Of all the encouraging features of Arsenal's season to date, which sees them joint top of the Premier League heading into Saturday's game against Sunderland, perhaps the most impressive has been the generous scattering of goals around Arsene Wenger's team. Alexis Sanchez is taking to his new central role with six goals in all competitions. Meanwhile, with a brace in the midweek 2-0 League Cup win against Reading, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain already has five, his highest-ever season tally. With eight in 10 games, Theo Walcott is just one short of last season's mark and against Ludogorets, Mesut Ozil scored his first-ever senior hat-trick.

Even Laurent Koscielny has two league goals to his name. And yet, despite this impressive orchestra of scoring, it has already become clear what happens to Arsenal when they are missing the man who acts as the conductor. Santi Cazorla has missed two league matches this season: the opening defeat to Liverpool and last weekend's 0-0 home draw with Middlesbrough.

The latter match brought into bold relief the influence that Cazorla has on Arsenal. With the Spaniard missing due to an Achilles problem and Granit Xhaka and Aaron Ramsey out due to suspension and injury respectively, the midfield combination of Mohamed Elneny and Francis Coquelin was too pedestrian.

"You always miss Cazorla at home," Arsene Wenger said, going on to encapsulate in 13 words precisely what makes him so important. "From deep midfield into the final third, his pass is always quick, accurate."

Elneny is a prolific, careful passer and Coquelin is a diligent and effective ball-winner, granted, but neither possess even a sliver of Cazorla's ability to cut through a team with one pass, using either of his equally gifted feet. It is difficult, though always tempting, to reduce an entity as complex as a 90-minute football match to one overarching issue but it was surely no coincidence that Arsenal's seven-game winning streak came to an end in the game when they were without their deep-lying playmaker due to injury.

The bad news ahead of Saturday's early kick-off against Sunderland is that Cazorla is doubtful again after also missing the win over Reading. There are conflicting reports as to whether he is likely to return. As well as suggesting that Lucas Perez could be sidelined until the end of November with an ankle injury, the Daily Mail say the more senior Spaniard is set to miss out. If so, it could be a problem for Arsenal.

Wenger would expect to comfortably beat the team sitting bottom of the Premier League without a win all season (as well as being without a win against Arsenal in their past nine meetings) but if Cazorla is missing, it will complicate matters. It will mean more of the creative burden will fall on Coquelin and while his passing is often underrated, the supply line to Mesut Ozil is clearly less stable without the incisive and at times brilliant promptings of Cazorla.

If the Spaniard is absent, it will also likely end any thoughts Wenger might have had about rewarding Oxlade-Chamberlain for his upturn in form with a starting role against Sunderland: Alex Iwobi's combination play is far more effective and he will be more of an asset in terms of keeping Ozil in possession in the final third, where he can do his damage.

Arsenal have established an excellent passing platform at the back with both Koscielny and summer signing Shkodran Mustafi accomplished in possession, but Cazorla is the player who knits the two halves of the team together, the conduit through which Arsenal direct and shape their attacks. Coquelin and Elneny keep the ball moving quickly enough but they can't offer the same penetration and spontaneity that Cazorla does. Arsenal simply have no replacement for him.

It might not matter, of course. Sunderland have lost four of their past five games in all competitions, drawing the other, and their terrible season had a very apt physical metaphor bestowed upon it when following their League Cup loss to Southampton this week a thick fog prevented their plane from getting off the ground. They are comfortably the worst team in the Premier League and their confidence is in the gutter.

But if midday comes on Saturday and Cazorla's name is not on the teamsheet, it could prove to be the most important factor as the match unfolds.

Source:
courtesy of ESPNFC

by Tom Adams

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