Over the previous couple of seasons, Arsenal have been capable of create a energy in depth to their squad. Nearly all of gamers recruited for the reason that summer season of 2021 have been profitable to some extent, save for just a few youthful punts like Nuno Tavares and Sambi Lokonga, although they haven’t performed sufficient first workforce soccer to have had a distinctly unfavorable affect. Each large workforce has totem pole gamers who will just about play it doesn’t matter what however, for instance, Arsenal can justifiably begin any certainly one of Kiwior, Zinchenko or Tomiyasu at left-back with out creating a lot dialogue. Jorginho and Rice can workforce up in midfield with Havertz upfront, or else Havertz can play in midfield with Rice behind him and, once more, neither name would advantage a lot additional dialogue. The inclusion of Leandro Trossard’s title on the teamsheet would barely register. Then I believe there are a cluster of names within the first workforce squad who would possibly effectively be sliding out of view. Reiss Nelson, Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith Rowe not often register vital minutes now. Whereas Arteta was clearly agency about his selection of goalkeeper as quickly as he signed David Raya I believe we’ve got moved to a stage now the place all people accepts that Aaron Ramsdale just isn’t longed for N5. I’m sure that Thomas Partey will likely be moved on to any membership with an appropriate medical facility if such a membership may be discovered. Then there’s Cedric Soares and Mohamed Elneny, who will completely definitely go away the membership this summer season. Sambi Lokonga’s kind on mortgage at Luton is important solely in a switch price sense, whereas a extra everlasting resolution will nearly definitely be discovered for Kieran Tierney this summer season too. In essence, there’s a sturdy sense of hierarchy throughout the squad. The core gamers, the essential gamers, the perimeter gamers and the ‘oh yeah, I forgot that he nonetheless performed for us’ gamers. The one exception, for my part, is Fabio Vieira. The Portuguese doesn’t match comfortably into any of those classes (which, to be truthful, I’ve simply made up). A part of that’s as a result of the harm he suffered within the winter, and the following layoff, has robbed us of a correct likelihood to evaluate him in what at all times felt like a ‘jury is out’ form of season. The amount of cash Arsenal spent on Vieira offers him a standing that neither Tavares or Lokonga have been ever more likely to get pleasure from. When the Gunners signed him in the summertime of 2022, it didn’t really feel like Arteta was plugging a spot within the squad. To me, it felt like an opportunistic signing. He was simply beginning to explode with FC Porto and value round £35m. With the way in which price inflation is these days, I’m certain Arsenal’s considering was alongside the strains of ‘if we wait one other season he may cost us £100m.’ Nonetheless, there’s potential alternative on the horizon for him. Neither Partey nor Jorginho are going to be with Arsenal for the long-term- each would possibly even go away this summer season. Which may necessitate that Arsenal funnel funds in the direction of a deeper midfielder. The competitors he has confronted from Emile Smith Rowe within the ‘left eight’ position will certainly not be a difficulty subsequent season both. Kai Havertz has been very efficient as a striker, which additionally doubtlessly leaves that left midfield position extra open for him. Curiously, throughout pre-season, Vieira performed nearly solely on the appropriate of the pitch, both as a right-winger or as the appropriate eight. It might be that Arsenal have been simply taking a look at him there in a comparatively consequence free atmosphere. Nonetheless, he began the league sport at Goodison Park in September within the ‘left eight’ position. Arteta has proven a proclivity for enjoying a extra technical participant in that place for sure sorts of sport. Again in September, Vieira began at Goodison Park, Trossard began there at Brentford and Smith Rowe began there at Nottingham Forest. Towards low blocks and really tall defences, Arteta has favoured a technician and that’s in Vieira’s favour. As a result of on the appropriate facet of the pitch, he can solely ever aspire to be ‘helpful back-up’ for Odegaard and Saka. And as we noticed with Sambi Lokonga and we’ve got in all probability seen with Nketiah and Nelson too, ‘helpful back-up’ is a task that normally results in stagnation for gamers of their developmental years. To totally develop, Vieira goes to should play with some sense of regularity. Clearly, he has wanted time to bodily modify to the English sport. Maybe, in a wierd manner, the truth that his final significant contribution earlier than his harm this winter was a studs up lunge on a Wolves participant is portentous. Arsenal usually area Jorginho, Rice, Havertz or Partey in midfield, whereas Xhaka was a mainstay previous to his departure. Vieira can take inspiration from his captain Martin Odegaard on this respect. The Norwegian doesn’t have the identical construct as Rice or Havertz however his physicality has by no means come into query. In Vieira’s favour can also be his versatility. Upon signing him, Arteta mentioned, ‘Fabio is a really inventive participant that may deliver top quality and flexibility to our attacking play.’ When he referenced Vieira’s versatility, I don’t assume Arteta was solely speaking about how he can fill in for various gamers when wanted. I believe Arteta thinks of versatility as a participant with the ability to interpret their position in a lot of other ways. Ben White is a implausible instance of this and whereas at Porto, it’s mentioned that Vieira was very adaptable in how he performed his inventive position. From time to time, it’s mentioned he would drop thus far again that he was nearly within the left-back place to obtain the ball. Whereas in different eventualities, he would typically play extra like a false 9, relying on the opponent and the sport state. I believe that’s the pliability Arteta actually prizes nevertheless it’s troublesome to see how Vieira can do this with out vital sport time. Havertz performs a versatile, positional position too and it took him a while to nail it. Crucially, he was given that point. Except there are vital accidents, I don’t see how Vieira can obtain that and whereas Arsenal might want to shuffle the pack just a little throughout this run-in, it’s not precisely the time to roll the cube. After all, issues can change rapidly in soccer. A couple of weeks in the past, I might have put Jakub Kiwior in the identical ‘purgatory’ class as Vieira when it got here to his place within the squad. Accidents to Zinchenko and Tomiyasu gave Kiwior his likelihood and he has taken it after Arteta tailor-made his position just a little. In doing so, Kiwior has in all probability earned himself a promotion into the Trossard / Tomiyasu bracket of the squad.
It feels unfair to name the subsequent eight weeks or so make or break for Vieira, it’s unlikely to be an extended sufficient interval for him to make that form of impression. His standing received’t be altered by ‘one large second’ both. Reiss Nelson served a kind of up simply over a yr in the past nevertheless it hasn’t modified his Arsenal trajectory.
However Vieira, like a lot of the squad, goes to should contribute positively through the run-in. In fact, gamers of their early 20s not often make good squad gamers (typically you need rotational gamers to be older or youthful), whether or not Vieira can carve out the form of minutes he must develop at Arsenal will likely be fascinating to see.
