match report – player ratings – by the numbers – Video
Is there such a thing as a last-minute winner? Perhaps a last-minute winner against a great opposition that looks like it’s basically going to earn a point in a game where they were dominated by 25 shots to 6, and the opposing keeper acted like a lame right-winger at the end. of the party
Eddie Nketiah put an arm around David de Gea, who went down pretending to be really hurt. In a way, I get it, because in the 86th minute, the pressure and momentum from Arsenal was relentless and he wanted to stop that in any way he could. He looked like an idiot though, and when Eddie stuck his foot out to score the game-winner, I couldn’t help but remember that moment as he celebrated the goal.
The first half was pretty even overall. United started with some intent: the intent was to cheat a penalty, as Bruno Fernandes, with his evil chinchilla face, pounced on Aaron Ramsdale. Doing nothing. The irony, if you can call it that, is that when they played some football they hurt us. Marcus Rashford made the most of a Thomas Partey pass that he intercepted, bringing the midfielder down and then firing a shot into the bottom corner. There’s always an investigation when you concede, but sometimes you just have to give the opposition credit for a really good goal, and this was a really good goal from a player in great form.
Falling behind isn’t something we do a lot, especially in big games, so it was a test of character to see how we would respond. Within seven minutes we were level. Good pressing helped us win a corner, from there we recycled the ball, Granit Xhaka overcame and there was Eddie with a well-aimed move to head from close range. I think the defending was poor but credit to the striker for sniffing out the chance and to Xhaka for a perfect assist.
The yellow card given to Mikel Arteta in the first half is only noteworthy for his interview after the game in which he was asked if he could learn from the incident. He said, “You can always get better in life, no!” haha.
Arteta when asked about his yellow card: “You can always improve in life, no” ???? pic.twitter.com/ujQvN3achP
– SM (@Arsenal_DB10) January 22, 2023
A half-time change saw Takehiro Tomiyasu replace Ben White, who looked a bit off the pace yesterday. No criticism, just an observation. After 18 brilliant Premier League performances this season, he may be having a bad day, but what a joy it is to be able to bring in a player of such quality to replace him. It took a few minutes for Tomi to get into the game, but when he did, Rashford’s threat was basically nullified entirely.
We took the lead through Bukayo Saka, who tormented United on the left throughout the game. His goal felt a bit like a response to Rashford’s. Not in a bad way, just an ‘Ok you can do that, let me show you what I can do’, kinda. Tackling Cristian Eriksen in midfield, he opened up space for a shot and sent it into the bottom corner with real power. What do you call a shot like that? An electric curling iron? I don’t know, I just know that Saka is an incredible player, whose talent and versatility terrifies defenses to the point that they just back off because they don’t know what he’s going to do, or where he’s going to do it. I was quite surprised that United took so long to really pay attention to it.
His draw was a lucky touch. I think Ramsdale will regret trying to catch him instead of punching him. Tomiyasu barred his way to the ball and it fell to Martinez, who sent a header home. In fairness to the Arsenal keeper, he had made a genuinely outstanding save just a couple of minutes earlier, but he will feel he should have done better.
Speaking of Martinez, I watched him closely yesterday, especially in light of the fact that when he chose Man Utd we brought in Zinchenko instead. It’s kind of crazy to think that, given how amazing the Ukrainian was, we thought Martinez could bring something like that to the team. Maybe he could have done it over time, but I really doubt it. Zinchenko was just amazing. Last week’s Arsecast Extra explanation about him being like the queen of chess was even more relevant. No player had more touches, and for all his art on the ball, I love how competitive his defense was, especially in the air.
After that, Arsenal turned up the heat to try and win the game. 12 of our 26 shots came in that period, and as you can see in the graph below, the attacking momentum was well and truly with us. Saka hit the post after twisting again a defender who knew what he wanted to do but could barely stop it; de Gea made an excellent save at close range from Nketiah; and we had corners that joined in the back foot. The xG at the end was 3.2 for Arsenal compared to United’s paltry 0.36.
There were nuances to the Newcastle game. Arsenal at the top, but just missing something extra. Yesterday we were able to bring in the new signing Leandro Trossard who got involved immediately. You can see that he has the technical level to fit into this side, and he was involved in the winner. His ball to Zinchenko was perfectly timed to cross the offside line, the return ball was met by Odegaard and a defender, and Eddie stuck his foot out to make it 3-2 and win the game.
That’s six goals in six games for Eddie since he joined the team, and scoring two against United in a game of this importance is great for him. Other than that though, he’s getting better every week. I think he had good games against Newcastle and in the derby despite not scoring, and yesterday was probably his best performance in an Arsenal shirt. Not only did he score those goals, his overall game was excellent. He managed United’s center halves all day, held up well, and the combination of those elements with his penalty-area instincts was the difference between one point and three yesterday. I know that when the new contract for him was issued, some eyebrows were raised, and I admit that I was worried about the fallout between him and Gabriel Jesus. Thanks to the manager though, he always talked about how Eddie, who was also always very supportive of himself, by the way, was able to deliver, we’re looking at that right now, and it’s great.
On a day when Zinchenko was once again brilliant, Odegaard majestic at times (that flip-flop pass that almost created a goal for Xhaka was out of this world), having the two decisive Hale End graduates made this even sweeter. Soccer is a crazy industry and often the correlation between how much money you spend and how successful you are is obvious. Here, however, we had two players, costing a whopping zero pounds and zero cents on the transfer market, deciding the outcome of a massive encounter that could have real implications on the title race. The Arsenal Academy should be proud, and it’s another reason why any young player should feel like the club he belongs to now. Unless he was politically compelled to go somewhere else, who wouldn’t want to join?
Subsequently, Mikel Arteta said:
There is nothing better than that. It was a beautiful moment, very special because we were pushing and pushing and pushing and the goal didn’t come, but it came at the end and then the VAR made it even more difficult, but it was electric, it was really emotional, really exciting and I loved it.
I spoke to a few people who were there after the game and they all mentioned the atmosphere in the stadium. I was there for the derby earlier in the season so I have an idea, but every week I think it will get more and more intense. We’ve just reached the middle of the season, it’s Arsenal’s best start to a season in a league, and we still have a long way to go. However, there is no doubt that the support and connection between this team and the fans has been a real factor this season. May that continue for a long time.
So, long story short: a dramatic 3-2 home win against Man United in a title-chasing season? It does not mind if I do. Don’t worry one bit.
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Ok, let’s leave it there for now. James and I are recording the Arsecast Extra for you later this morning. Keep an eye out for calls for questions on Twitter @gunnerblog and @arseblog on Twitter with the hashtag #arsecastextra, or if you’re a member of Arseblog on Patreon, leave your question in the #arsecast-extra-questions channel on our Discord. server.
We should have the podcast for you by lunchtime. Until then.
