Use this thread for general daily football discussion.
This thread can also be used to discuss Transfer rumours and to post Tier 4 sources.
As this may fill up please sort by new to try and avoid constantly repeating the same question.
Join our Discord for live discussion and don’t forget to follow us on twitter.
A 6/8 would fit with what Arteta is currently relying on: that is, Rice as an 8. A better 6 behind him would afford him a lot more freedom in that role, not only freeing him from his current limitations in supporting Jorginho, but also allowing rotation between that player and Rice. That would be very useful both in the buildup and in breaking down set defences; it would make us a lot more fluid.
A 6/8 also fits better with our needs in the long run, since we have a fair few talented (if not currently fit and firing) 8/10s in the squad: Ødegaard, ESR, Vieira, Havertz, even Trossard to some extent. As you say, adding yet another one seems unlikely, especially when Rice is the only player in the squad who can play both our 6 and 8 roles to a high level.
That said, signing yet another 8/10, one currently in good fitness and form, could allow us to shift back to Rice at the 6. While playing Rice as an 8 was obviously always in Arteta’s plans – as even our thickest fans have realised by now – another part of that plan was to give Rice minutes there as part of his development in our 6 role, and because he has a lot to offer there right now.
On balance, I’m pretty sure it’ll be a 6/8, e.g. Douglas Luiz.
I agree with the 6/8 but not because it allows Rice to play as an 8, but because our backup 6 (Jorginho) needs to be always paired with someone more defensive in midfield. A new 6/8 can play with Jorginho or ESR/Vieira/Havertz depending on the opposition.
Also, w.r.t. Rice, that we were in for Mount should be proof enough that he was always meant to be a 6 (if not consistently this season, then long term), and he would play as the 8 next to Partey in the tougher games. Again, I am not claiming Rice as an 8 was always out of the equation, but the fact that he has played as a 6 through most of the season should be enough. Even when Partey went off injured, and we had Zinchenko back to invert, Arteta didn’t immediately move Rice to 8 but kept playing him as a 6, even against United and Spurs (in this match with Vieira and Odegaard in front of him). It was only against City, Chelsea, and Sevilla away that you could claim Arteta played Rice as an 8 for tactical reasons.