Arsenal mailbag: Wingers, squad turnover and MVPs

The Cutback's Arsenal writer Max Radwan answers your questions

The Cutback’s first subscriber mailbag piece is an Arsenal one. Max Radwan responds to your burning questions.

Roos asks: With the January window in sight, where do you feel Arsenal should strengthen the squad?

MR: While attacking output has seen a significant uptick since Renee Slegers has taken interim charge, I still think that Arsenal could do with adding another winger to their ranks. Specifically, I think the team would benefit from a direct and creative dribbler on the right. While Arsenal have ticked the creativity box on the left, Mariona Caldentey represents more of a wide-creator who drifts infield as a opposed to a traditional winger. Beth Mead, Caitlin Foord and Lina Hurtig all excel in their capacities as finishers of moves but are not the types to take their opponents on. Mead is in the third percentile for successful take-ons among players from women's footballs top leagues (FBref).

The dream profile would be a right-winger who can cut inside, but given that these players are at premium, Arsenal may have to settle for a strong-sided right winger in the market.

Timi asks: Who are your favourite wingers outside of Arsenal?

MR: As I mentioned, the 'ideal' profile in this position is a bit of a pipe dream due to the paucity of left-footed right wingers within the women's game. However, I do think there are some interesting players whom Arsenal could look at, from the more achievable deals to the 'shoot for the moon' signings.

The obvious January target would be Chloe Kelly. A quick look at her statistical profile shows that she excels in creating for her team mates, she is in the 95th percentile for shot creating actions among attacking midfielders and wingers in women's football's top nine leagues (FBref). Additionally, her versatility offers the duality of options depending on whether Arsenal would want her to use her as a winger who can cut inside from the left or play on her on her strong side down the right. Limited to just three starts for Manchester City this season, Kelly, who started her senior career at Arsenal, is someone who should be on the Gunners' radar going into the January window.

Another compelling option is Rasheedat Ajibade, who has carved out a reputation for herself as something of a take-on machine for her club Atletico Madrid. For a team who sometimes look a little pedestrian in attack, the addition of Ajibade could prove energising.

Finally, if Arsenal are really looking to push the boat out in January, there are few more exciting wingers than Jule Brand, who plays the game like someone who lives by the mantra of risk vs reward. Last season, only one player produced more successful take-ons in Frauen Bundesliga than Brand. It is worth noting that she plays her club football cutting in from the left (in stark contrast to her right-sided deployment for Germany) so any potential addition here would mean a reconfiguration of the Arsenal attack.

Timi also asks: Foord or Mead, who pairs well with Mariona on the other wing?

MR: To date, Foord on the right and Mariona on the left has been the most common wing-to-wing combination in the Arsenal XI. We saw early signs of this relationship bearing fruit for the very first competitive goal Arsenal scored this season – a Foord header coming in from the right assisted by a Mariona cross from the left. Mead has also started from the right in the same team as Mariona five times this season, but this isn’t a relationship that has blossomed to date. Of the two players, Foord is more suited to attacking space in behind an opposition defence and is probably the better foil for Mariona.

Ndmw asks: Do you think that the team would benefit most from a quiet January transfer window? Or are there any recruitment (and/or outgoing) needs that you believe need to be addressed ASAP?

MR: I've already addressed Arsenal's need for a winger in this piece so I won't rehash that answer again, but I do believe there are merits to the argument that Arsenal should be looking to embellish the squad they already have rather than make wholesale changes. A quick glance at the transfer business done by Arsenal since the summer of 2021 (coinciding with the appointment of Jonas Eidevall), shows that the club have brought in 25 players over a three-year period, averaging over six signings per season. This level of churn in the squad has not been helpful, and frankly, there have been more misses than hits across this period. Eidevall named seven players who predated his arrival at the club in his final starting XI before his resignation despite so many players coming through the door during his tenure. This gives weight to the idea that Arsenal have been guilty of prioritising quantity over quality in their recruitment in recent years.

On-pitch relationships between existing players are still developing, so some consistency might not be the worst thing in the world here. Under Slegers, Frida Maanum and Alessia Russo are finally starting to gel. Mariona has already established herself as the hub of the team and is fine tuning her understanding with those around her, particularly on the left with Katie McCabe; who holds the width while the Spaniard drifts infield. At the back, the partnership of Leah Williamson and Steph Catley represents Arsenal's most consistent defensive pairing in 2024 after much chopping and changing.

Prashant asks: Who is the MVP in the current side?

MR: Resisting the temptation to burn readers with a scorching hot take (though Emily Fox deserves an honourable mention), I am going to take the obvious answer of Mariona here. As sure Mariah Carey's voice will fill the airwaves at Christmas, Arsenal's attacking play will be concentrated through their summer signing from Barcelona. In 2024-25, no Arsenal player has recorded more touches in the final third. Whether she starts from the left, right or in the No 10 position, the ball will find its way to her one way or another. The fact that she has played every game in which she has been available this season underlines her importance to the side.