to their goal than ours, plus he could probably rob the ball back once or twice when the opposition are playing out from the back.
With an actual/real/proper/genuine/bonafide defensive midfield partner alongside Torreira and Xhaka in said role, would we finally have a midfield of some substance again, one where the likes of Guendouzi can come in, get some minutes/odd game so that his talent gets the nurturing and support it needs instead of being over exposed and burnt out like the way we were going before Arteta.