Arsenal: Mikel Arteta might regret big missed opportunity with forgotten man Oleksandr Zinchenko | OneFootball

Zinchenko position switch could have helped Arsenal creativity problems

Zinchenko’s last three appearances have come in midfield, which is where he could start against PSV on Wednesday

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Mikel Arteta will hold talks with Oleksandr Zinchenko over his future at the end of the season and the growing sense is that the Ukrainian will leave Arsenal this summer.

Borussia Dortmund were interested in signing the 28-year-old during the January transfer window and come the summer he will have just one year left on his current contract.

“I do that with every player before we finalise the season, if possible, if we have time to do so,” said Arteta, when asked about holding talks with Zinchenko.

Zinchenko could leave Arsenal in the summer, when he will have just one year left on his contract

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“So everybody’s clear on expectations from each other, clarity about how we’re feeling about each other and how that relationship can continue is the best thing, and other things to do and discuss. I’m certainly going to have that discussion with all of them.”

When Zinchenko joined Arsenal in the summer of 2022 for over £30million from Manchester City, he revolutionised how the team played out from the back.

Tucking into the centre of the pitch from left-back, he allowed Arsenal to create an overload in midfield and dominate opponents.

It sparked an unexpected title charge and Zinchenko was a driving force of that.

The summer he joined, he constantly told players they should be challenging for the title despite missing out on the top four the previous season.

Zinchenko established himself as a leader and popular figure, not least because he is never shy of playing a practical joke.

The left-back was at the heart of Arsenal’s title charge in 2022-23 and twice that year he won Arsenal’s Player of the Month award.

Now, though, he looks like he may have his Arsenal swansong in another position.

Zinchenko’s last three appearances have come in midfield and that is where he may get the nod for Wednesday’s Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven.

Arsenal are 7-1 up from last week’s first leg and, as such, Arteta is expected to rotate given a place in the quarter-finals is so wrapped up that it just needs a bow on it.

Zinchenko has never started in midfield for Arsenal, but there are limited options available to Arteta if he wants to rest the likes of Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard.

Ethan Nwaneri and Mikel Merino would normally come into the team, but they are both starting in attack right now due to injuries in the forward line.

Arteta will want to give them a rest as the Gunners host Chelsea on Sunday and so the door may open for Zinchenko to play as a left No8 after spending time training there recently.

“He’s very good, and with the options that we have, we believe that it’s a position that he can help in and that suits him,” said Arteta.

It is clear this Arsenal team has evolved beyond Zinchenko when it comes to him playing left-back.

Myles Lewis-Skelly and Riccardo Calafiori offer a greater level of physicality, while Zinchenko’s constant battle with calf injuries has hindered his availability too.

There will, perhaps, be some regret from Arteta though that he did not try Zinchenko in midfield sooner.

Zinchenko has looked bright during his brief cameos there recently and - given Arsenal’s need for more creativity in attack this season - it feels like he could have be an option.

When coming up against defences that sit deep, the burden has fallen on Odegaard to unlock opponents.

Playing Zinchenko alongside him as a second playmaker could have maybe alleviated some of that.

It is a role Zinchenko plays for Ukraine and now it might be the position he ends up playing in his remaining days at Arsenal.