4. Podolski Should Be Tried on the Right
One thing that is certain about when Arsenal lines up its best team is that Lukas Podolski will be featured on the left side of the attack. But should he be? There are two primary arguments as to why he should be: the first is that his work rate and defensive abilities allow him to be excellent defensive cover for a marauding Gibbs or an even less defensively disciplined Santos, and the second is his ability to cross the ball, as evidenced by his assist to Giroud against West Ham. That cross is something that Gervinho on the left does not possess. However, I would like to see the German start on the right instead. Point three of this article suggests that Arsenal do not like to cross the ball: yes, Podolski crosses the ball better than Gervinho, but this is not a significant dimension of the Arsenal attack, and in any event I would like to see that width created by the fullbacks. Moving Podolski to the left, allows an in-form Gervinho to play his natural position, and allows Podolski to cut in on his favoured left foot. How many times have we seen Gervinho running onto a ball in space on that right side and try to squeeze it past the keeper at the near post with his right foot? Podolski on the right allows both players to have better angles on their respective favoured feet. Of course this formation switch is weaker defensively, as Gibbs and Santos are weaker defenders than Sagna and Jenkinson. However, the sacrifice to get more out of Gervinho and Podolski in terms of their shooting threat, and Girouds link-up play with those two is well worth at least trying.