Arsenal have gone through a number of structural changes since Mikel Arteta took over from Unai Emery to become the head coach and now manager.
The formation began with a switch to a back three to combat the defensive deficiencies in the Arsenal side before shifting to the 4-2-3-1 which became a regular occurrence under Arsene Wenger.
More recently, however, Mikel Arteta has preferred a 4-3-3 formation with Thomas Partey operating at the base of the midfield three and Granit Xhaka and Martin Odegaard playing ahead of the Ghanaian. The system has seen two wins from two in the opportunities against Wolves and Brentford.
However, the consolidation of the back four has meant that summer signing Nuno Tavares has completely lost his place in the side to Kieran Tierney.
Interestingly, an interview with Scotland head coach Steve Clarke has revealed how he got the best from his own double left-back issue brought about by the presence of Tierney and Liverpool’s Andrew Robertson.
"The personnel we had – we had two of the best left-backs in world football, Tierney and Robertson, and had to figure out how to get them in the team," said Clarke.
"At that moment I didn’t think the centre-back options were great, so let’s pick three and see if that makes it better!
"My idea was that Tierney could play centre-back and I had this mad idea that Scott McTominay could play as one of the others."
Clarke added that he spoke with Tierney and told him what he was planning for the defender.
"I had a really good conversation with Tierney to tell him he was going to be the best left-sided centre-back that Scotland had ever had."
Tierney has made the left centre-half role his own in the Scottish side and even occupied the role on a number of occasions for Arsenal. Specifically in the FA Cup run that saw the Gunners beat Manchester City and Chelsea on their way to lifting the trophy.
Should Mikel Arteta wish to change the system again in the near future, the option to use Tierney in this role could provide a path for Nuno Tavares.
The Portuguese full-back impressed in the first half of the season, helping Emile Smith Rowe in particular.
The pair formed a strong partnership in the wins over Aston Villa, Leicester City and Watford. These even led to reports suggesting that Manchester City were keeping tabs on the 22-year-old.
Arsenal will not want to lose the player after failing for some time to have sufficient quality cover for Tierney and providing a path into the first team with a change in structure could work.
Alternatively, however, should Arsenal qualify for European football next season, the increased fixture schedule will enable more opportunities for rotation and Tavares would definitely get a chance in the team then.
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