It has really been amazing to watch this young Arsenal team play such wonderful football with so much ease, skill and technique.


Each and every player whether a defender, midfielder or attacker possesses an astonishing amount of talent that allows him to be almost equally proficient in various positions and areas on the football pitch.


It is reminiscent of the "total football" (or Totaalvoetbal in Dutch) that Ajax introduced with great effect to the world in the early 1970's.


Although its foundations were laid much earlier at Ajax by Jack Reynolds it was his disciple Rinus Michels during his tenure at Ajax that really perfected it.


Ajax won the equivalent of the Champions League (then named the European
Cup) in three successive seasons, 1971, 1972 and 1973.


The Dutch national team under his tutelage reached the Final of the 1974 World Cup beating Argentina,Brazil and East Germany on the way. They lost the final narrowly to West Germany 2-1.


Total Football is a system where a player who moves out of his position is replaced by another and in this way the structure of the team is kept intact.


In this fluid system no position is fixed and at the extreme any player can be an attacker, a midfielder or even a defender.


And judging by Arsenal's performances so far in the Premiership Arsene Wenger seems to be a modern day Rinus Michels.


He has resurrected ....




By our friend at Arsenal Analysis