After Sunday’s match v Manchester United, Mikel Arteta said his squad was not overly excited with their performance. Yes, the win and a clean sheet were terrific opening day results on the road at Old Trafford, but, overall, the team felt they had not played their best.
In my humble opinion, I agree, however, the result put three points on the league table, and it must be said, a win is a win. Remember, this is a math project, not an art project.
‘1-nil to the Arsenal.”
Offensively, the Gunners had some chances, and Viktor Gyokeres was unable to get a lot of opportunities inside the penalty area. Normally, Arsenal’s main offensive tactic is based on the strength of the right side – Martin Odegaard, Ben White and Bukayo Saka. Manchester United did a nice job shutting this down, plus they had a double-team on Gyokeres most of the game.
Not to defend anyone’s performance, but bringing a striker into Arteta’s tactics will take a few games. It will take a few matches for everyone to learn how to take advantage of each other’s talents. Gyokeres is a power player, not necessarily a finesse player. The goals will come. Mark my words.
Let’s not ignore the fact that Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and William Saliba were not at mid-season form either on Sunday, plus, Manchester United came into the match with more energy, more desire and a had lot more of the ball. Fortunately, David Raya made several outstanding saves that prevented the Red Devils from equalizing, or more.
I predicted a one goal win for the Gunners, and I think we should be happy with the result.
Was Arsenal at their best? No. Will they play better on Saturday v Leeds United? Yes. Will Gyokeres open his scoring account with Arsenal on Saturday? Yes.
Patience is a virtue, and a win is three points, no matter how you get them.
Cheers.
Gunner1953
Manchester City is now the leader on top of the Premier League table following Wednesday’s 1-0 win over Burnley. City leads Arsenal on the table by scoring 3 more goals in league play.
On Wednesday, Burnley was relegated back to the Championship joining previously dropping Wolves. One relegation spot remains to be filled.
Chelsea has sacked manager Liam Rosenior just three months into his six-year contract. No replacement has been named.
I think our defense and goalkeeper were A+ in this game — a major positive. In past visits to Old Trafford, even with better teams and performances, we’ve come back empty-handed. In any other year, we might have lost or been lucky to get a draw. This win shows how resilient we are defensively — something to celebrate and be proud of, not sneer at!
As for the midfield and attacking players — clearly, Zubi needs time to adjust to the pace of the league and the officiating, especially when he doesn’t even get a foul after being elbowed in the face. As Arteta alluded to, Gyökeres still needs to learn our pressing system, and our wingers and midfielders need to adapt to playing with a true centre-forward who stays in the box to finish chances, rather than dropping deep to create them. Our other star players looked rusty too — but this should improve with time. I’m confident we’ll be miles better against Leeds.
The big immediate test is Liverpool — a game that’s probably come too soon for us, before our new signings have had time to gel. One thing to note, though, is how poor Gyökeres was in his hold-up play, something Havertz improved immediately. If we’re planning to bypass the midfield with direct balls from the goalkeeper to the centre-forward, then Havertz should start until Gyökeres adapts to the physicality of the Premier League.
tnyyqe