i really dislike the way we play now. the decision to drop gabriel is idiotic.
we could essentially accomplish the same thing arteta wants to if we just picked a more conventional starting lineup and shifted the setup slightly
------- martinelli -------------- jesus --------------- saka -----------
---- havertz ----------------------------------- odegaard -----------
------------------------- rice -----------------------------------------
--- zinchenko --- gabriel -------- saliba ---------- white ------------
when we are in possession and pinning the other team deep, rice sites centrally and when we lose the ball, he drops in between gabriel and saliba to essentially form a back 3, which is what we are trying to accomplish now. that gives zinchenko freedom to push forward on the left and white to push forward on the right. both can drift centrally if needed. rice is fast enough and has a good enough engine to basically function like a centerback when we are defending. if javi martinez could do that at bayern under pep, rice can do that for us now
trying to jam 4 square pegs in 4 round holes just doesnt make sense. simplify the setup and make it easier for the players.