Arsenal suffered their first UEFA Europa League defeat of the season on Thursday as attacking problems continued. The Dutch team PSV Eindhoven soundly defeated the Gunners, 2-0. Second-half goals from Joey Veerman and Luuk de Jong sank the Premier League club.
While the defeat is sure to disappoint Arsenal, they have already secured a place in the knockout round of the competition. The Gunners are also still leading Group A at the moment, two points ahead of PSV. Arsenal can finish the group stage in first place with a win next Thursday at home to FC Zürich.
However, the performance in the Netherlands is a worrying trend for the Premier League leaders. Poor performances tell the story in the Gunners’ last five games in all competitions. Since beating Liverpool on October 9, Arsenal have managed just four goals in these five games. Surprisingly, the dots still show up.
The team’s defense has earned results in recent weeks. However, the Gunners were dribbling behind all night against PSV. On the scoreboard, PSV only scored twice. However, PSV had the ball in the net on two other occasions. both came back for offside of the VAR. Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale deflected three of PSV’s five shots on goal. However, he is guilty of PSV’s second of the night.
Arsenal shows offensive and defensive problems
Head coach Mikel Arteta was clearly unhappy with his defense during the game. He replaced three of the four starting defenders for him. William Saliba was the only baseline outfield player to play the full 90 minutes.
The Gunners will look to bounce back with a home league game against Nottingham Forest on Sunday. The newly promoted side have only amassed eight goals in total in the Premier League so far, while also allowing 23. Forest currently sit bottom of the table.
Home games against two struggling clubs could be exactly what Arteta and company need to stabilize the ship. Manchester City is just two points behind Arsenal in the table.
PHOTO: IMAGO/PA Images
