Santi Cazorla Provides the Spark as Arsenal Learn Lessons of the Past

Arsenal banished the ghosts of some disastrous away performances past with a superb win at Manchester City. Key to the victory was Santi Cazorla, whose twinkle-toed performance lit up the Etihad Stadium.

For years, Arsenal have seemed curiously unwilling to learn the lessons of a string of heavy defeats. Last season was particularly painful for Arsenal fans, as their team shipped more than five goals at City, Liverpool and Chelsea.

The penny finally seems to have dropped. Arsene Wenger, usually so infamously stubborn, showed a willingness to compromise his principles. Arsenal knew they could not approach this game with the gung-ho approach that has seen them ruthlessly dissected in the past. Instead, they balanced their natural flair with a tenacious and organised attitude to the defensive side of the game. The result of the redeployment speaks for itself.

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They looked like a different team—and Santi Cazorla looked like a different player. He’d already shown some outstanding form in recent weeks, making the No. 10 role his own with a series of swashbuckling displays. 

Against City, he stepped up another level.

He was Arsenal’s key player, scoring one goal and creating another. His performance was about far more than that: Stationed unusually deep in central midfield, Cazorla was consistently able to use his low centre of gravity and impeccable close control to dance away from the opposition. That bought Arsenal time, space and an opportunity to recover. It was invaluable to the collective effort and a perfect demonstration of how technical ability can be used to protect a lead.

His performance was summed up by one second-half run. He recovered possession on the edge of his own box before dribbling half the length of the pitch, evading countless City defenders along the way. When fatigue eventually caught up with him and the ball spun away from his magnetic feet, he threw his body in the way of the City clearance. The Spaniard showed guts to match his skill.

This may be remembered as Cazorla’s defining performance in an Arsenal shirt. At the start of the season, it seemed as if he may have lost his spark. However, the flame of his talent has burst spectacularly back to life. In this form, it’s impossible to see him being displaced by the fit-again Mesut Ozil.

Almost as eye-catching was Cazorla’s midfield partner, Francis Coquelin. The Frenchman was on loan in the Championship with Charlton a few weeks ago and now finds himself on the winning side at the Etihad. Injuries have granted him an opportunity, and he has seized it in remarkable fashion. 

Cazorla and Coquelin appear to have ensured they will remain at the heart of the Arsenal midfield for the foreseeable future. In achieving this result, Wenger and Arsenal unearthed a template that will allow them to go in to big games with less trepidation. Against City, the Gunners showed they may finally have learned how to cope with elite opposition.

James McNicholas is Bleacher Report's lead Arsenal correspondent and is following the club from a London base throughout the 2014-15 season. Follow him on Twitter here.