Mikel Arteta’s moves in the half-space put Arsenal on top, but Gabriel Jesus’s return gives Gunners more.

Under Mikel Arteta, Arsenal has gone through a lot of changes and improvements to get to where it is now. When the Spaniard took over, many people wondered what style of play he would use because it wasn’t clear at first.

Arsenal has become so well-known that it may have given other teams new problems to solve as they try to figure out how to stop them. But Mikel Arteta has worked to make the most of the half-spaces on the pitch, which could get even better when Gabriel Jesus comes back.

First, I’d like to explain what half-spaces are, because the term is often used incorrectly or mixed up with something else. In the image below, you can see that these areas are separated by the space between the middle of the field and the wide areas, which are often bounded by the six-yard box and the 18-yard box. In other words, there are two 12-yard wide strips that run the length of the field.

Arsenal create chances in these areas in a number of ways, either directly or by passing through and across them. This season, four of the team’s best players have scored most of the goals and points for the Gunners.

From moving the ball through the half-space directly from the wide areas to the middle for a long-range shot, to the wide players cutting inside into the half-space to take a shot on goal, to a parallel direct pass into the penalty box’s half-space to set up a shot or cut-back, to a narrow cross into the box over a deep block. All four have been important to the success of Arsenal.

1. Drama-producing stunners
Arsenal fans should remember these chances more than most because they happened in the most recent game, a 4-2 win over Aston Villa. Arteta has designed these kinds of passes to move quickly through three areas of the field and put a player in a position to take an unexpected shot on goal with a low expected goal.

First, Martin Odegaard sent a short corner to Oleksandr Zinchenko, who then shot with his left foot into the bottom right corner. Then, in a moment of high drama, Gabriel Martinelli set up Jorginho on the left side. Jorginho’s shot hit the post, but it went off Emi Martinez and into the back of the net.

The chances broke Villa’s deep defense and let the Gunners use their strengths, which are quick movement and getting more accurate long-range shooting. As shown above, this technique has also helped Martin Odegaard and Fabio Vieira get the ball sooner and more often than the cut-back.

But Thomas Partey has probably gotten the most out of this strategy than any other player. The Ghanaian made a name for himself by scoring against Tottenham and Nottingham Forest with a curling shot into the top right corner after receiving a pass across the right-hand half-space.

2. The winger’s daily bread and butter
The Gunners took the lead at home against Manchester United when Bukayo Saka scored a great goal. Often called the “Arjen Robben technique,” an inverted winger will quickly cut in from the wide area into the half-space, then either curl a shot to the far post or drive a low shot into the keeper’s near post.

Even though Saka did this against United, Arsenal hasn’t been able to do it all that often. Instead, Saka and Gabriel Martinelli like to drive into the half-space near the sideline and then send a cross or shot that sometimes needs a little luck to get into the goal.

3. I’ll get right to the point.
Granit Xhaka and Martin Odegaard have been very important for Arsenal this season in making chances. With five already this season, Xhaka is on track to beat his Premier League assist high of seven.

By pushing through the half-space on either side to either of the wide men, the two have made a lot of chances. This has then led to either a cut-back or a direct shot to the near post or across the keeper.

This is probably Arteta’s team’s most common way to attack, and teams that play against them are getting better at stopping it. Everton (A) is the best example of a team that has started to double up on Saka and Martinelli and keep their defensive structure narrow to stop this technique.

4. Effective, but not used enough
Since the World Cup, there hasn’t been as much of a focus on the final option. Before Qatar, Arsenal scored a number of goals when a forward ran onto a cross from just outside the box in one of the half-spaces and headed or hit the ball into the net.

This season, Gabriel Jesus’s header against Brentford away from home and Gabriel Martinelli’s opening goal against Nottingham Forest are two of the best examples. In these examples, both Xhaka and Saka were the crossers, and it could be a way to get past these stubborn low blocks.

The Brazilian’s movement is something the Gunners have been missing in recent weeks. Taking up these positions does increase the chances of half-space crosses working, as shown by his goal against the Bees and his half-space goal against Leicester City (H).

Arsenal has been having trouble breaking down Everton and Brentford in their last few games. Arteta could try to change up the attacks and encourage this use of the half-space cross to help Arsenal break through. At the very least, it makes the other team work harder and gives them more ways to attack.

There are home and away games against teams that are likely to sit deep, defend, and try to score when they can. It will be another problem for Arsenal and Arteta to solve, but they might be able to move forward if they look back.