After 28 rounds, the Premier League 2023-2024 is still a three-horse race between Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City.Although rated lower than the two direct competitors, the "Gunners" are leading the rankings, thanks to their stable performance and impressive performances.
According to statistics, Arsenal not only has the most solid defense in the Premier League (only conceded 24 goals) but also has the strongest attack in the league (70 goals).In particular, the 2-1 victory over Brentford in round 28 of the Premier League helped Arsenal become the fourth team in the history of the highest tournament in England to win all 8 first matches in a calendar year.
In contrast to the image of a team with a deadlocked attack and dependence on set pieces, Arsenal are taking advantage of this strength to become a more efficient and mature version. The improvement in attack with 33 goals in the last 8 matches is the result of Mikel Arteta's tactical adjustments and playing position. Among them, Ben White is one of the names that contribute the most to the game.
In fact, Ben White is a versatile player who played as a centre-back, right-back and defensive midfielder in his only season at Brighton. This flexibility has helped the England international take the starting position in Arteta's squad. In his first season at the Emirates, Ben White wanted to play in his forte of a centre-back position.
However, under Arteta's guidance, the 1997-born player took on the role of right-back in a 4-man defence. When Arsenal deploy the ball, Ben White will become a right-sided centre-back in a three-man defence, creating conditions for the left-back to move up to play as a midfielder.
To play as a full-back in Mikel Artetas tactical diagram, you are both a centre-back, a winger, some 10. Therefore, my goal is to develop my playing style, instead of just being a full-back or centre-back" - White shared.
Last season, Arsenal often deployed their squads in a 3-2-5 formation. This is the result of adjusting from the familiar 4-3-3 starting lineup, with Oleksandr Zinchenko at right-back, playing as a midfielder, the two "number 8" midfielders moving forward to form a formation of 5 strikers.
Ben White teamed with William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes to form a three-man defence. This formation ensures that Arsenal will always have more personnel in the midfield area, to take the lead and create an advantage in terms of numbers over the opponent's midfield.
However, Ben White's playing position has changed and become more important this season with a 2-3-5 formation. Accordingly, the English international started at left-back, but played alongside the defensive midfielder and right-back, forming a 3-man midfield.
This formation gives Saliba or Gabriel more options to make a pass when developing the ball from home. Not only that, Arsenal also have an advantage in the midfield, helping to counter-attack or counter-attack more effectively.
Ben White's influence has become increasingly clear, with 1 goal and 3 assists in the last 5 matches for Arsenal in the Premier League. In his previous 22 appearances, this player only had 1 goal and 1 assist.
Arteta's adjustment also helped White improve his playing style, with an average of 1.81 touches in the opponent's penalty area per 90 minutes. This was only 1.47 times last season. The 27-year-old centre-back also created an average of 0.97 chances/90 minutes in the 2023-24 season, compared to 0.76 chances last season.
Recently, Arsenal has officially extended Ben White's new contract until 2028, with an option to extend the contract for another year. This is a worthy result for the former Brighton star's performance after an impressive performance this season.
