How can each ‘Big Six’ club benefit from their attacking midfielders this season? | OneFootball

Former RB Leipzig attacking midfielder Xavi Simons’ £52m move to Tottenham Hotspur was recently announced. This move means that every ‘Big Six’ Premier League club now has at least one highly rated attacking midfielder after what has been another unsurprisingly costly window for the Premier League. Clubs across the league, from Arsenal to newly promoted Sunderland, have spent heavily this summer.

A recurring position that the ‘Big Six’ teams have recruited in this summer has been attacking midfielders. A combined £387m has been spent on recognised attacking midfielders by the ‘Big Six’. This can reasonably be taken as evidence of an urgency from these clubs to push their respective attacking levels to a title-contending standard. However, substantial transfer fees are not guarantees of success.

Some attacking midfielders are good enough to rise above a restrictive game model. However, most professional attacking midfielders are unfortunately only as good as their club’s game model allows them to be. With this logic in mind, the likelihood of success individually for each of the ‘Big Six’ clubs attacking midfielders, as well as their impacts on their teams’ overall success, can be analysed and predicted.

Tottenham

Xavi Simons

Thomas Frank, Tottenham’s manager, has had to find solutions in response to the James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski injuries. One of these solutions has been playing Pape Matar Sarr, a central midfielder, as the number 10. Sarr’s physicality, ball-carrying ability, and his ability to connect play has made the transition into this new role almost seamless for him. Unsurprisingly however, he cannot claim to boast the creativity and eye for goal that Xavi Simons has become renowned for.

Simons, a La Masia product, has had worldwide acclaim since his academy days. Despite only being 22 years old, he brings considerable top-level experience in Europe and internationally (representing the Netherlands) to Tottenham. Simons can be deployed on the wings but is best utilised as a number 10. This is likely where he will play numerous games for Tottenham.

Simons as the number 10 would allow Sarr to fall back into his favoured position in the pivot alongside João Palhinha. This would solidify the base of the midfield. One of the core principles of Frank’s philosophy is hard work out of possession. The midfield three of Palhinha, Sarr, and Simons will encapsulate this. The best players to come from Red Bull clubs have usually been hard-working athletes. Simons is no exception.

With Frank’s ability to raise the level of his attackers, expect Simons to get close to replicating the numbers he has produced for RB Leipzig. Simons is an excellent addition to a squad that has an attacking force easily capable of securing a top-four place in the league and going far in the Champions League.

Mohammed Kudus

Mohammed Kudus signed for Tottenham from West Ham for £55m. He brings the usefulness of being a Swiss Army knife, capable of playing multiple different attacking positions. However, since coming to England he has primarily played as a number 10 or a right-winger. These are also the positions where he has produced the most numbers. Kudus is similar to Simons in that they both excel in transitions and are very inventive in the final third. Kudus being left-footed means that he provides a good option on the right as an inverted winger who can cut inside more easily.

This has been a summer where arguably inferior players have been bought for similar or bigger fees. Therefore, securing Simons and Kudus for just over a combined £100m should prove to be excellent business by Tottenham.

Manchester United

Matheus Cunha

Aligning with the specificity of profiles needed for Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim’s system, centred around a 3-4-3, the signing of Matheus Cunha makes sense. United signed Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers after triggering his £62.5m release clause. He immediately became a starter for United in the left-10 position. Fundamentally, Cunha was an obvious purchase due to him playing in the exact same position in the exact same formation at Wolves.

As long as Amorim is the manager of United, it is likely that Cunha will not reach the heights he did at Wolves. United have been horrid under Amorim. The team carries a 24% win rate under the Portuguese coach and fails to create consistent high-percentage chances for the attackers. Since United’s first preseason game against Leeds United back in July, Cunha has seen his shots-per-game decrease in comparison to how many shots he took per game at Wolves. Cunha is a phenomenal ball-striker, and this quality cannot be leveraged if he is not shooting enough.

