Economy and Efficiency: Santiago Cazorla vs. Burnley

The Burnley vs Arsenal game on the 11^th April 2015 made for intriguing viewing. Arsenal, chasing an eighth straight league win, fought a narrow victory over relegation threatened Burnley; one nil. With Aaron Ramsey scoring the only goal of the game soon after the ten minute mark, Arsenal were in a situation where they were defending this slender lead for the rest of the game. Once it was one nil, the easy assumption to make would be that Arsenal would run riot and Sanchez and Giroud would help themselves to goals as they did against Liverpool the weekend previous. As it transpired, the game was one which tested Arsenal's patience, resolve and pragmatism due to Burnley's efforts and it quickly became obvious this would be no cricket score. I shall point to the role of Santi Cazorla in the Arsenal midfield and argue he was a focal point of carrying out the balance between ball retention and providing a threat. Santi Cazorla’s economy and efficiency with the ball was superb. His intelligent, quick-but not hurried-passing frustrated Burnley increasingly when they desperately needed the ball in search of an equaliser. Moreover, as the game progressed and Burnley tried to attack in the second half, Cazorla’s performance and influence rose.

Arsenal like to keep possession of the ball and as the second half progressed they managed to accomplish more authority of the game’s tempo despite Burnley’s best attempts.  Arsenal were distributing the ball frequently in the middle of the pitch, where Burnley were pressing quickly and so keeping calm possession was not easy. Composure was paramount to Arsenal's success and Cazorla’s vision to see teammates before receiving the ball was evident with quick one touch passes before interceptions were possible. Cazorla’s pass completion was 94%, compared to Arsenal’s average of 83%; this despite his position being in the most congested part of the field, just on the half way line. This was also higher than his own average of 88% in the league this season. Pass completion by itself is a useless statistic, and if you are chasing the game, then risks need to be taken and merely making safe passes in safe positions is not threatening to the opposition. Arsenal, however were preserving a narrow marginal advantage in the game and Cazorla’s immensely impressive ball retention under pressure caused frustration for Burnley and breathing space for Arsenal.  His ability to receive and pass the ball efficiently in tight spaces gave his pacey teammates like Bellerin, Sanchez and Welbeck license to receive the ball in open channels and be able to try and create chances. Furthermore, Cazorla found the balance between being safe with the ball and providing a threat. He attempted more dribbles in the match than any other Arsenal player, and had three shots outside the box. Cazorla is a proven, fine player at shooting from range, and was close to scoring twice against Burnley when it was not a clear cut chance situation.

In conclusion, Cazorla was central to Arsenal’s preservation of their one goal lead, drawing Burnley players into trying to dispossess him and being able to find teammates in good spaces, and crucially this improved as the game progressed. There is no doubt that having an enforcer in Francis Coquelin helps him in midfield and recently Cazorla’s fine form has been synonymous with the rise of the young French midfielder just behind him in midfield. Cazorla will win more plaudits in many more games than this one, however his subtlety, efficiency and intelligence on the ball in a pressure situation was superb in this important Arsenal win.

Statistics gathered from 'Squawka' and 'Whoscored' databases.