In the 33rd round of the Premier League, Arsenal lost 0-1 to Southampton, and the situation of competing for the fourth place was precarious. Looking back at this game, Arsenal will all be bad. In particular, the young midfielder Lokunga, who started the game, was both offensively and defensively ruined: the offensive end either sent a knife mountain ball to his teammates or a slow and leisurely missed fighter, the defensive end lacked a sense of position and there were many mistakes in returning the ball. According to statistics, his post-match rating ranked first in the team. In this regard, Arsenal fans have complained: obviously there is Hernenni on the bench, Arteta is dead or alive and refuses to use!
It all started with last summer window. In order to fight for the fourth place in the new season, Arsenal have made a big splash in the summer window. That includes signing Belgian giants Anderlecht youngster Lokunga for £15m. To be sure, this transfer deal is still necessary. After all, Thomas is prone to injury in Arsenal's two main midfielders, and Xhaka is often suspended for cards. Substitute midfielder Rynels has been clamoring for a transfer, and Ernenni has been added to the list of sellers. In this way, it is indeed necessary to buy the potential stock of Lokunga and slowly cultivate it.
In order to help Lokunga grow quickly, Arteta did not give him a chance at the beginning of the season. Unfortunately, it backfired, and Lokunga, who debuted in the Premier League, performed extremely badly. Due to his inability to adapt to the fierce confrontation and pressing of the Premier League, he often made mistakes in his random passes on the field, especially when he returned to the ball, he repeatedly made dangers in front of the goal. As for the offensive end, Lokunga often missed the best mistake of advancing because of this, becoming the offensive terminator in the mouth of the fans. Over time, the looking manager Arteta reduced his use of Lokunga. With the combination of Thomas and Xhaka's double backs, Arsenal, which has won consecutive victories, has given fans hope of competing for four.
It's just a pity that the good times are not long. With Thomas injured, Arsenal's midfield crisis re-emerged. Even more speechless, coach Arteta emulated the "master" Pep Guardiola's whole job: let Xhaka, who played at the back, make a cameo at left-back. As for the midfield position, it is to let The previously poor Lokunga start. It is this series of tactical adjustments that have allowed Arsenal to suffer a wave of Three Consecutive Premier League defeats, and the situation of competing for four is precarious.
In this Premier League match against Southampton, Lokunga played as the centre-back in a 4-3-3 formation. Still afraid to press, he made various passing mistakes, and even several return passes were robbed by opponents. Such a poor performance made Arsenal's defender line dangerous. As for the offensive end, Lokunga still has a weak sense of presence. The performance of not being able to attack and not coming back gave him a post-match rating of 5.7 and ranked first in the arsenal team. In this regard, Arsenal fans have complained: Lokunga is the son of Caita? Obviously, If there is Elnini, it is not necessary!
If you think about it, Hernenni, who was in Wenger's eyes at the time, was obviously much stronger than Locon. Especially on the defensive end, his scrambling interceptions can improve Arsenal's hardness. In addition, Elneny also had a long-range shot, especially the world wave against Barca that year is still impressive. In the absence of Lacazette and the lack of attack from other forwards, Ernenni's heavy artillery bombardment was a solution. More importantly, Elneg is the main midfielder of the Egyptian national team and has a lot of experience in the competition. It is worth mentioning that wenger still praises Ernenni after leaving office, considering him a modern midfielder with excellent ability.
Unfortunately, Wenger's praise did not change Arteta's mind, and Herneny was still difficult to reuse. To this end, Arsenal fans can only watch Arteta "pay the tuition" for Lokunga with one defeat after another. Looking at the rest of the fixtures, Arsenal are likely to lose the Champions League qualification as a result of the four defeats. I have to say that Arteta is sometimes too stubborn!