Mikel Arteta

As the tactical game evolves rapidly, more and more money is spent on teams of analysts, data scientists, and research departments to get ahead in a game of often-narrow margins. Whilst murmurs of football becoming more 'boring' have grown over the last few years, I believe this can be boiled down to the fact...

Second-placed Chelsea held league leaders Arsenal to a 1-1 draw in Gameweek 12 of the 2025/2026 Premier League season. The Gunners would be disappointed with a draw, as the hosts went down to 10 men only 38 minutes into the game. The remainder of the game was a great example...

The 2025/2026 Premier League season has already begun to reveal significant differences between teams in how effectively they convert shooting opportunities into goals. While league standings often reflect overall performance, examining shot quality, expected goals (xG), and finishing efficiency provides a deeper understanding of whether a team is genuinely performing...

Arsenal defeated Tottenham Hotspur 4-1 in gameweek 12 of the 2025/2026 Premier League season. A thoroughly dominant display from the Gunners saw them go six points clear at the top of the league table. Meanwhile, Spurs stay at ninth place. Eberechi Eze found the net three times in a scintillating display...

Arsenal Vs Tottenham Hotspur For the 198th time, Arsenal and Tottenham meet for the North London Derby on Sunday. Arsenal come into the match with a four-point lead at the top of the table over Manchester City. Mikel Arteta’s men have only suffered one defeat this season and, before the...

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal are one of the most complete sides in world football. They control every phase of the game, from build-up to rest defence, and have reached a level of collective understanding that few teams can match. Their possession play suffocates opponents, their defensive structure is near impenetrable, and...

Arsenal are always an intriguing team. Can they reach the next level? Can they make up the fine margins needed to win a major honour they probably already should’ve won? These are questions typically asked when the Gunners are mentioned, but I personally believe they are one of the world’s...

Arsenal hosted Manchester City in matchweek 5 of the 2025/2026 Premier League season, which ended in a 1-1 draw. This game saw a different Man City at the Emirates Stadium. With just 33%, this was the lowest ball possession Pep Guardiola’s Man City have ever recorded in this fixture. The visitors...

The summer of 2025 brought one of the more fascinating storylines in the Premier League transfer window, with Eberechi Eze opting to join Arsenal over Tottenham Hotspur, their North London rivals. While much of the discussion centred on the financials and rivalry narratives, this move's footballing significance lies far deeper....

Arsenal are presenting a serious candidacy to finally lift the Premier League for the first time since 2004. Mikel Arteta’s boys have got off to a convincing start by winning at Old Trafford against Manchester United and, in a totally different context, thrashing Daniel Farke’s Leeds United at home. Maintaining their...

There are many highly effective principles for attacking opposing defences in the final third; two of these principles are the overlap and underlap. These two principles are among the most important weapons used by full-backs or, occasionally, centre-backs. Teams aim to exploit the width of the pitch to attack their...

Manchester United lost their first game of the 2025/2026 Premier League season at Old Trafford against Arsenal, despite showing some positive signs and confirming to their fans that they are ready to be more decisive and more competitive than last season. Manchester United showed great discipline and willingness to score,...

In the last few years, Arsenal have been considered one of the best teams in the world from set pieces, if not the best. In the last three Premier League seasons, Nicolas Jover's side were the top scorers from corner kicks, netting 12, 12 and 11 times, respectively, in order...

After a third successive season as the Premier League runners-up, Arsenal have been in the market for a serious overhaul. Mikel Arteta’s side had an impressive UEFA Champions League campaign, beating Real Madrid to reach the Champions League semi-final. However, their lack of goals in crucial situations, especially in their...

As the dust settles on the 2024/2025 Premier League season, the focus naturally shifts toward the lessons learned and what they might mean heading into the 2025/2026 EPL campaign. While headlines often revolve around goal scorers and playmakers, the foundation of any successful side remains defensive structure. In a fast-paced...

Arsenal have gone and spent £52m to secure the signing of Noni Madueke from Chelsea. On the surface, it looks like a very expensive backup signing, considering the Gunners already have one of the best right-wingers in the world in Bukayo Saka.  However, there is more underneath the surface with Noni...

Valencia have been gutted on the transfer market over the last few years. After being taken over by Peter Lim about 10 years ago, the club aggressively signed many talented players, but with Lim losing interest in the club since the pandemic, Valencia have been more of a selling club....

After months of speculation, Arsenal looks on track to finally confirm the signing of Real Sociedad midfielder Martín Zubimendi. The Gunners have now been Premier League runners-up three years in a row. The Spanish International could be key in driving Mikel Arteta’s side towards potential glory. He will share the...

As we have seen with many of Europe's top teams this season, attacking wingers can often be the difference-makers in close matches.  With many teams defending deep, inside their own defensive third, and crowding out the central areas, having a player who can go by a full-back and take defenders...

In the modern Premier League, success is no longer defined solely by goals and points. Tactical intelligence, data-led planning, and structural clarity have become essential in differentiating genuine progress from surface-level performance. This data analysis report utilises a combination of progressive metrics, possession models, and underlying performance data to examine...