Match report – Participant scores – Arteta response – Video
I very not often begin with a line from the day prior to this’s weblog, however I feel as we speak is a little bit of an exception, so:
I’ve to say, as tough because the Rice/Odegaard factor is, I’d be extra apprehensive if we had related issues on the again. The solidity and continuity of the again 4/5 might be examined as we speak, however we all know what they’re able to.
Yesterday’s 1-0 North London derby win was constructed on the defensive platform we’ve got constructed during the last variety of years, and whereas I feel the again 4 and the goalkeeper are clearly the mainstays, what stood out to me most yesterday was how onerous the complete workforce labored from a defensive perspective.
Not everybody was flawless, however that outdated cliche of defending from the entrance sprang to thoughts after I noticed Kai Havertz closing down excessive up the pitch to cease them from getting the ball ahead. Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli ran themselves ragged in each instructions, Leandro Trossard buzzed round interchanging with Havertz, and even the 2 veteran midfielders – each of whom I feel struggled at occasions – did their bit to shore up the centre of the pitch.
We all know how Spurs wish to play via the center. They stored attempting. They stored hitting a brick wall. It was form of like an anti-Pavlovian response. They stored doing it and it didn’t work, however they didn’t study something from it. It was, in as a lot as something could be through the traumatic 90 minutes+ of a derby, fairly humorous.
Early on David Raya needed to be alert a few occasions, and William Saliba picked up a fifteenth minute reserving for ‘delaying the restart’ after he gained the ball. The truth that this rule solely appears to use to Arsenal gamers is doing my head in, but when it’s a truth of life for us and no one else, we’re going to need to adapt – no matter how nonsensical it’s to see us choose up yellows and reds whereas no one else does.
We had the most effective likelihood of the primary half when Trossard despatched Martinelli via. If he’d obtained his head up, he might need seen the chance was there to play in Saka on the again submit, however he didn’t and went for objective. I don’t essentially blame him fro attempting to attain however the end lacked conviction, which is a little bit of a operating theme for him in the intervening time. His final objective got here in March, he’s badly in want of one thing to unblock the expertise we all know he has.
The second a part of the primary half was punctuated with a sequence of yellow playing cards, extra for them than for us, however Jurrien Timber’s was the one within the highlight. To be sincere, I don’t even assume it’s a reserving, he didn’t contact Porro who writhed round on the bottom but required no therapy for one thing which evidently was so critical. Pure playacting. He’d get his ultimately, and the dialogue on TV about how he was fortunate to not be despatched off was absurd. I additionally liked the afters, not simply Timber himself, however look how rapidly Bukayo Saka was in there to take care of his mate. Good.
Their greatest moments got here from our carelessness. Jorginho misplaced it and so they countered; Partey’s sloppy touches round our field introduced them with alternatives that have been snuffed out by our defenders; Trossard obtained caught on the ball exterior our field. I wasn’t in any respect stunned to listen to the supervisor references these features of our play afterwards, saying:
I don’t assume we’ve accomplished, particularly with the ball, the easy issues proper in any respect.
He was spot on. That felt just like the factor that may value us way over what the opposition have been doing with the ball themselves. Which was, as I’ve identified, not a lot in any respect past attempting to drive down the cul de sac of damaged desires which our self-discipline and organisation snuffed out time and time once more.
The opposite query was: how have been we going to harm them? The reply got here halfway via the second half. On 62’18 Gabriel made a massively essential block after a free Partey contact introduced an opportunity in our field to Brennan Johnson. Arsenal countered and gained a nook. Porro took a breather, exhausted from no matter. Chump. Saka took it, and on 63’42 the ball was at the back of the web, courtesy of a thumping header from the Brazilian.
Once more, the absurdity of the TV dialogue a couple of attainable foul on Romero was stark. It was simply terrible, terrible defending from the Argentine. He knew the place Gabriel was the complete time, however nonetheless discovered himself the unsuitable facet of the Arsenal man, permitting him all of the area and time he wanted to go house from a superb Saka supply. By the best way, in 4 Premier League video games this season, it’s 1 objective and 4 assists for him. He has made a objective contribution in every sport, and it’s form of flying beneath the radar as a result of the expectation ranges he’s constructing are so excessive.
As for Gabriel, it felt just like the objective gave him power. If he was Popeye, scoring in opposition to Spurs is his spinach, and it powered up the remainder of his efficiency. If there’s a greater man to have in your workforce whereas the opposition are slinging in hopeful crosses then I don’t know who it’s. He gained every thing, together with one other one the place one other poor Partey contact meant he needed to be so exact within the problem or it will have been a penalty.
I additionally simply need to point out the sense of calm that comes with David Raya in objective. In these excessive stakes video games, similar to he did at Villa Park, his dealing with and determination making helped ease stress. The way in which he kills time should be infuriating for the opposition followers, however I really like the best way he buys us these few seconds so we are able to get into form and organised once more.
As now know, Spurs had nothing a lot to supply from an attacking perspective, and what they did have was shut down by a defensive effort that was simply excellent. All of the discuss pre-game was how Arsenal would address Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard, and you can see that we missed them in sure phases of play, however maybe the extra pertinent query was how would Spurs address an Arsenal workforce whose defensive solidity and self-discipline is so good from entrance to again. And the reply was, they couldn’t. Arsenal have been with out Odegaard; Spurs had James Maddison ambling round fascinated with how you can be the principle man at a Sunday roast. Anybody who wished us to signal him forward of the Norwegian, please do your penance.
Afterwards, Mikel Arteta was requested about his pre-game preparations, as a result of not solely did we lose Odegaard to damage, we went into this one with out Riccardo Calafiori and Oleksandr Zinchenko. The bench was massively inexperienced. He stated:
I didn’t take pleasure in it as a result of I didn’t sleep a lot. I checked out Spurs for 4 or 5 days. I had an excellent clear plan, how you can do it. I ready every thing, the session, the assembly, and so on, after which one information, we lose a participant. One other information, we lose one other participant. One other information, we lose a participant. So I needed to fully change it. I favored the plan for the gamers that we had obtainable, so it was an amazing problem.
And on the hassle his facet put in:
Individuals which can be more durable, they’ve thick pores and skin, they love the sport and so they love profitable. In an effort to love the sport and win, you must do a whole lot of issues – generally folks name them ugly. It’s an enormous week arising and that’s going to offer us a whole lot of power and perception.
Had we not come via this, there would have been questions on how we have been unable to dwell with out Rice and Odegaard. It wasn’t simply an enormous win as a result of it was the derby, it wasn’t simply an enormous win as a result of that made it three in a row at their place, it was an enormous win as a result of we confirmed that there’s adequate depth and high quality to do it with out some actually essential gamers. Wins like this instill that little bit further when it comes to perception. We’ll fortunately welcome these gamers again, after all, however doing it with out them was so essential.
Now we take inventory forward of a visit to Italy within the Champions League, after which Man Metropolis subsequent weekend when that defensive high quality might be examined once more. For now although, it’s a day to bask, to benefit from the outcome and the three factors. And to snigger at Tottenham. As a result of that’s what you must do. No exceptions. It’s obligatory.
Proper, let’s depart it there. We may have an Arsecast Additional for you a bit later. Hold an eye fixed out for the decision for questions on Threads @gunnerblog and @arseblog with the hashtag #arsecastextra – or for those who’re an Arseblog Member on Patreon, depart your query within the #arsecast-extra-questions channel on our Discord server.
Pod ought to be out mid-morning. For now, have a very good one.
