One of my favourite football-related quotes comes from Jean-Paul Sartre. Perhaps better known as a philosopher and author than a mad football fan, JP wryly noted, “In football everything is complicated by the presence of the opposite team.” The reason I like this quote so much– apart from the unlikelihood of its source– is that it is always true. Well, almost always. If ever there were an exception to his words of wisdom, it was provided by Saturday’s match against Wigan.

With the notable exception of Ali Al-Habsi, Wigan’s players showed very little interest in impeding the Gunners’ efforts to play attractive football and score goals. They managed the grand total of zero attempts on goal, and only offered two wayward Franco di Santo headers over the course of the ninety minutes. Only an inspired goalkeeper and some lackadaisical finishing prevented a cricket score.

As a contributor to this website, it’s difficult to provide any interesting or original analysis after such a one-sided match. So I will take the easy way out and discuss the impressive form of Robin van Persie since his latest return from injury, and what it means for Arsenal’s attack.

December

Arsenal played five matches in December, winning three, drawing away to Wigan and losing at Old Trafford. They scored ten goals and conceded six. The striking duties were shared between Chamakh, Bendtner and van Persie. Chamakh led the line with 360 minutes, while Bendtner clocked up 104 minutes and van Persie 219.

Over this period Chamakh remained goalless, while Bendtner and van Persie scored one apiece. Chamakh’s form was particularly worrying, as it looked as if he was struggling physically after playing almost non-stop for the first four months of the season. This lack of goals from the three main strikers was overcome by contributions from midfield, particularly the sparkling form of Samir Nasri (3 goals).

January

The busy January period has seen Arsenal play seven games in 22 days, with two more still to come. So far this has yielded four wins, two draws and a defeat. They have scored thirteen goals and conceded three. Chamakh, Bendtner and Van Persie again shared the striking duties. However, van Persie played 375 minutes compared to Bendtner’s 256 and Chamakh’s 165.

Chamakh has once again gone goalless, with Bendtner also unable to get on the score sheet. Over the same period van Persie has scored seven goals. That’s over half of Arsenal’s goals this month, despite only being on the pitch for 60% of the time.

Discussion

After six goals in a week, it’s easy to gush about van Persie’s performances. I will simply say that he has been a joy to watch. Rather than wax lyrical, I find it more interesting to focus on a few interesting points borne out by the numbers:

1. van Persie is in supreme goalscoring form. With seven goals in his last five matches, he has single-handedly carried Arsenal’s goal threat over the past month. This is of course good news, although it is slightly worrying that the goals from midfield have tapered off, and that Bendtner and Chamakh have contributed a single goal between them over the past two months. With the amount of minutes they have played, we can expect more from Chamakh and Bendtner.

2. Midfield goals are absolutely crucial to this Arsenal team. Both Manchester clubs rely heavily on their strikers for goals. Berbatov, Rooney, Tevez and Balotelli have scored a large proportion of their teams’ goals over the last few months. Aside from van Persie’s current vein of form, Arsenal’s goals have largely been spread across the midfield and wings. Nasri, Fabregas, Arshavin, Walcott and Song-inho have found the back of the net with great regularity.

3. The last two months have seen a definite drop in Marouane Chamakh’s performances. He still contributes around the park, but he has struggled to get into positions to score goals. This is understandable– he has admitted to struggling with the pace of the Premier League, and he is almost certainly burnt out after a gruelling first few months. As a result, Wenger has increasingly rotated him out of the side. After playing 430 minutes in November, he clocked up 375 minutes in December and has so far only played 165 minutes in January. Arsene Wenger often gets criticised for his use of squad rotation, but I think this is one instance where he has got it spot on. Chamakh desperately needs a rest, and he is getting one.

4. This brings me to my final point: the vital role Nicklas Bendtner has to play over the next few months. With Chamakh struggling for physical sharpness, JET and (presumably) Vela out on loan and van Persie in need of an occasional rest, Big Nic will see a fair amount of game time. Whether up front or on the right wing, he needs to offer more of a goal threat to take the burden off van Persie. He certainly can do it– he led the line really well last year when van Persie was out, scoring 12 goals in all competitions– but he needs to find some form to contribute meaningfully this season. And soon.

Conclusions

Reading back, this article hasn’t been about Robin van Persie as much as Arsenal’s central striking options. With Chamakh looking jaded and Bendtner in indifferent form, Robin’s return to form and fitness has come in the nick of time. We all know what a special player he is, and if his fitness holds up for the remainder of the season he could well be decisive in the title race and the Gunners’ quest for success in the cups.

At the same time, it’s important not to rely too heavily on van Persie’s return. Nicklas Bendtner has a particularly important role to play, and we can only hope that Chamakh returns to his early-season form earlier rather than later. In addition, players like Rosicky and Arshavin have to dig deep, work hard and find some form– and their scoring touch– to help ease the goal-scoring burden on the likes of van Persie, Nasri and Walcott. If they can do it, this Arsenal side is suddenly looking very dangerous indeed.