Nottingham Forest’s 0-0 draw against Arsenal was certainly a better result for Nuno Espirito Santo than Mikel Arteta, with the Portuguese coach explaining his tactical thoughts in a post-match interview.
Defences were on top at the City Ground in a predictably tight affair, shown by how Forest fans praised Murillo’s display against Arsenal over any of the more forward-thinking options.
After conceding six goals across the previous two Premier League games, though, Espirito Santo will certainly be happy with the clean sheet over any frustrations surrounding a lack of attacking threat.
One disappointment may have been Nicolas Dominguez’s sub-par performance against Arsenal as the Argentine midfielder couldn’t cope with the numerical advantage of the Gunners’ three-man midfield system.
However, when Ryan Yates was introduced to replace Dominguez, Forest began to get to grips with the midfield battle which suggested that Espirito Santo may have got the formula spot on tactically after all.
Quizzed about this in the aftermath of the game, the Forest manager gave a rather blunt response to the question of his tactical set-up, to the shock of Arsenal legend Martin Keown on the panel.
Nuno Espirito Santo explains his thoughts behind Nottingham Forest’s shape vs Arsenal
Perhaps understandably, there were some expectations that Forest may revert back to a five-at-the-back system after conceding four against Newcastle but that thought didn’t seem to cross the mind of Espirito Santo.
Speaking about his formation choice to TNT Sports, he said: “As Arsenal doesn’t have a striker with Merino playing that position, there’s no need for an extra body. So the overload would be in the midfield when he drops in, so it was about containing the midfield.”
It seemed that Keown thought he had a point as to why the Portuguese coach didn’t play the same system that saw Forest dismantle Brighton, but Espirito Santo’s swift, brutal response indicated that his tactical choice was well thought out.
There would always be a temptation to revert to a winning system but the Forest coaching staff clearly spotted an area that Arteta may look to exploit with Merino dropping into the midfield as well as leading the line.
When analysing Merino’s performance on the night, it only vindicates Espirito Santo’s decision to not follow the logic that Keown presented.
Nottingham Forest handled the unique Mikel Merino challenge superbly
Arsenal were without Myles Lewis-Skelly due to suspension but their most detrimental absence is that of a striker, with Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus both out injured.
This has left midfielder Merino to deputise up front, which is clearly a disadvantage but one that can also act as a confusion for opposition defences. This wasn’t the case on Wednesday night, though,
| Statistic | Mikel Merino vs Nottingham Forest |
| Shots on target | 1 |
| Touches in opposition box | 4 |
| Ground Duels won (%) | 3/9 (33%) |
| Aerial duels won (%) | 2/6 (33%) |
The ever-commanding duo of Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic bossed Merino throughout the match, limiting the Spaniard to just a single shot on target, as well as only four touches in the Forest box.
Merino was always going to drop deep but by winning just 33% of his ground and aerial duels, he had no impact on the build-up play for Arteta’s side either, further vindicating Espirito Santo’s confidence in not picking a third centre-back.
Of course, the Forest manager would’ve wanted more from an attacking standpoint but by looking at the performance of Merino, it’s clear that his tactical decisions worked perfectly from a defensive perspective.
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