'Hasn't been at his best': Pundit says 'fantastic' Arsenal player has gone backwards this season
Today at 12:15 PM
Arsenal have started this season about as well as they could have wished to.
The Gunners are unbeaten in all competitions so far, they've taken points off of Manchester City already, and they're well in the Premier League title race.
However, there are certain elements of this Arsenal team that aren't quite clicking.
Results have been solid, but performances haven't been there the way they were last season as Arsenal struggled against the likes of Brighton, Atalanta, and, to an extent, Southampton.
Speaking on the Handbrake Off Podcast, Adrian Clarke has been discussing some of Arsenal's issues at the moment, and he noted that Arsenal's midfield configuration is an issue.
Clarke actually pointed towards Declan Rice as a player who isn't in his best form at the moment.
Declan Rice isn't at his best
Clarke discussed some of the problems Arsenal have in the midfield.
The pundit noted that Rice doesn't look his best for Arsenal at the moment, but he did claim that he looked fantastic for England when he played in a more advanced midfield role.
"I do think there is a slight, not an issue, but the midfield configuration, I'm not sure what it's going to be. Declan Rice hasn't been at his best this season for Arsenal, full stop, I think there's more to come from him," Clarke said.
"What is his best position? As the holding midfielder for England against Greece he struggled, but he was more box-to-box in the second game and he was fantastic."
"It's a real difficult one. I want him in the team and I want him up to speed."
Joleon Lescott said similar about Rice
It's interesting that Clarke brings up that Rice's position is a problem, because Joleon Lescott said very similar recently.
Indeed, Lescott said that Rice is a difficult player to pin down to a position.
"I think it's difficult to pigeon-hole individuals, especially midfielders now. I think the way Declan Rice plays is totally different to the way he's perceived. At West Ham everything went through Declan Rice, but at Arsenal it's totally different, I don't think it's about six, eight or 10, it's about who gets on the ball in the areas you need," Lescott said.
The reality is that Rice is a player who can do a lot of different things, he proved last season that he can be a goal threat in advanced positions, but he was brought through at West Ham as a more defensive player.
It's a real conundrum, and, at the moment, it's not something that Mikel Arteta seems to have grasped.
Mikel Merino's re-introduction into the team could help matters. After all, Arsenal had a clear plan for how Merino and Rice would work together this season.
