Cottage Industry

Three more points in the bag, and suddenly a three-point lead at the top of the table following Sunday's results. Highly encouraging; without getting carrried away, of course, because there's a long way to go - and there's plenty of room for improvement.

But before I get into it, a little bit of housekeeping. I have made a few design updates to this page. A change of font; plus whilst you probably cannot see it if you're looking on your phone or mobile device you will definitely see on your laptop or desktop a change of background image. Anyway, that's neither here nor there - I just fancied a change.

And so to Saturday evening's match, for which - with the players having returned from international duty with a pretty clean bill of health (no extra injuries to report) - meant that Arteta could go with the line-up we will have all predicted. With Odegaard out, Zubimendi returned to the starting line-up, and Eze dropped in to the right 8/10 role. He's probably better operating from the left, in my opinion, but there's a log jam on that side. And the regrettable knock-on effect for Ethan Nwaneri is a reduction in minutes.

Arsenal have found Fulham to be tricky opponents over the past couple of seasons, so this was never likely to be a swashbuckling performance. Fulham themselves were suffering injury woes, and their fans would probably cite a recent lack of squad-building ambition from the owner too. But they have different expectations, and a different model, to Arsenal. So whilst the away team were firm favourites, victory was always likely to have to be earned.

This is one of those away games that one can group alongside the likes of Crystal Palace, Brentford and Bournemouth as 'tricky but winnable'. But with due respect needing to be given to the opponent. And a combination of that and something of a post-break hangover meant a slow - even sloppy - start, with Fulham having much the best of the opening half hour. They forced a series of early corners, with Wilson looking troublesome, and following one such corner Cairney's volley was blocked by Zubimendi's bread basket. They weren't overly threatening the Arsenal goal, however, and Raya was rarely bothered, but the away side certainly needed to wake their ideas up following such a sluggish start.

Which, to be fair, they did eventually do. On 15 minutes, a long diagonal from Timber picked out Trossard, whose first time flick infield found no other than Riccardo Calafiori (playing in his customary centre forward role...). The Italian swept a first time half-volley into the far corner of Leno's net, only to be pulled back as he was half a yard offside. What a goal that would have been had it have stood. 

I have no idea what Arteta's instructions to Ricci are, but he appears to have carte blanche going forward; to create overloads when he can - all secure in the knowledge that somebody else will be covering for him further back. Honestly; we all thought that MLS had elevated the left back position, but we can now see why Arteta spent so much money on the Italian. He's quite unique.

Truth be told, that was by far Arsenal's most dangerous moment of the entire first half hour, as the field tilt remained very much in the home side's favour. It took until just after the half hour mark for Arsenal to finally get a grip and begin to dominate. By which time Andersen had limped off, and both Cairney and King were suffering from knocks. And after which, frankly, there was only going to be one winner. But 0-0 at half time; and Arsenal continued to apply the squeeze. 

Look, there's something quite unlikeable sometimes about Arteta's methods, as he looks to strangle the opposition to death. Of course, it's difficult to expect to see free-flowing football when the opposition compresses itself in its own half. But I'd really like to see a little bit more risk-taking; trying to work the ball between the lines, move it around more quickly, and try catch the opposition out instead of all that umbrella passing and patiently moving them around. With a defence as good as Arsenal's, I don't see why the Manager doesn't allow his players to take the handbrake off a bit more. There's a certain predictability about the way they play. On the other hand, it's a results-driven business (just ask Big Ange!) and this approach has taken Arsenal to the summit. So please don't register this as a complaint or anything...

In Bukayo Saka, however, we have an absolutely outstanding talent. a game changer; no matter what the game is. He took a while in this one to get the measure of Sessegnon, and in truth also to get his set piece delivery up to his normal standards, but he had a superb second half and could have scored or assisted three or four goals by the end of the game.

It was only a matter of time, I guess, before Arsenal got their noses in front. 58 minutes, in fact. And once more it was Set Piece FC (tongue firmly in cheek) that did the trick. Saka's delivery - right on the mark this time - was nodded on by Gabriel for an unmarked Trossard to stab home with his knee from close range. 

Now here's the thing. Firstly Arsenal don't get to take as many corners as they do without doing a lot of attacking, and dominating the oppostion. So I'm not having any of that Set Piece FC nonsense; they don't magic the dead ball situations - they work hard, and the set pieces are the result of that. Secondly, that they happen to be better than everybody else at them is down to coaching, to high levels of skill, and to desire. As was personified by Gabriel at that moment. Starting his run from the penalty spot, and with two men between him and the goal, he bulldozed his way past both and made the cross his own. The rest was partly down to luck; but also to the confusion that these set pieces confer upon the oppostion. One lapse of judgment and you're dead. As it was here. Set Piece again Olé Olé!

