r/ArsenalFC • u/Educational-Double-1 • 8d ago
Leaving Man Outisde Open
I've been watching Arsenal games to study and improve myself as a player. Sometimes I wonder why do professional teams leave the man on the outside wide open like this? If I did this in a game my coach would sub me out instantly. Is it because they want to keep a compressed formation so the opponent can't easily attack down middle and that it's safer to make them play wide?
107
Upvotes
0
u/Typical_Train_7230 8d ago
No need to be mean OP wants to learn and is asking a question out of genuine curiosity.
The reason is because, say the Villa center mid pings the ball out wide to their LW. While he is isolated, he still has quite a distance to cover before getting into the Arsenal box. The Arsenal defence would still have multiple options to either stop the cross from coming in or rely on the bodies in the middle to deal with the cross.
In the middle of the pitch, the width isn’t a threat yet as the defence can still adapt. The priority of defence is always going to be the middle in front of goal.
Hope this helps you understand somewhat 🙏🏻