I understand that there is no such thing called the Eduardo derby. Well, at least, not yet. But in the noumenal world of all footballing possibilities, surely this too must exist. And we can simply bring it into the domain of phenomenon by remembering a player of both style and substance, a player who was equally loved by supporters of Arsenal and their opposition in this seventh matchday of the new format Champions League, and taking just a moment to realize that despite all the fierce rivalries and uncompromising competitiveness that fuel our beautiful game, football is also a great unifier as it connects people across time and space through shared stories, experiences and histories. 

Dinamo Zagreb – officially, Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb, or “Dinamo Zagreb Citizens’ Football Club” – has experienced their own history through a series of transformations and mutations, including changing their name a few times, that mirror the monumental upheavals of Croatia and Croatians in the last century. And somewhere in the middle of that journey, their trajectory – even if obliquely – was once influenced by Arsenal. 

The great Hungary national team of 1940s and 50s – the “Mighty Magyars”, the “Golden Team” – that won gold in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics and missed out on winning the 1954 World Cup (most likely) because of injury to one Ferenc Puskás, was managed by Gusztáv Sebes, who fine tuned a revolutionary WW (3-2-3-2) formation to great tactical benefits, perfectly suiting the creativity and inventiveness of Puskás, Kocsis, Czibor and the midfield prowess of József Bozsik, possibly the first genuine defensive midfielder as we understand the role today. This WW was the inspiration behind the first iterations of 4-2-4 first discussed and put in practice by Béla Guttmann, Gusztáv Sebes and one Márton Bukovi when they were coaching the Hungarian champions MTK Budapest. 

The story goes that the idea of WW first arrived in Bukovi’s mind, while the Hungarian was touring England in 1936 with the club side he was managing. Name of the club side? Građanski Zagreb. Inspiration behind WW? The WM formation immortalized by one Herbert Chapman. 

The 4-2-4 system was later perfected by the Brazillians and used successfully in their first world cup victory in 1958. Flávio Costa, the Brazilian national coach in the 1950s, and Béla Guttmann – who had survived the Holocaust in a labor camp and moved to Brazil in the 50s – were the key contributors towards the development of the tactical nuances of 4-2-4, a system that required great tactical awareness from its players and courage on the ball, but once mastered can be wonderfully flexible, effective and creative of swashbuckling teams. 

So, WM, starting from Herbert Chapman and his Arsenal, moving through Zagreb and Budapest to Santos and Brazil, morphing in the process to a fluid and dynamic tactical system that was precursor to so much of the tactical inventions in later years…a journey later traced in the other direction by Eduardo’s career as he moved from Brazil to Zagreb to Arsenal… 

Dinamo Zagreb is the most successful of all the Croatian clubs in the current Croatian first division league, Prva HNL, which was formed in 1992 after Croatia formally declared its independence in the summer of 1991. They have won 25 HNL titles, the next best being their arch-enemy Hajduk Split, with 6 titles. I am a Split supporter myself, and the last time they won the league was in 2004-05, since then it has seen complete dominance by Zagreb, who missed out on the title only once since then to Rijeka in 2016-17. 

Croatia, for a nation of less than 4 million people, is quite the sporting success. Especially when it comes to football, where they qualified for all the world cups since 1998 except once in 2010, and in these six appearances earned a runners-up finish and two third place results. A significant contributor to this extraordinary record has been Dinamo Zagreb’s system of identifying talents and helping them grow. The greatest Croatian Striker of all time (sorry, Eduardo) Davor Šuker, came through the Zagreb system. He too, of course, played for us, even though by then his career was coming towards an end and we only saw just a few glimpses of his abilities while playing for the Arsenal. 

We have met Zagreb four times in Europe, in two different double-legged ties. In the 2006-07 CL 3rd qualifying round we won both away and at home, by scores of 0-3 and 2-1. In the 2015/16 group stages, we lost away to them 1-2 on matchday 1 before beating them 3-0 at home. That match, taking place towards the end of November 2015, presented us with some truly unusual moments: Mesut Özil scoring a diving header from an Olivier Giroud cross (a perfect replica of many such goals where the provider and the scorer had changed places), and Sanchez scoring his second, and the team’s third, goal of the evening from a sumptuous defense-splitting reverse ball from Campbell, Arsenal’s sole Costa Rican player until now. Typical of late-era Arsène teams, finding any clear narrative about the team from that performance is impossible. We were capable of sublime and ridiculous with equal propensity, while consistency was our obscure object of desire, enigmatic and elusive. 

Nearly a decade from then, the current incarnation of the Arsenal team embodies principles founded on a far more pragmatic basis of defensive solidity, off-the-ball workrate, and tactical discipline of a Roman legion. So, even when the famed automatons break down, or the individuals lose their form or musculoskeletal integrity, or invariably the video assistant referees produce infuriating attempts at drama masquerading as sport, we somehow manage to put together an effort that is good enough to see off most oppositions. 