Just a few minutes later, Anthony Taylor was pointing to the spot as substitute Kevin was deemed to have brought down Starboy. Funnily enough, I thought at the time that it was somewhere between soft and not a foul at all, and the VAR duly intervened to send Taylor to the booth. But here's the thing; the more I watched it, the more convinced I was that Taylor's initial call had been correct, as it looked clear to me that there had been knee to knee contact just prior to the Fulham player getting a slight touch on the ball. And I - along with Saka himself - was therefore flabbergasted when the referee changed his mind. 

As with the Newcastle débacle, there was the question of 'clear and obvious error' and of the VAR re-refereeing the incident. And that's twice in successive away league games that we've had a spot kick award overturned. Thankfully, controversy was once more averted by Arsenal going on to take all the points despite the erroneous call.

From there on in, there was frankly little to report. Fulham did huff and puff a bit, but it takes a lot more than that to get the better of Gabriel and the majestic Saliba. Despite Jimenez's previous record as something of a bogey player over the years up against the Arsenal defenders, he's no Erling Haaland, and Raya was barely troubled. Indeed, the stats reveal that this made successive matches that the opposition had failed to register a shot on target. The last time that happened? - 2003-04, when Arsenal last won the title...

The following infograms tell quite a story (and yes, it's early days; but):

Arsenal are 7 points ahead of their points tally from the 7 comparable matches they have played this season compared to last.

In 8 matches! Literally, no further comment required...

Before I finish, a word on Big Vik. This was a typical sort of game for the Swede (who, by the way, was part of the two-man Swedish attack - alongside no other than  Alexander Isak - who failed to score in two highly winnable World Cup qualifiers last week). A game of unselfish runs into channels. Of few touches. But of several shots from difficult angles. And of balls not quite falling at his feet in the penalty area. Yet doing a vital job for the team as he pulled defenders here, there and everywhere. I am confident that the dam will burst. And, when it does, the league had better watch out!

And so we move on to two home games this week. A really tricky tie with Athletico Madrid (the Andrea Berta Derby) on Tuesday, and then reunions for Eze and Nketiah when Palace cross the river on Sunday. It's debatable which game is more important!  Just keep going, lads. Keep laying the foundations. 

With Liverpool (and Tottenham) both losing, Sunday has been a very good day. The former are clearly out of sorts, and may take a while to click into any sort of gear as they adjust to the loss of Trent, Diaz and the late lamented Diogo Jota. With Slot being forced to play Konate and VVD in every game, things don't look that rosy for them. As for second placed Manchester City... well, they're being powered by the turbo-charged Haaland, but surely not even he can do everything himself. And, frankly, I'm not worried about anyone else.

At this moment, Arsenal have the best team, and the best squad. It's all there for them. So COYG!

Arsenal Right A Second Wrong In A Week

Another win. Another clean sheet. And now top of the table. It's early days, but if Arsenal can keep up this pace, and stay as solid as they have been at the back so far this season (10 matches in all competitions; just three goals conceded) then it could at last be our year.

Whilst unspectacular, this was a pretty routine victory over a West Ham side who - despite being pretty poor in Premier League terms - had somehow managed to beat Arsenal in the previous two corresponding fixtures. And this result, backing up the laying to rest of the Geordie demons last week, meant another of last season's wrongs had been righted.

And although this was a routine victory, there is still enough meat on the bones to point out a few matters of interest. So I'll crack on with those. And there is no better place to start than the team selection.

Which featured something of a surprise, as Arteta (hitting a personal milestone with this being his 300th game in charge of The Gunners) veered away from his preferred 'double pivot' as he plumped for Declan Rice as the lone 6 against his former club, with Odegaard and Eze as dual 10s ahead of him. A really attacking line-up was this; and something that the crowd was relishing prior to kick-off.

However, here's the thing; I'm not sure that it entirely worked. Odegaard dropped back regularly to pick up the ball, whilst Eze stayed closer to Gyokeres up top, but without an extra man coming from deep to disrupt the opposition it was occasionally difficult to find room against Nuno's now trademark 8-1-1 (!) formation. Saying that, Arteta had clearly targeted the left hand side of West Ham's defence, and looked to overload that area with Timber, of all players, often finding himself the furthest man forward.

