Chapter 29: Tactical Position

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Chapter 29: Tactical Role

Wenger was naturally pondering this question as well.

After returning from France, he had given the first-team squad a day off, so the Colney training ground was somewhat quieter than usual today.

Wenger had arrived at the office early.

Standing before the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows, he fell into deep thought.

In truth, he was reminiscing—recalling the strongest Arsenal lineup he had once possessed.

That team had been built around a 4-4-2 formation with a diamond-shaped midfield.

The starting forward partnership had been Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp.

Henry was lightning-fast, with exceptional attacking ability. When he launched forward from the left channel, he was almost impossible to stop.

Bergkamp, meanwhile, possessed exquisite technique. Passing, shielding the ball, dribbling, shooting—he excelled at everything.

Together, the two had formed one of the finest strike partnerships in the entire world.

Supporting them were two immensely powerful defensive midfielders in the center of the pitch.

Patrick Vieira alongside Gilberto Silva.

It was this formidable central midfield pairing that had truly stabilized the formation, supplying ammunition to the front line and allowing the two forwards to fully display their talents.

The problem Wenger faced now was this:

On the one hand, he was not entirely confident about using Li Mo as a lone striker.

His strengths were still too one-dimensional.

He needed a center-forward capable of holding his position up front and occupying the opposing defense.

That would allow Li Mo to make full use of his intelligent movement and focus on finishing chances.

In other words, if Arsenal wanted Li Mo on the pitch, they would be better off playing with two center-forwards.

Giroud could create space and cover for Li Mo.

But that immediately created a major problem in central midfield.

Arteta and Diaby would be adequate as a pairing—but what about the two flanks?

“Perhaps we could follow Manchester City’s example and use Cazorla or Wilshere as a wide attacking midfielder,” Bould suggested.

Manchester City were also playing within a 4-4-2 system, and their attacking playmaker operated from the left flank. That position was occupied by David Silva.

In modern football, the wide attacking midfielder was still a relatively new concept.

As defenses around the edge of the penalty area grew increasingly compact, teams needed better ways to organize attacks and control the rhythm of play.

The first major tactical adjustment to emerge was the deep-lying playmaker.

As the name suggested, it involved dropping the attacking midfielder deeper into the field.

The responsibility for orchestrating attacks shifted from the traditional attacking-midfield position to the deeper midfield role.

Andrea Pirlo’s deep-lying playmaker system was one of the most successful examples.

By placing the team’s chief orchestrator deeper in his own half, a team could keep him away from the areas most heavily guarded by the opposition and prevent him from being surrounded by defenders.

This tactical adjustment soon became widely adopted.

And once the idea of placing the playmaker in areas where the defense was weaker had taken hold, the wide attacking midfielder emerged over the following two years.

Typical examples from La Liga included David Silva, Juan Mata, and Isco.

Arsenal, meanwhile, also had two players capable of operating both centrally and out wide: Cazorla and Wilshere.

“Use two wide midfielders—one playing as a wide attacking midfielder and the other as a winger. For example, Podolski on the left and Wilshere on the right, or Cazorla on the left and Walcott on the right. That kind of combination allows for all sorts of tactical variations: Giroud drops deep, the winger pushes forward, and the wide attacking midfielder cuts inside.”

Bould continued demonstrating the tactical possibilities created by two center-forwards, a wide attacking midfielder, and a winger, moving magnetic pieces across the tactics board.

A look of considerable interest appeared on Wenger’s face.

At heart, Wenger was not a manager who favored conservative tactics. His Arsenal were, after all, representatives of beautiful football in the Premier League.

Only attacking football could truly be called beautiful.

In fact, he was also considering another matter: both Cazorla and Wilshere were rather injury-prone.

If they could take turns playing and reduce the intensity of their workload, perhaps they would suffer fewer injuries.

Just then, Wenger suddenly remembered something.

“Li hasn’t come to training today?”

Although the team had been given the day off, Wenger remembered that Li Mo had still come in to train during the previous break.

“He’s in the gym,” Bould replied.

Wenger nodded when he heard that.

Li Mo’s height was an obvious asset.

Building up his physique would also help him establish himself as a center-forward.

Li Mo finished a full day of training.

On the way back to his lodgings, he wore a smile on his face.

The reason was simple.

After training desperately hard, the integration of the Walcott Burst Acceleration Module was finally complete.

His explosive speed had now more or less returned to the level it had been at a year earlier—and might even have surpassed it.

One could imagine Li Mo lurking along the defensive line before suddenly using his acceleration to shake off his marker, burst into the penalty area, and finish a one-on-one chance.

And when necessary, he could also use that acceleration to break free from his opponent.

Now Li Mo wanted to complete the Balotelli Strength and Physical Contest Module and the Basic Passing Training Module.

Once he did, he would be able to hold off defenders, burst past them, pass the ball, and score from the front line.

Wouldn’t his tactical importance rise rapidly after that?

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Li Mo’s neighbors had grown accustomed to seeing him train every day, leaving early and returning late.

As usual, Mrs. Russell prepared him a meal of macaroni and pan-fried salmon.

Although it was rather bland, Li Mo still ate with great relish.

Afterward, he went back to rest.

The following day, after the break, the players gradually returned to the Colney training ground.

“Hey, Li!”

“You’re here early.”

“Good morning, Li.”

When the players arrived at the training ground, they greeted Li Mo, who had already been there for some time.

From an unnoticed member of the first team to one of its foremost figures, Li Mo had needed only two matches.

That was the nature of competitive sport.

Status was earned through ability.

And one sign of Li Mo’s rising status was the change in his tactical role within the team.

During the morning tactical meeting, Wenger explained some of the team’s key principles when playing in a 4-4-2 system.

When the players saw the formation arranged on the tactics board, they all turned to look at Li Mo.

Because they understood perfectly well that Wenger had chosen to arrange the team in a two-striker formation entirely because Li Mo was there.

Previously, if Arsenal had played with two center-forwards, it had merely been a desperate measure—an attempt to push more players into the attacking third when the team needed a goal.

But now, the team was genuinely preparing to rehearse a two-striker system.

The person happiest to see that formation, however, was not Li Mo.

It was Giroud.

Giroud had also joined the club during this season, and the pressure on him was considerable.

He had yet to score a goal—especially troubling given how much higher his transfer fee had been than Li Mo’s.

Li Mo’s outstanding performances in recent weeks had made Giroud feel the pressure as well.

But now that the team was practicing a two-striker formation, it was obvious who the other center-forward would be.

It was undoubtedly him.

The partnership between him and Li Mo had already produced five goals for the team.

At the very least, that suggested his place in the starting lineup was secure.

End of Chapter