Arsenal’s Double Pivot: The Gunners’ Strong Midfield Approach Leading Them Towards The Title

London – As the Premier League season enters its decisive months, Arsenal’s surge to the summit has been underpinned by a midfield axis that is both defensively robust and alarmingly prolific. The partnership of Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi, forged by Mikel Arteta into a seamless double pivot, has become the platform on which the club’s 20-year title drought may finally end.

Saturday’s 3-0 dismissal of Sunderland at Emirates Stadium lifted Arsenal to 56 points from 25 fixtures, six clear of Manchester City, who reached 50 after their dramatic 2-1 defeat of Liverpool. While the attack-minded forwards have drawn plaudits, it is the industry and incision of Rice and Zubimendi that have allowed Arsenal to sustain momentum through the league’s most congested period.

Rice, the England international, has logged four goals and seven assists in 35 appearances across all competitions. Yet numbers alone do not capture his authority: his free-kick delivery has become a set-piece weapon, and his capacity to break stubborn blocks with line-breaking passes has accelerated Arsenal’s offensive rhythm.

Beside him, Zubimendi has enjoyed a spectacular maiden campaign in English football. The 25-year-old Spaniard has six goals and two assists in 34 matches, frequently arriving unmarked at the edge of the area to convert cut-backs or half-cleared crosses. Aerially, he has punished teams that over-commit to Arsenal’s wing play, heading home pinpoint deliveries while markers remain preoccupied with the Gunners’ front line.

Mikel Merino, the experienced Basque midfielder, has been called upon sparingly when either pivot has required rest. His performances have been steady, but the burgeoning understanding between Rice and Zubimendi has kept rotation to a minimum, allowing Arteta to field an unchanged engine room in the majority of recent fixtures.

Opponents have discovered that matching Arsenal shape-for-shape offers little respite. Sides deploying a lone holding midfielder have been overrun, while even those mirroring the double pivot have struggled to replicate the Gunners’ goal threat. Rice and Zubimendi have struck almost exclusively from passes delivered from wide areas, a pattern that exploits the space conceded by deep-lying back lines.

The statistical gap to their title rivals is stark. Manchester City’s Rodri and Bernardo Silva, Liverpool’s Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister, and Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo and Reece James have all contributed commendably in possession, yet none have matched the combined attacking output of Arsenal’s pair.

With 13 fixtures remaining, the Premier League trophy is still far from decided, but the evidence of the past four months suggests that Arteta’s double pivot may prove the critical difference. If Rice and Zubimendi maintain their present trajectory, Arsenal’s long wait for domestic supremacy could be nearing an end.