The return of Premier League football for Arsenal after eighteen days without a fixture saw the reintegration of both Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka into the starting line-up, but how the pair were positioned came as quite a surprise.
Instead of the typical 4-2-3-1 system that Arsenal fans have been accustomed to recently, Xhaka took on a new role, as did the Ghanaian international. Martin Odegaard joined the duo in midfield but it was the Swiss captain who he was partnered with.
Partey was instead occupying a sole number six position behind the newly formed pair. The Norwegian’s deeper position suits his style to keep the play ticking over similar to how Santi Cazorla performed alongside Francis Coquelin.
