There is a lot to be happy about today as the Gunners came home from Burnley with a hard fought win over a very determined, and physical Sean Dyche side. The final 1-0, thanks to a terrific Martin Odegaard free kick.
Defensively, I think the Gunners played their best game of the young season, however, offensively, we still have a lot of issues to resolve.
Let’s look at our offensive statistics after five Premier League matches, and see where the Gunners stand v the rest of the league.
18th – goals (2)
7th – shots (72)
4th – Hit the woodwork (2)
11th – Total passes (2,048)
16th – Long balls (230)
16th – Crosses (75)
12th – Corners (25)
2nd – Big chances missed (57)
8th – Depossessed (412)
At the end of they, it’s pretty easy to determine why we aren’t scoring more goals.
So, which of these stats really stand out to you? Obviously, our lack of goals is huge concern, but equally concerning are the big chances missed and our rate of depossession. We are lose the ball at a rate of 82.4 times per Premier League match. This is simply not good enough, and needs to improve sooner rather than later. Hopefully, as the squad heals their wounds and gets more playing time together, many of these numbers will dramatically improve. What really showed on Saturday was our inability to complete passes consistently. Arsenal simply gives the ball away too many times in a match, and often on the wrong end of the pitch.
This is a big week for the Gunners, and will help all of us see exactly where this club stands as we close in on October.
Cheers.
Gunner1953
One of my all-time Arsenal players, Olivier Giroud, returns to Emirates Stadium on Tuesday. This time as a player for the competition, Lille. Giroud scored 105 goals in 253 appearances for the Gunners.
Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard on Man City’s punishment. “In terms of how I feel, I potentially could be affected if you like, I wouldn’t want individual players to give stuff back, that wouldn’t be right. But the club, they have to be stripped.”