And it is vitally important for our season that we get all the three available points out of this match. We are currently on 13 points from 6 matches, with a goal difference of 9. We are fifth in the table but all the four teams ahead of us have played an extra game. If we win against Zagreb, given the goal difference of other teams we will most likely move up to the third position in the table. The top 8 may or may not be mathematically assured by the end of this matchweek 7, but we will be in a very strong position to ensure that on the final day away at Girona. Finishing in the top eight and earning automatic qualification for the second round will allow fatigued legs and minds greater rest in February, and maybe even the possibility of some sunny sojourn away from the gloom of the English winter to lift the spirits towards an unstoppable run at the final stretch of the season. 

As Zagreb themselves are only one position outside the second round qualification play-off for teams in positions 9-24 in the league table, they will take it equally seriously. They will also be well rested, as Croatian domestic football is currently in its annual winter break, and more importantly are likely to enjoy some new managerial advantage as Italian legend Fabio Cannavaro replaces Nenad Bjelica as the manager.  Dinamo’s last competitive match was on December 22, and while it is possible that Cannavaro will already bring in some of his own ideas and tactics to the team, for an important CL match away at a famous opposition he is likely to keep his faith in the 4-2-3-1 formation Zagreb has been using this season, and as well as in the experienced stalwarts of the team, like Zagorac in goal and Stojkovic in the midfield. They are missing a couple of key players with main striker Petkovic and talented young midfielder Petar Sucic out with injury. But the Swiss born youngster Martin Baturina – already being thought of as a potential successor to great Modric – will definitely try to impress the watching world, including one Mikel Arteta, in his playmaker role. 

The Arsenal is of course injury ravaged to a degree eerily reminiscent of Eduardo’s first season at the club when the magnificent young Arsenal side’s league challenge evaporated in the final months with a series of injuries, including one suffered by Eduardo who was maimed by some northern thug masquerading as a football player. The home draw against Aston Villa last weekend saw our attacking quartet running on the proverbial fumes towards the end of the match. A team that was designed to be efficient and ruthless in transitions – in both directions – has now started to find itself being outpaced in counter attacks as the injury depleted squad has started to feel fatigue seep into their minds and limbs. The welcome news of Calafiori and Nwaneri returning is unfortunately dampened by Saliba’s injury, even though thankfully he is expected to return after only a short hiatus. Technically versatile ball-playing defender with an uncanny ability to read the game? I am sure Fabio Cannavaro knows exactly what Arsenal would be missing. 

We are one of the best out-of-possession teams in world football, and if we can use our pressing and interception to force turnovers early in the game, create uncertainties and take one or two of the few inevitable chances that we will carve out in the first thirty odd minutes, we will be able to manage the match better. On the other hand, if we let them grow confident in possession and we fail to score early, we may end up finding it a surprisingly difficult encounter, similar to the one we experienced against Shakhtar Donetsk earlier in the autumn. 

Given all the injuries, and likely some more players on the margin, it is hard to guess the team Mikel will likely start with. Even though Calafiori is back in full training, I think, given his fragility, it would be best to let him come back up to speed by playing him the last 20-25 minutes of the match. Zagreb doesn’t have any flying wingers on their right, and Zinchenko will bring experience, technical nous and probing forward passes to the midfield, allowing MLS some much deserved rest before the weekend’s league match. Next to Gabriel and Saliba almost all central defenders pale in comparison, and that explains the lukewarm reception Kiwior’s solid performances receive. I think he is a fine enough second choice center back and should be able to deputize for Saliba in this match on the right side of the central defense, with Timber to support him on his right. The temptation to start Jorginho as the pivot will be high, but given how Rice has been performing lately – seemingly fully fit after the niggles of early season – and given how much of a spatial dominance he offers, I will start with Rice in the DM role, play Kai on the left sided eight, and have Martinelli play down the middle as the striker with Leo and Nwaneri on the wings. To add to the tactical flexibility, Ethan and Gabi can switch positions and create different challenges for their defense.  

My preferred starting eleven:

Raya

Timber – Kiwior – Gabriel – Zinchenko

Rice

Ødegaard – Havertz 

Nwaneri – Martinelli – Trossard 

I understand this won’t be to everyone’s liking, and I will be very surprised if Mikel actually starts this way. But much of the joy of being an armchair expert comes from presenting controversial tactical ideas that have the advantage of requiring no validation on the field of play. 

Mikel is likely to start with a more obvious line-up:        

Raya

Timber – Kiwior – Gabriel – Calafiori 

Jorginho

Ødegaard – Rice 

Nwaneri – Havertz – Martinelli  

I am sure the team understands the value of three points in this match, and I am optimistic that a confident and convincing victory here can signal a revival from our recent doldrums. I think if we score an early goal, we can then focus on seeing this match out without stress. I am hoping for a routine 2-0 victory, with a fair amount of rotation in the second half offering some key players a much needed rest.   

Come on Arsenal!