Arsenal’s midfield was ‘all over the place’ in first-half against PSG, Wayne Rooney claims – as Gunners struggled to adapt without suspended Thomas Partey

Arsenal‘s midfield was ‘all over the place’ in a frustrating first-half against Paris Saint-Germain, Wayne Rooney claimed.

The Gunners were playing their biggest game in a number of years on Tuesday night, hosting the French champions in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final clash.

They had a nightmare start to the game, going down 1-0 within the first four minutes when Ousmane Dembele fired into the bottom corner to silence an excited Emirates crowd.

They grew into the game, but found it hard going off the ball as they tried to press a PSG side more than comfortable in possession as the visitors started to enjoy chances at will.

It came after Mikel Arteta was forced to reshuffle his midfield, with Thomas Partey suspended on the back of a yellow card in the second leg against Real Madrid.

And former England and Manchester United star Rooney didn’t mince his words with his half-time analysis of Arsenal’s midfield as they struggled to adapt to life without their usual No 6. 

A midfield re-shuffle saw Declan Rice play in a deeper role in the absencne of Thomas Partey

Partey missed the game through suspension after being booked against Real Madrid

Rice was instead deployed deeper, flanked by Mikel Merino and captain Martin Odegaard

Rooney was unimpressed by Arsenal’s tactics in the first-half with three attack-minded midfielders on the pitch

‘I will be honest, when I saw Rice saying about keeping the ball, I would be concerned,’ Rooney said on Amazon Prime Video’s live coverage of the game. ‘The middle three are all over the place.

‘They are trying to press it at every opportunity and PSG will punish them if they keep doing it. They are trying to press and it will suit PSG.’

Rooney was referring to Rice’s words in Arsenal’s pre-match huddle. Gunners captain Martin Odegaard allowed Rice to tell his team-mates: ‘If we don’t have the ball, we die,’ and that was reflected in the hosts’ aggressive play.

Rice ended up playing a deeper role in the game, starting in Partey’s defensive midfield role with Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard ahead of him.

But it didn’t work – at least early on – as explained by midfield legend Clarence Seedorf.

‘They are giving PSG what they want,’ the former AC Milan star said. ‘You have to understand when to press high, if you can’t get the ball, sit back. They are also making a lot of stupid fouls.’