Why Arsenal and Man City are bringing back long-ball football

For a long time, hoofing the ball upfield was something associated with teams lower down the leagues.

However, recent arrivals from Arsenal, such as Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyokeres, and Gianluigi Donnarumma and Erling Haaland’s Manchester City duo, suggest a more direct approach from both teams.

Both teams have made a conscious effort to move up the field quickly, either through ground passing or dribbling, in addition to launching goal-kicks.

Although Pep Guardiola’s style is constantly evolving, it seems to have an impact on how many teams play.

The Spaniard has adapted to the leagues he has managed in, but his career began with a focus on short passing and heavy goalkeeper involvement.

In order to lessen the chances that his team lost the ball and lessen the gaps that his players would need to cover in the event of a loss,

This makes sense, and the majority of teams at the highest levels attempted to emulate it.

Due to high pressing and the coordinated press that teams use, press has become more popular and effective.

The increased focus on planning a team’s press – alongside signing more physical players to carry this out – has resulted in a league that looks very different today than it did a decade ago.

Because of effective high press, the opposition is forced to kick the ball long, frequently going against their plan, increasing the chances that the ball is given to the opposing team.

Additionally, it makes it more likely that opposing forces will make errors that result in close-range goalscoring chances.

Short passes in build-up resulted in keeping the ball more often compared to kicking it long. However, we’ve reached a point where impressive athletes are now well-drilled in their press, which means the reward for coming out of the back has begun to outweigh the risk.

According to Opta, each of the seven teams that allowed the most short passes last season each committed more than 30 errors before allowing the opposition to score.

David Raya’s use at Arsenal has been intriguing. For a team that dominates the ball so much, it is surprising 42.1% of Raya’s passes last season were long.

Raya’s long passes show how Arteta’s detailed approach is used.

Raya frequently appears to be aiming for the right flank from goal kicks. Last season, it was often Kai Havertz who moved from his centre-forward position to meet the ball here.

Arteta minimizes the risk of building up against strong opposition pressing by kick-it-long. Additionally, it enables Arsenal to make the most of each other’s strengths, with Raya boasting excellent kicking abilities that targets a tall and impressive hold-up player like Havertz.

Targeting the wide areas for goal-kicks also reduces the risk of being exposed down the middle if the initial duel is lost.

If the ball does go out of play toward the touchline, it will most likely be for a throw-in.

Long passes from goal kicks are increasingly being used by Manchester City.

Unlike the Arsenal example above, their long goal-kicks have typically been played with attacking intent rather than to gain territory.

Take the recent Spurs game as an illustration.

As City worked to build up, Spurs pushed high and closely marked each player. From one goal-kick City brought some of their players towards the ball, enticing Spurs to follow them closer to their goal.

Haaland’s distance from the rest of the team was also increased as a result of their high pitch push. Omar Marmoush was the player who was occupying the large space between Haaland and the rest of the team.

The idea here was to isolate Haaland and his marker. Without Ederson in the goal, City didn’t have to worry about trying to build through congestion by going long.

By allowing Haaland to battle for it in an isolated duel, they were able to lower the risk of conceding, discredit Spurs’ strengths, and increase the chances of keeping the ball.

City also increased their chances of picking up the second ball and scoring as Marmoush’s positioning allowed him to be proactive in running forward to pick up knockdowns from Haaland, or any ball that landed short.

Over the past few seasons, City and Arsenal have played in similar ways – aiming to dominate the ball for large parts of the game, pin teams in and win the ball back quickly through pressing.

Both teams’ dominance of the ball and their ability to speed play up and attack quickly when defenses are disorganized add another layer of unpredictability.

Guardiola’s quotes from the season’s victory against Wolves were instructive in his evolving play: “We want to use quick breaks this season, when we’re getting the ball, attack more quickly than maybe before.

” I want to attack quickly when the opponent is high-pressing and we beat the first press, but after that I love to pass the ball a thousand, million, boring times. I adore it!

Arsenal is given the freedom to play more direct this year when the chance arises.

The likes of Madueke and Gyokeres thrive covering big distances and the pass selection of players like Martin Zubimendi and Martin Odegaard suggest that Arteta is leaning into platforming those qualities.

Arsenal still have a lead in the game by playing more direct, but the ball can get lost more frequently due to the slightly chaotic nature of the game.

When teams come out to attack them, Arsenal’s midfielders and attackers have opportunities to create spaces that wouldn’t otherwise be able to compete with deep defenses.

In both the Nottingham Forest and Manchester United games there was a clear increase in how quickly Arsenal progressed the ball up the pitch when compared to the games they played against the same opposition last season.

Although the Liverpool game doesn’t fit this trend, data can be derived from its analysis to provide context.

Arsenal set up in a defensive manner against them. In order to slow down the action at Anfield, Liverpool’s organized formation didn’t give Arsenal the best conditions to counter-attack.

Given Liverpool’s impressive counter-attacking ability, Arsenal probably didn’t want to play the game end-to-end.

What this shows is although there has been an intentional increase in how fast Arsenal play at times, it’s a tool being used in specific games rather than all the time.

Both Arsenal and City have been sides that have dominated the ball, playing in an intricate fashion. The best managers are those at the forefront of tactical trends as the opposition’s strength rises each season.

On a system that has endured for many seasons, it isn’t enough. New tactical advantages have to be found, often in response to common tactical setups.

A more direct strategy to exploit the transitional periods of the game may help City and Arsenal turn draws into victories this season as pressing and low blocks are becoming more prevalent in Premier League football.