How has Arteta turned things around?

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is back to his best after a difficult 12 months

How has Arteta turned things around?

At the end of August, many Arsenal fans were calling for Mikel Arteta's head.

The Spaniard had overseen a disastrous start to the 2021/22 campaign, suffering three consecutive defeats, though two came against Premier League champions Manchester City and European champions Chelsea.

One month later, it's all change at the Emirates, with the Gunners finally resembling a cohesive unit both in attack and defence.

Sunday's 3-1 win against Spurs came after two hard-fought 1-0 victories over Burnley and Norwich.
While the first two may not have been the most glamorous of results, they were needed and have got the season back on track heading into October.

It's been quite the turnaround, and though we shouldn't get carried away due to the number of false dawns we've seen over the last decade, it is good to see Arsenal back performing well.

Here's what Arteta has done in a month to get his side back on track.

Settled on a solid defence

Arsenal's back five hasn't been this settled in several years.Aaron Ramsdale has proved many people, me included, wrong in his first three league appearances in an Arsenal shirt.

Ben White and Gabriel are a solid pair, but they still deserve time and patience while settling together.

Finally, Arsenal now have two quality full-backs in Kieran Tierney and Takehiro Tomiyasu, who were both outstanding this weekend.

Unlike at other points during Arteta's time as manager, the Gunners defence isn't filled with players who you fear have a mistake in them.

If Ramsdale can make his form of the past three games the norm, then there is no reason why Arsenal can't continue the rebuild with this as their settled and established back five.

One worry for Arsenal may be that if any of these players get injured, the drop-off in quality could be huge, Ramsdale aside.

The midfield is back fully fit

Many people raised an eyebrow when they saw Granit Xhaka's name on the team sheet on Sunday for the North London derby.

But the Swiss star was excellent in the middle of the park, and Arsenal seemed to have the makings of an exciting midfield five as a result.

In Bukayo Saka, Martin Ødegaard, Emile Smith Rowe, Xhaka, and Thomas Partey, Arsenal have a midfield with some real quality when everyone is fully fit.

Ødegaard, in particular, is putting in performances well above those that Gunners fans saw during his loan spell last season.

The hope is that this midfield can get a decent run of games together because, as a unit, it looks like it has the potential to become a serious threat in the League in years to come.

Aubameyang is back to his best in front of goal

On his Sky Sports podcast, Gary Neville said that at one point he didn't know if Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang would ever be the player he once was at Arsenal again.

He was right to say it.

The Gabon international had been out of sorts for over a year, but now he seems to have finally returned to his best form.

It wasn't just the goal on Sunday, it was his all-round performance.
He pressed aggressively and proved a real threat from the first minute.

Aubameyang returning to his best form could completely change Arsenal's prospects this season, but again, it's crucial not to get carried away.

This is a team in transition, and this is the first sign of where Arsenal could be heading under Arteta.

However, we've been here before. The Gunners have put together better runs than this over the last decade and it's ultimately gone nowhere.

Arsenal fans will need to see more of the same before they fully embrace Arteta as manager.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

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