Jakub Kiwior — Mikel Arteta’s Latest Experiment

The name of Jakub Kiwior may still rarely be heard outside of Arsenal fans, he is a centre back who joined the North London based club from Spezia in January 2023. Since joining, the Poland international has only played eight times for Arsenal, with two coming off the bench. The pre-season is an important period for team preparation in welcoming the new season.

Usually the teams went on tour and does a friendly with different type of teams across the globe. Pre-season is often used to try new players and tactics, this is what Arsenal did in Germany yesteday. Mikel Arteta tried to experiment with Jakub Kiwior as an inverted fullback, a role which is usually done by Oleksandr Zinchenko.

How will Kiwior carry out his new role as the inverted fullback? Let’s look at the following article.

Kiwior starts from the LB position, but most importantly he will tuck into the midfield to form a double pivot with Thomas Partey. The use of the inverted fullback, is for the team to have a numerical advantage against the opponent and create the passing lanes to other players who stays wide (usually wingers).

Kiwor’s positioning allows Gabriel to push wider into the ‘left back’ zone. His safe pass selection helps Arsenal to control the game. He’s got the composure for player who is still learning about their new role.

Kiwior understands space occupation well, he always move to find empty space and help his team progress the ball.

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