At a Glance:
- Arsenal gem Max Dowman could be in for a surprise start against Manchester City.
- Bukayo Saka is unavailable to face Manchester City and Noni Madueke’s fitness remains uncertain.
- How Mikel Arteta could deploy Dowman tactically to surprise Pep Guardiola.
Several Arsenal fans’ ideal scenario would be to read Max Dowman’s name on the team sheet against Manchester City as the teenager has what it takes to spruce up their limp attack.
Dowman is one of the most naturally talented players England have produced in years, as exemplified by the fact that he became a first-team player for one of the biggest clubs in the world at 15.
With Bukayo Saka unavailable to face Manchester City and Noni Madueke’s fitness remaining uncertain, Mikel Arteta will be racking his brain to decide who to start on the right-wing against the Sky Blues.
Gabriel Martinelli can always be handful and in fairness, he has played on the right-wing previously under Mikel Arteta.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta should start Max Dowman as an inside forward vs Man City
However, Martinelli has looked far from his best this season and even if Madueke is fit, Arteta should opt for Dowman but as a right-sided inside forward instead as the latter is yet to pull up many trees at the club.
Pep Guardiola has often deployed Rayan Cherki in such a role, with Matheus Nunes holding the width on the right flank and allowing the Frenchman to drift in centrally to wreak havoc. If Christhian Mosquera starts against Manchester City, he could push forward to allow the 16-year-old to play in a central role as well.
Despite Dowman turning heads as a wide forward, he is a number 10 by trade and as a result, such a role could suit him to a tee.
Mikel Arteta could simply play Declan Rice in a deeper role in the middle of the park, deploying Eberechi Eze as a left-sided attacking midfielder, his natural position with Dowman partnering him centrally — adding balance to Arsenal’s setup as a whole.
The teenager could cause plenty of problems to Manchester City in central positions, considering he is a sumptuous dribbler, adept at playing in tight spaces and generating shots.
Furthermore, such a ploy would add unpredictability to Arsenal’s flailing attack as Dowman could routinely interchange positions with the right-back of choice on the day, injecting much more tactical fluidity to the side in the final third.
Nico O’Reilly is a top-class left-back, especially adept at coming out on top in one-v-one situations but overloading the right flank with a joker in the pack like Dowman could potentially unsettle him as well.
Perhaps the counterargument to starting Dowman could be that he lacks experience but ultimately, a natural winger like Madueke is yet to cement his status as a big-game player at Arsenal.
Declan Rice on Max Dowman’s ‘special’ mentality
Considering Declan Rice highlighted Dowman’s fearlessness as his “special trait”, the Arsenal wonderkid will be raring to be the deciding factor in a game where a win could effectively hand the visitors the Premier League title at the Etihad Stadium.
“Yeah, he’s obviously incredible. It’s an eye-opener and you see how good he is. He hasn’t got any fear at all, he just goes into games not even thinking about it, he just goes out and plays football and to have that already at 16, it’s a special trait.”
Rice concluded: “As he keeps getting older and he carries that with him, it’s obviously going to standing him in really good stead.”
