Mikel Arteta was finally able to see one of his major tactical visions come to fruition for Arsenal against Chelsea.
Arsenal ran rampant at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday evening as they thrashed Chelsea 5-0.
The Gunners were scintillating in attack against the Blues. Arsenal fans were blown away by the creative display Martin Odegaard was able to put on. Meanwhile, Kai Havertz was able to bag a brace against his former club, and Ben White was even able to chip in with an unlikely double after Leandro Trossard had fired the hosts ahead early in the first half.
The platform for Mikel Arteta’s side to shine in the final third, though, was provided by the hard work done by Declan Rice and Thomas Partey in the middle of the park.
Mikel Arteta finally sees Arsenal vision take shape with Declan Rice and Thomas Partey together
Arteta has always seen the potential in partnering Rice and Partey together in the Arsenal midfield unit. When the Gunners shelled out £105 million to prise the 25-year-old away from West Ham United in the recent summer transfer window, the plan then would have been to install him alongside the Ghanaian.
However, Partey’s season has been decimated by injury. The £45 million former Atletico Madrid man was able to make only his fifth Premier League start of the season tonight. It was only his second start in the top flight of English football since August.
The 30-year-old was included in the Arsenal XI that beat Luton Town a couple of weeks ago, but Rice was given a rest on the bench in that match.
It has taken a long time for Arteta to finally see this duo in action from the start of a Premier League match, side by side, in the middle of the park. Against Chelsea, though, the partnership certainly delivered.
How Thomas Partey took Arsenal to a new level v Chelsea
With Partey at the base of the midfield, Rice was able to take up a more advanced role. The England man was a threat to the Chelsea back line all night. Rice has shown this season that he can be an effective presence in the final third.
The security offered by having both Partey and Rice alongside him also freed up Odegaard to focus on unlocking the Chelsea defence, safe in the knowledge that he would be covered for if he lost the ball.
With this midfield trio fit, in form, and finally all in place at the same time, Arsenal hit a new level tonight, and fans got a glimpse of the kind of setup Arteta has surely had in mind since pre-season.
Given his injury record, it is hard to say what Partey’s long-term future holds. Partey was listed amongst thirteen Arsenal players who could leave the club this summer. If he can continue to shine like he did tonight for the last four games of the current campaign, though, then he could be the difference-maker for the Gunners in the title race.