Cunha scored 15 goals in the league last season. However, it is also important to consider that a lot of Cunha’s goals last season were low-percentage chances that he converted by luck or his own ability. United cannot hope to rely on Cunha producing moments of magic every single game because the team is not creating high-percentage chances. This is unsustainable.

A potential saving grace for Cunha could be the possible sacking of Amorim in the coming weeks. Following United’s embarrassing exit from the Carabao Cup to League Two side Grimsby Town, Amorim’s position as United manager is more tenuous than ever. In the event that Amorim is sacked and United sign a better manager, Cunha should become a game-winning player for the Red Devils. Cunha’s ball-striking, ball-carrying, tenacity, and maverick tendencies make him a formidable player who, at his best, any coach in world football would love to have.

Manchester City

Rayan Cherki

A player highly rated since he was 16 years old, it always seemed inevitable that Rayan Cherki would arrive at a big club soon. His arrival at Manchester City follows his most productive season of his career so far. He recorded 33 goal contributions in 48 games across all competitions last season. Watching Cherki play is enough evidence to ascertain that City were not going to find many better Kevin De Bruyne replacements than him.

Cherki plays the game at his own pace. Equally comfortable with both feet in shooting and passing, and an exceptional solution-finder in pockets all over the pitch. Cherki does not have the ball-striking or ball-carrying ability of a prime De Bruyne. However, he compensates for this with intelligent movement and borderline elite playmaking and chance creation. Cherki’s most relevant and potentially problematic disadvantage is his physicality, which can prevent him from properly influencing games sometimes.

Cherki adds to an already stacked City team filled with attacking quality under an elite manager in Pep Guardiola. City will always be amongst the highest scorers and possession retainers in the league. Concerns about Cherki’s ability to produce numbers in such a historically well-oiled attacking machine should be minimal. This is a City team competing on multiple fronts yet again. Therefore, opportunities for Cherki to directly contribute to his team’s trophy-hunting will always be afforded to him.

The biggest concern collectively remains City’s defence. The success that City hope to achieve this season will largely depend on whether they will be able to mitigate their defensive woes. Defensive shakiness was one of the main reasons why City won nothing last season. Addressing this issue immediately positions City as Premier League and Champions League title favourites.

Chelsea

Cole Palmer

Despite reports that Chelsea recently sent a bid to Barcelona for attacking midfield talent Fermin Lopez, nothing developed further. Thus, the prolific Cole Palmer remains their main attacking midfielder. Palmer immediately hit the ground running at Chelsea following his £40m move from City in 2023. He has since delivered 74 goal contributions in 101 games and has won the Club World Cup and the Conference League. He also won the 2024 PFA Young Player of the Year award.

Palmer was able to bring the numbers last season, mostly in the first half of the season. However, his numbers have suffered a noticeable deficit, having failed to score a non-penalty goal in the Premier League since January. The likeliest reason is positional. Throughout the 23/24 season, Palmer played 21 times as an attacking midfielder and 20 times as a right-winger. Palmer delivered two more goal contributions from the centre. However, throughout his career at Chelsea he has evidently been harder to deal with when he has started on the right.

Palmer’s inevitability of deciding games from the right was encapsulated by his stellar man of the match performance in the Club World Cup Final against Paris Saint-Germain. Palmer delivered two excellent goals and assisted the third in Chelsea’s winning performance. Since January this year though, it seems that more teams have effectively figured out how to thoroughly nullify Palmer when he has started centrally.

Perhaps Palmer’s struggles centrally are why Chelsea were so adamant on acquiring an attacking midfielder this summer. Despite Chelsea’s failure to buy an attacking midfielder, there remains the option of an internal solution. This solution is 18-year-old Estevão, a Brazilian international formerly of Palmeiras. He is akin to Palmer in that he is also equally adept centrally and on the right-wing. Estevao has been playing on the right recently. It will be interesting to see if he is given the keys to the centre once Palmer returns from injury.

Palmer at his best is one of Europe’s best attackers. Thus, it is imperative that Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca helps to assuage Palmer’s current struggles for output in the Premier League. Chelsea have strengthened in the attacking department which should give them an edge domestically as well as in Europe. The onus is on Maresca to platform Palmer in a way that reawakens his world class ability from 23/24. If this is accomplished, then Chelsea have every chance of putting themselves in major conversations for this season’s biggest prizes.