In truth there wasn't much opportunity to build up a body of evidence for the twin 10s, as Odegaard's early clash of limbs with Summerville firstly restricted him and then forced him off within the first 30 minutes (thus, by the way, creating a dubious record as the first man to go off injured three times in the first half of successive Premier League games). He left the ground with his knee in a brace, and has by all accounts done some damage to his medial collateral ligament. It may be some weeks before we see him again; but at least it's not to the anterior cruciate ligament; which would have meant months out.

Interestingly, whilst Arteta could have gone for Nwaneri to replace the skipper he went for the safer option of Zubimendi. I'm not sure if this is a reflection of a fall from grace for the youngster, but it's clear that the signing of Eze has drastically cut down on his playing time. But what the change did mean was that Rice was suddenly free to make some of his familiar forward runs, and he started to drag the West Ham midfield around. With Timber's presence  - plus the occasional overload from Calafiori, of all people (nominally playing left back but with license to pop up wherever he fancied) - in forward positions on the right, and Rice pushing forward on the left, West Ham were really suffering as they were completely suffocated. Zubimendi himself was superb, and now appears to be completely acclimatised to the Premier League. What a player he is!

 

In truth, Arsenal should have been ahead long before the moment that they finally took the lead. Odegaard had split the lines early on to find Timber, who got a decent shot away. Then a delightful through ball slotted to Saka from wide right by the skipper led to a scramble in which Gyokeres could have scored, and Eze should have; the latter's stab at the ball from just 7 yards sending the ball over the bar with the net gaping. Eze put his head in his hands in disbelief; and he wasn't alone in that. 

Following the withdrawal of Odegaard, it was Zubimendi's sublime ball over the top of the West Ham left back that saw Saka break free and slot the ball into the far corner - but he was unfortunately half a yard offside at  the point of release. Then Saka's cross saw Gyokeres' header misdirected, and Trossard's subsequent follow-up blocked. The pressure was building, but it was all getting a little frustrating.

The well-deserved breakthrough came in the 37th minute. Zubimendi's clever through ball found Eze, the latter's shot was blocked into the path of Declan Rice - who had been suffering dog's abuse from the very supporters who used to worship him by the way. The finish from 12 yards out looked routine, but it was far from that; keeping half volleys down with the instep when the ball is coming to you at pace is no easy feat. And no, he didn't really celebrate as he could have done. But he gave the West Ham fans a series of dirty looks as he ran behind the goal towards the Ashburton Army.

There was still time before the half finished  - via another through ball slid past the hapless Diouf (this time Saka to Timber) - for the ball to fall to Calafiori on the edge of the box. The Italian's right foot (yes, right foot!) shot rebounded off the post and onto Areola's back, but failed to bounce back over the goal line. It was literally all Arsenal.

Second half, and more of the same. Rice, marauding onto the left wing, crossed for Gyokeres, who probably ought to have slid the ball home. 

Big Vik could do with a goal as a reward for all the effort he puts in. And Arsenal continued to give West Ham little or no hope by dominating possession; without the need to play in anything higher than second gear. It wasn't enthralling, but hopefully saving energy in October will pay dividends in April and May. 

The coup de force was delivered just after the hour when another chip by Zubimendi exposed Diouf once more. He had allowed Timber to get onto his wrong side, and brought him down for a penalty so clear that even Howard Webb couldn't deny it. The foul started outside the penalty box, but continued inside it - 100% a penalty.

We wondered if Saka might hand the ball to Big Vik, but on his 200th appearance for the club Little Chili kept the ball for himself - and slammed it into the net with the goalkeeper going the other way. That's 100 goal Premier League contributions from Starboy (55 goals and 45 assists) since his debut. I do love that young man!

Arsenal remained on cruise control throughout the rest of the game, with the only concern the withdrawal of Rice with what appeared to be some soreness in his back. Apparently, it's nothing serious, and he'll be off with England this week.

Other points of interest: 

• there seems to be more space - even against a low block - for the wingers to work in this season. I wonder if that's because a 'proper' centre forward is causing defenders to have half an eye on him a lot of the time
• xG, in so much that it can be seen as a comparative measure, stands at 12.22 to 4.38 over the Premier League season so far. 1.52 of the 4.38 were actually at Old Trafford! What it does certainly show is remarkable solidity bearing in mind the quality of fixture that Arsenal have got out of the way in their first 7 games. And this was another game with 60%+ possession. Arsenal are barely giving the opposition a sniff!
• despite the remarkably deep bench, Arteta is still without Hincapie, Havertz, Madueke and Jesus (and now Odegaard). What he's going to do if they're ever all fit at the same time I simply cannot imagine. But what I can say is this; he can, has and will rotate his squad, and on that basis -especially looking at the quality of player available - there simply can't be any excuses this season 
• With Liverpool and Arne Slot suffering something of a crisis, Manchester City still flawed despite possessing the Haaland Cheat Code, and a relatively favourable series of matches to come, this could be a chance to open a gap at the top of the table

Look, let's see. There's another of those interminable Interlulls now, and then we're back with matches against Fulham, Palace, Brighton, Burnley and Sunderland.

