Arsenal analysis: Sead 'The Tank' Kolasinac an early candidate for cult status after Community Shield heroics

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James Olley6 August 2017

Arsenal won Sunday's Community Shield after Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and Alvaro Morata missed penalties in a shootout at Wembley.

The season curtain-raiser between Premier League champions Chelsea and FA Cup winners Arsenal finished 1-1 after 90 minutes.

An English football first followed as the 'ABBA' penalty shootout was deployed and the Gunners prevailed 4-1 to extend their winning record at Wembley to nine straight games, including two in penalty shootouts.

The 'ABBA' system is based on the format used in tennis tie-breaks, with the team taking the first kick in each pair of kicks alternating.

Courtois took Chelsea's second kick, seeking to equalise, and blasted over before Morata, the substitute striker, fired wide.

That gave Arsenal the initiative. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scored before Olivier Giroud netted the decisive strike.

James Olley assesses the key talking points for Arsenal...

Kolasinac an early candidate for cult status

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Saed Kolasinac was an unheralded arrival upon joining Arsenal from Schalke on a free transfer but there was enough in his 58-minute outing at Wembley to suggest he could quickly become a fans’ favourite.

The sight of his imposing, muscular frame marauding forward from centre-back to drive the Gunners on a counter-attack brought cheers from the ‘home’ end, matched by a crunching tackle on Victor Moses for which he was lucky to escape a booking.

However, all that was a prelude to his 82nd-minute equaliser when he climbed highest to head home Granit Xhaka’s free-kick to take the game to penalties.

He has three nicknames in Bosnia: ‘The Destroyer’, ‘The Tank’ and ‘The Bosnian Hulk’. It is hard not to think at least one of those will catch on.

Lacazette is learning to take centre stage

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Arsenal’s club-record signing has often been used behind a central striker in Wenger’s 3-4-2-1 system during pre-season but here he was given a chance to lead the attack with Alex Iwobi and Danny Welbeck the primary supporting cast.

Lacazette was a peripheral figure, underlined by having just seven touches of the ball before the 22nd minute move which almost gave the Gunners the lead.

Suddenly, Lacazette came alive in the box and found space to curl a right-foot shot past Cahill but his effort came back of Thibaut Courtois’ left-hand upright.

He did not have another clear shooting opportunity before being replaced by Olivier Giroud with 24 minutes left but will hope to reprise the role with Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil behind him against Leicester in Friday’s Premier League opener.

Lacazette can only be judged after that attacking triumvirate has had time to develop an understanding.

Mertesacker injury raises centre-back concerns

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Just 71 days after a superb individual performance helped Arsenal beat Chelsea in the FA Cup Final, Per Mertesacker came crashing back to Earth in uncompromising fashion.

The 32-year-old was on the receiving end of an accidental stray elbow when contesting a header with Cahill just after the half-hour mark.

Mertesacker was forced off with a bad cut above his eye, forcing Kolasinac to make his debut out of position at centre-back alongside Nacho Monreal – both are primarily left-backs.

Mertesacker has time to recover before Arsenal face Leicester but with Laurent Koscielny suspended and Shkodran Mustafi short of match fitness, Wenger has an issue to address in defence already.

A glimpse of life without Sanchez and Ozil

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Arsenal’s two principal contract rebels were left out of the matchday squad altogether.

Wenger is adamant Sanchez will stay this season while it is believed an agreement with Ozil is possible but should either situation deteriorate, this is what life could look like.

The picture was not without promise – Iwobi and Welbeck looked threatening early on as Arsenal started the game well while Theo Walcott brought some fresh impetus as a late substitute and Arsenal carried sufficient threat to take this game to penalties.

But however troublesome Sanchez and Ozil have proved in their reluctance to sign new deals, Wenger will likely view this as further evidence they are worth the hassle.

Oxlade-Chamberlain’s contract saga could rumble on

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A key aspect of where Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will play his football in future is being handed chances in his preferred position of central-midfield.

The Community Shield is only a pre-season match but it will still not sit comfortably with the 23-year-old that he was shunted out to the left to play as a wing-back, not for the first time in this formation.

The positive was that he was involved for the entirety of the game but Manchester City and Liverpool may be encouraged to continue their pursuit if he appears a bit-part player rather than an essential component of Wenger’s plans.

He has just over a year remaining on his contract and a watching brief may be best for all parties.