Liverpool

Florian Wirtz

Liverpool broke the British record for a midfield transfer by acquiring invincible Bundesliga winner Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen for £116m. Wirtz arrived at Anfield with worldwide acclaim, having burst onto the professional scene as a teenager. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Wirtz’ success so far is that he came back from an ACL injury he suffered early in his career better than before. However, Wirtz’ settling in process in English football has not been smooth sailing.

Wirtz was able to contribute an assist in Liverpool’s Community Shield defeat to Crystal Palace. Despite this, he has yet to even show glimpses of being able to justify his hefty fee. This is partly due to his role at Liverpool, and how it differs to the role he had at Leverkusen. In Germany, Wirtz was firmly an attacking player, usually deployed as one of the 10s in a 3-4-3. At Liverpool, his responsibility on the ball has grown as he’s been tasked with playing as a more traditional 10. Wirtz is a lot more involved with how Liverpool progress and circulate the ball. This has proven to be quite detrimental to him.

It goes without saying that the Premier League is more physical than the Bundesliga. It should also be taken into account how much higher the level of coaching is in the Premier League compared to the Bundesliga. Teams are more disciplined and organised out of possession in the English top-flight. This makes it more difficult for players like Wirtz to play their game when teams can effectively mark them out of games.

The benefit Wirtz has is that the season has only just begun. Teams are yet to reach full speed and currently picking up as many points as possible is the priority. It will be interesting to see how Wirtz develops in his new role. There is also the possibility that Liverpool boss Arne Slot platforms him in an alternative way. It is indisputable that Wirtz is one of Europe’s most dangerous attackers at his best. In a team that is already the country’s best, helping Wirtz reach the heights he did in Germany will likely guarantee that the title returns to Merseyside next May.

Arsenal

Eberechi Eze

Arsenal’s new £67.5m attacking midfield signing Eberechi Eze made his debut on the left for Arsenal’s loss to Liverpool this past Sunday. Eze, who was released by Arsenal early in his academy days, is a signing that Arsenal fans clamoured for. The hope was that Eze would provide an upgrade on Arsenal’s left-wing and attacking midfield options. The likes of Gabriel Martinelli and club captain Martin Ødegaard greatly underperformed last season.

The conundrum with Eze is whether he will be able to feature for Arsenal as an attacking midfielder as much as he did at Palace. Eze is undoubtedly at his best when he is given license to roam anywhere on the pitch. Eze had more access to this kind of freedom at Palace. At Arsenal, it is unlikely that he will be able to usurp Ødegaard’s position due to his status as club captain. Odegaard is also a known favourite of Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

In most games this season it is likely that Eze will start on the left and Ødegaard will start centrally when both are fit. The benefit for Odegaard is that he remains in his favoured position. It remains to be seen whether Eze can replicate the impact he had on the pitch at Palace. Eze’s heat-maps from last season revealed that his most favoured zone on the pitch is the final third left half-space. At Arsenal, the dynamic he previously had with Tyrick Mitchell can possibly be reinvented with a dynamic fullback like Riccardo Calafiori.

There then becomes the mouth-watering possibility of Eze, Odegaard, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi creating a box midfield in possession. This would balance Eze’s creativity with Odegaard’s tendency to recycle the ball and find shooting positions near the edge of the box. Rice and Zubimendi would act as a security net behind the two attacking midfielders. Arsenal concentrating play like this in the centre may indirectly create more 1v1 opportunities for Bukayo Saka. Saka is frequently confronted by multiple defenders when he has the ball.

This is a recipe for domination, and Eze is bound to have multiple opportunities a game to cause havoc. The expectation is for Arsenal to win the league and go deep in the Champions League. Arsenal placed an emphasis on strength in depth this summer to enable them to fight on all fronts aggressively. Eze, placed on top of a plethora of other additions this summer for Arsenal, only takes them closer to glory.