Gabriel vs Mertesacker: Who should partner Laurent Koscielny for Arsenal?

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Earlier in the season, Arsene Wenger was invited during a press conference to reply to Gary Neville’s assertion that Arsenal didn’t prepare well enough for big games; that they were more concerned with ‘how they’ll pass the ball, score with a bicycle, how much fun they’re going to have.’ Wenger’s response was notably acidic, branding Neville’s comments ‘ridiculous’ and stating sarcastically: “We just turn up on a Saturday and go out and play.” A nerve had clearly been touched.

If Arsene Wenger is frustrated by the public’s perception of him (that he doesn’t give his teams much tactical instruction or concern himself with the opponent) he only has himself to blame in a sense. I say this because the perception is in part fuelled by Wenger’s reluctance to talk tactics in public. This is in stark contrast to other managers, such as Brendan Rodgers, Rafa Benitez or Jose Mourinho who aren’t shy in coming forward when it comes to talking about the inner workings of their mind (at least in victory).

More regular watchers of Arsenal however, are more sensitive to the subtle changes and alterations that Wenger adopts in order to get a result against a particular opponent or put an end to a poor run of results. Arsenals have gone far more direct in the last three matches, bypassing a central midfield that is without natural ball players, and it has earned them seven points from a possible nine. Evidence of this being that Arsenal put more crosses into the box against Leicester City than in any other game this season.

Arsenal looked to hit Olivier Giroud early, with Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey running beyond him. It’s not quite route one, but its not too far away. It’s a clear tactical and stylistic change, yet not one that will get too much coverage because, as the orthodoxy states, ‘Arsenal don’t have a Plan B.’ If anyone utters this phrase on the topic of Arsenal, ignore them, because they haven’t been paying attention.

For the remainder of the season, Arsene Wenger’s choice of centre back to partner Laurent Koscienly will be particularly revealing. At the top end of the pitch, Wenger has two radically opposed options to choose from in Giroud and Theo Walcott. A similar dilemma exists at the back between Gabriel and Per Mertesacker. Both have distinguished attributes but also some quite obvious limitations (rather like Giroud and Walcott). Who Arsene Wenger goes with and for which games, will tell us a lot about how he envisages his team playing from a tactical perspective.

Since arriving in 2011 just days after an 8-2 defeat against Manchester United, Per Mertesacker has been a rich source of stability for Arsenal. His lack of pace meant scepticism abounded regarding his suitability to English football; this scepticism has been hard to shake off and is the reason why praise is often slow in coming his way, even when it is deserved. Much like Mikel Arteta, he brought calmness and professionalism to the team both on and off the pitch, following a period when London Colney saw its share of bad apples.

A turning point in the German’s Arsenal career came halfway through his second season when Laurent Koscienly became his regular defensive partner. The two forged a cohesive partnership throughout the second half of 2012/13 and were at the heart of a defence that kept 17 clean sheets in 2013/14. With Koscienly both willing and mobile enough to step out of the defensive line to directly engage opponents, Mertesacker revealed in his preferred ‘sweeper’ role, mopping up behind the Frenchman. Their partnership has been one of the most reliable in the Premier League, good enough to earn Arsenal a top four spot without necessarily being a ‘title winning’ partnership (according to some supporters’ arbitrary calculations).

Theirs is something of a textbook centre half duo; Mertesacker is primarily a zonal defender of a rather English type while Koscienly is principally a man marker of the recognisably continental type. One reason why Koscienly failed to establish much of a partnership with Thomas Vermealen was that the two were just two similar; both front foot defenders with a habit of trying to nick the ball in front of forwards, a style that carries an element of risk.

When Gabriel was bought in January 2015, many supporters hoped that he would displace Per Mertesacker and enable Arsenal to play a higher line and press teams due to his pace. The Brazilian is highly thought of, but is still to nail down a regular spot in the starting XI. He got his chance recently following Per Mertesacker’s suspension for a red card against Chelsea, and Arsenal kept two clean sheets with he and Koscielny at centre half against Southampton and Bournemouth. Injury ruled Gabriel out of Sunday’s match against Leicester City, a game that he looked certain to start in order to combat the speed of Jamie Vardy.

Much like Koscielny and Giroud, Gabriel is a player who was still playing lower division football well into his early 20s. Arsene Wenger has spoken recently about how players who have ‘made it the hard way’ have a ‘special hunger’, and it may be that this has been a preference when it comes to recruiting players. As late as August 2013 Gabriel was playing in the Brasileirão for Vitoria.

His style of defending is aggressive and rugged in the mould of Diego Godin, Lucio and Walter Samuel. Gabriel’s main advantage over Per Mertesacker is his abundant pace, exemplified by his recovery run and sliding tackle on Romelu Lukaku earlier in the season. The way in which he celebrated that challenge as if he had scored a goal ingratiated him with the fans a great deal. It is obvious that the Brazilian has a genuine relish for defending.

That said, Gabriel remains unpolished and prone to the odd mistake. As stated, he is relatively new to top flight European football and as such, is still developing. The pace of Hector Bellerin bailed him out against Bournemouth after he made a dog’s dinner of a simple long ball, he mistakenly tried to push up and play offside for Bayern Munich’s first goal in this season’s group stage game at the Allianz Arena and was too easily turned by Lewis Grabban as Arsenal dropped two points away at Norwich City.

So there are explicit arguments for and against the inclusion of both Gabriel and Mertesacker. Considering how the two players are diametrically opposed in terms of style and attributes, I sense that Arsene Wenger will work on a ‘horses for courses’ basis. Wenger’s choice of centre backs will make his tactical plans rather obvious.

For instance, Per Mertesacker best two performances so far this season were in home victories over Bayern Munich and Manchester City. In both matches, though against Bayern in particular, Arsenal were happy to cede possession to their opponents while defending deep and in numbers. This suit’s Mertesacker perfectly, as he is far more comfortable on the edge of his 18 yard box than closer to the halfway line.

Imminent away trips to Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United (two sides who tend to have plenty of the ball) look ideal for Mertesacker. His experience and composure could also be invaluable in two fixtures that tend to be white hot and frenetic. If Arsene Wenger selects Theo Walcott or Danny Welbeck up front in addition Per Mertesacker at the back, it strongly suggests that he wants Arsenal to drop off and hurt the opposition through quick transitions and counter attacks.

Conversely, should Wenger pick Gabriel, this would suggest that he feels that match at hand is one Arsenal can dominate. The more possession and territory you have, the higher up the pitch your centre backs move, and it is preferable to have two mobile to defenders who can recover should a move break down. Home matches against Swansea City, Watford, West Brom, Crystal Palace, Norwich City and Aston Villa seem to fall into this category. Olivier Giroud is likely to start in these types of game; pace is less effective against deep lying defences and Giroud’s presence in the 18 yard box could be an effective weapon.

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