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Arsenal’s midfield crisis
Arsenal are facing something of a midfield crisis come January.
With Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny both away taking part in the Africa Cup of Nations, Mikel Arteta will have just Granit Xhaka, an unhappy Ainsley Maitland-Niles, summer signing Sambi Lokonga and youth talent Charlie Patino to call up.
And, given that the Gunners face Liverpool twice, Manchester City and Tottenham in a busy month, the Gunners are going to need more than that if they are looking to compete across all 6 ties.
Arsenal’s January fixtures:
Manchester City (H)
Liverpool (H)
Nottingham Forest (A)
Liverpool (A)
Tottenham (A)
Burnley (H) pic.twitter.com/fK1AFUbcol— Chris Wheatley (@ChrisWheatley_) December 22, 2021
While Arsenal fans are notoriously divided on Granit Xhaka, they will be for once united in wincing every time he goes down, knowing that their threadbare squad cannot afford another injury in January in the middle of the park.
But, if push comes to shove, could they turn to Calum Chambers?
Arsenal to use 10 million rated player?
One man who could come into his own in Thomas Partey’s absence is Calum Chambers, who has cut a forlorn figure at the club in the last six months.
Effectively replaced by Takehiro Tomiyasu, the Englishman has not even been in the matchday squad for much of the season, with his two Premier League appearances combined with three occasions where he didn’t make it off the bench.
GILLINGHAM, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 10: Calum Chambers of Arsenal during the match between Gillingham and Arsenal U21 at Priestfield Stadium on November 10, 2020 in Gillingham, England. (Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Now 26 years old, it is time that Chambers found his feet somewhere, and given his performances in the heart of Fulham’s midfield two seasons ago, where he won player of the year for the Cottagers, could he become an emergency option for Mikel Arteta?
He may not be the most easy on the eye footballer, but could he at least do a job for a couple of games?
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City | 18 | 35 | 44 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 18 | 35 | 41 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 18 | 27 | 38 |
| 4 | Arsenal FC | 18 | 4 | 32 |
| 5 | West Ham United | 17 | 7 | 28 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 16 | 2 | 27 |
| 7 | Tottenham Hotspur | 15 | -1 | 26 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 18 | -1 | 25 |
| 9 | Leicester City | 16 | 0 | 22 |
| 10 | Aston Villa | 17 | -2 | 22 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 17 | 0 | 20 |
| 12 | Brentford FC | 16 | -1 | 20 |
| 13 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 16 | -3 | 20 |
| 14 | Everton FC | 17 | -8 | 19 |
| 15 | Southampton FC | 17 | -10 | 17 |
| 16 | Leeds United | 18 | -18 | 16 |
| 17 | Watford FC | 16 | -10 | 13 |
| 18 | Burnley FC | 15 | -7 | 11 |
| 19 | Newcastle United | 18 | -23 | 10 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 17 | -26 | 10 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 15 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 9 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 7 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 7 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 7 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
| Smith-Rowe, Emile | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 7 |
| Silva, Bernardo | Manchester City | 7 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 6 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 6 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United | 6 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 5 |
| King, Joshua | Watford FC | 5 |
| Gray, Demarai | Everton FC | 5 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 5 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 5 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 6 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 6 |
| Laporte, Aymeric | Manchester City | 1 | 5 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 6 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 1 | 4 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 4 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 1 | 4 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 0 | 5 |
| Canos, Sergi | Brentford FC | 0 | 5 |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 5 |
| Ritchie, Matt | Newcastle United | 0 | 5 |
| Westwood, Ashley | Burnley FC | 0 | 5 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 5 |
| Duffy, Shane | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 5 |
| Lascelles, Jamaal | Newcastle United | 0 | 5 |
| Hayden, Isaac | Newcastle United | 0 | 5 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 5 |
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 5 |
| Ward, Joel | Crystal Palace | 0 | 5 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 5 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 8 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 8 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 7 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 7 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 5 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Kovacic, Mateo | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 4 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 4 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 4 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 4 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 4 |
| Redmond, Nathan | Southampton FC | 4 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 3 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 3 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 3 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 3 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 3 |
| Foden, Phil | Manchester City | 3 |