Time to keep our fingers crossed for some clean bills of health, and then to kick on. COYG!

Dreams Can Come True

Please forgive the corny title of this week's offering; although those of a certain vintage will recall it being a line from Gabrielle's massive 1993 hit Dreams. In it, she sings: 'You know you gotta have hope. You know you gotta be strong'. And, do you know, as we watch Arteta and his charges grow in stature on a match-by-match basis, no words could be more apt.

Anyway, let's crack on with my thoughts on the hard-fought but ultimately well-deserved win over the Geordie Demons (sorry; Newcastle United). I have a list of the clubs I dislike most, and for years it's been the traditional Tottenham, Manchester United, Chelsea. But that list has mutated over the years; Manchester City have got stronger as their city rivals have got weaker (so much so that it's not difficult to start feeling slightly sorry for them as we watch their calamitous fall from grace), and have therefore usurped them on that list - especially considering the whole 115 Charges thing. 

But Newcastle are really pushing for a slot in that Top 3 these days. What with the unsung Master of The Dark Arts, Eddie Howe, in charge, with his gurning perma-tanned sidekick Tindall alongside him at all times; and then the Saudi money, a midfield featuring both Bruno Guimares and Joelinton, and the serial diver Anthony Gordon ahead of them; plus a whole series of conspiracy theory-driven defeats at their strange looking stadium, it's not surprising that they bring out the worst in me! And probably you too! 

And so, when the winning goal went in so late, my emotions were absolutely visceral! There have been injury time goals over the past few years that have brought us great joy; Danny Welbeck's late winner over Leicester and Reiss Nelson's against Bournemouth spring instantly to mind. But for me this brought out emotions almost as strong as Anfield, May 26th 1989. Surely an indication of how much I despise Newcastle United, and how much this result may mean come May.

Isn't it strange how so many of the games this season have had agendas and talking points galore. Two routine home wins, of course, but the other 4 have been full of controversy and debate. And yet again there's loads to pick out of this one. And there's no better place to start than with the team selection.

Martin Odegaard's lack of match fitness made it fairly easy for Arteta to fit Eberiche Eze into the side - and for all the protestations that the Manager doesn't listen to outside noise there's no doubt that the chat around the midfield selection he made last weekend - and the whole 'handbrake' agenda - would have got through to him. Of course, whilst Eze was ostensibly bought to play in the inside- or outside-left position, it has swiftly become abundantly clear that he is most effective centrally, and so it was an easy call to pop him into the side in place of Merino. As an aside, where this leaves Ethan Nwaneri - who didn't even make the bench - I don't quite know. Especially with Odegaard very much on his way back! 

It's all quite bizarre; for all the attacking talent that the club possess now it feels somewhat imbalanced. Saka and the currently injured Madueke will surely fill the bulk of the right hand side minutes. The latter may get shunted out to the left too, despite both Martinelli and Trossard (with different skill sets) having been used in that role over the past couple of seasons. To me, none of the 4 options is an ideal one for the job of left winger; so it's a difficult one for the Manager. In this instance, he went with Trossard, whose intelligent movement was always likely to be an asset when dovetailing with the marauding Calafiori on that side.

In the interior, there are some more difficult decisions to be made. Unless he leaves one of Rice and Zubimendi out of the side, there's no room for both Odegaard and Eze in there (let alone Nwaneri!). And on top of that there's still Havertz to come back at some point. Talking of whom, there's quite a big burden on the shoulder of Big Vik at the moment, and his need for a rest will hopefully coincide with the German's return to fitness. 

Great to see Starboy back, of course. But I'm sure that we were all puzzled by the selection of Mosquera over Saliba at the back. For all of his promise and potential, the former is not at the latter's level at this stage of his development. If Saliba wasn't deemed fit enough to start - despite having played the full game in midweek - then that's one thing. But if you're going to rest him, Mikel, wait for an easier game; it's West Ham next week!

Anyway, I reckon that 5 paragraphs on team selection is considerably more than enough. So let's crack on.

Arsenal dominated possession almost from the start. Chances came and went for Gyokeres and Eze (the first of many decent saves from Pope), before the first of a number of controversial moments. Timber slipped both of the violent Brazilian midfielders on the left following a corner, Eze picked the ball up and played a delightful ball over the top to Saka, and following some pinball a dreadful poke at the ball from Murphy back towards his keeper sold the latter short. Gyokeres was through on goal, and Pope brought him down for what looked an absolute stonewall penalty. And if that's Mo Salah or Erling Haaland there's no danger of it not being one.

