Arsenal vs. Anderlecht: Wenger's Failure to Tighten Up Costs Gunners the Game
Arsenal threw away a three-goal lead on Tuesday night as Anderlecht mounted an historic comeback in the UEFA Champions League.
Mikel Arteta, Alexis Sanchez and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain gave the Gunners a seemingly insurmountable lead, but the Purple and White pegged them back during an Anthony Vanden Borre-inspired rebuttal.
How did this match play out from a tactical perspective? Let's take a closer look.
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Formations and XIs
Arsenal played a free-flowing formation that was very difficult to track. At times it seemed a loose 4-4-2, at times it seemed more like a 4-3-3. Alexis Sanchez and Santi Cazorla's roaming often defined the shape at different stages.
Anderlecht played a straight-up 4-2-3-1, with a midfield shield of two who remained very defensive and Dennis Praet in the No. 10 role.
Anderlecht's 'Blockade' Falls to Combination Play
Anderlecht's 4-2-3-1 was very careful; Youri Tielemans and Sacha Kjlestan rarely ventured forward and worked hard to retain a pivot-like motion. Both focused on filling the space the other left when tilting to the side to defend the flanks, and they were both noticeably reluctant to lunge in on Alexis Sanchez for fear of getting beaten.
This resulted in a lot of early possession for Arsenal, who tried to circumvent the defensive wall and were eventually forced to move the ball to the flanks. After a couple of test-the-water runs, the right-hand side was chosen, and Chamberlain began linking with Calum Chambers to hit the byline.
Anderlecht's left-back Frank Acheampong did all he could to stem the flow of attacks, but his winger Conte was very wasteful with the ball breaking out and often lost it within a few seconds, creating yet more pressure. After a few low crosses from the right caused chaos in the box, the Purple and White moved resources over and the rest of the pitch opened up.
Free-flowing Arsenal; Struggling Anderlecht
Danny Welbeck's weaving runs found more space and became more dangerous very quickly, so it wasn't a surprise to see Chancel Mbemba foul him and give up a penalty. From there, Arsenal were all over Anderlecht like a rash, attacking every avenue and hitting every pocket.
The attack was very balanced and reeked of their impressive 3-0 win over Burnley at the weekend. Welbeck's movement and off-the-ball runs, Alexis' on-the-ball runs and quick team passing made them very, very difficult to contain.
On the contrary, the link between the defensive line and the front three was nonexistent for the away side; the inability to stitch the two together was the only negative in Praet, Tielemans and Kljestan's first-half performances. Anderlecht became snappy and desperate; Alexis' goal, the second of the night, came from a free-kick just outside the box.
Realising they needed to push out and attack a little more, the defensive line pushed up and tried to play out. That's when Arsenal began lifting balls in behind the defence and hitting runners, making life even more difficult for the visitors to establish any form of control.
No Adjustments from the Home Side
When Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made it 3-0 in just the 58th minute, this match took a decided turn toward the "international friendly" feel. Tielemans looked irritated, Anderlecht looked ready to finish and Arsene Wenger began substituting key players.
Unfortunately, the feeling of "it's done" filtered into the players, too, who took their foot off the gas and let the Purple and White back into the game with a sloppy penalty. That was all the away fans needed, who were fantastic all night, and they roared their side back into contention.
This, Mr. Wenger, is the moment in which you rein it in tactically and kill the game off.
The expansive formation used to gain the 3-0 lead is perhaps not the best formation to seal it with. Again the blurred lines made it tough to ascertain exactly what formation the Gunners were playing, but the fact remains it should have been tighter, more controlled and less open.
As Anderlecht grew in confidence, the number of Arsenal mistakes did, too. Anthony Vanden Borre's goal to make it 3-1 was offside by a full yard or two—everyone in the stadium bar the linesman could see that—but the nature of it was indicative of the lax attitude the home side had taken.
It would have been easy to implement long spells of possession, killing off Anderlecht momentum and tiring them out chasing. If there's one thing in particular Arsenal can do with ease, it's knock it about. Aaron Ramsey had a poor game in the heart of midfield, his wastefulness epitomising the side's late collapse.
Quickfire Conclusions
- Arsenal now look set to finish second in the group again. They are five points behind Borussia Dortmund.
- Alexis Sanchez was fantastic once again and the Ox looked very bright. The defending, however, was another story completely.
- Of all the Anderlecht players on show, Praet caught the eye as a prospect. He worked hard, closed down and improved on the ball as the game went on.
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