But (Liverpool-supporting) Gillett was called over the pitch side monitor by (Liverpool-supporting) VAR England; we thought initially to decide on the colour card to be awarded to the keeper - the only question appeared to be DOGSO or Double Jeopardy - until it was revealed that as Pope had got a slight touch on the ball the recommendation was to overturn the decision. Ludicrous, and I've got four further things to say about it:

• The penalty award was not a 'clear and obvious error', so why was it being looked at so forensically?
• The bar, we thought, had been raised to allow 'Referee's Call' to be the over-riding factor in such situations. Not when it comes to Arsenal, however
• If that incident had happened in the centre of the field between two midfielders, it's a foul...
• Remember last season, and the unprecedented decision to award a penalty against Saliba for making accidental contact with the thoroughly annoying head of Joao Pedro just after he'd headed the ball at The Amex? Decision fully justified by Howard Webb, of course... yet all I can see is that this one was far, far worse of an offence

But there you go. It's Arsenal, so let's chalk off the penalty award... good work once more PGMOL. Arteta could do nothing but laugh. I am not, however, going to make too big a deal out of the officials being Liverpool fans - as Gabriel almost certainly got away with one on a technicality for handball late in the match. One the officials could easily have given...

Nonetheless Arsenal remained on top; Calafiori heading wide following a free kick and, after a sweeping move of 8 first time passes started by Timber deep in the Arsenal half, Trossard thrashed the ball against the post from just 7 yards out. There was some lovely work from Gyokeres - who did a very good job holding the ball up and bringing others into play throughout the game - and Saka within that move.

I'm going to gloss over Towelgate at this point; although it did serve as an amusing distraction in an intense match. I'll just move on to another fine save by Pope from a fine Eze volley on the back of the subsequent long throw. And yet another save from a Saka cross-shot following a fast break instigated once more by Jurrien Timber. There had been an early exchange of corners, but by this point around half an hour in Arsenal were all over Newcastle; yet with nothing to show for their efforts.

But with the same inevitability as night following day, a series of silly errors and Newcastle were unjustly ahead. Mosquera completely shanked a back pass to Raya, leading to a corner. The Arsenal defence switched off as - for once - Newcastle played the ball short, and from the ensuing cross Gabriel collapsed into an embarrassing heap at the slightest touch from the beanpole Woltemade before the German headed past the helpless Raya. So, so aggravating; especially bearing in mind the dominance, and the fact that Arsenal had - by dint of their own idiocy - given Newcastle something to hold on to.

And so on to the second half. And where you'd have been concerned that previous iterations of Arsenal may have felt sorry for themselves and succumbed to the inevitability of defeat, there was actually very little of that. Sure, there was a little bit of horseshoe passing at the back while they recomposed themselves, but they were soon back in the groove and putting more and more pressure on the home defence. It was attack vs defence as Arsenal looked for a breakthrough, with the Arsenal midfield trying all they know. One dink over the top from Zubimendi saw Timber force yet another decent save out of Pope; who by this point was really starting to irritate me! This was certainly a change in mind-set, and Arsenal are going to have to continue to be bold as the season goes on.

On 70 minutes Merino and Martinelli entered the fray at the expense of Saka and Calafiori. With Newcastle having switched to a back 5 by this point, it seemed the natural thing to look to pile even more pressure on, with the Spaniard charged with joining Gyokeres in the penalty area as often as possible. But the game possibly turned with the departure - on a stretcher - of Livramento, who had been clattered in mid-air by Saliba and who looked to jar his knee badly as he landed. 

It definitely turned with the arrival of Martin Odegaard, who replaced his namesake Zubimendi on 82 minutes and proceeded to produce a magical cameo that showcased everything that is great about him. He moved the ball quickly and intelligently, combining well with everyone around him and at one point playing a pass through the eye of a needle to release MLS that brought back memories of Mesut Ozil. But Arsenal were swiftly running out of time.

Until, playing Newcastle at their own game, Arsenal caught the home defence out with a short corner. A swift interchange between Odegaard and Rice, a beautifully weighted cross, and Mikel Merino rose to plant a sumptuous header into the far corner. Pope was finally beaten.

Not soon after came the incident in which Gabriel got away with one; the ball striking his upraised hand as he slid in to block an Elanga cross. Very, very fortunate indeed. But it's about time we had some luck up at that ground.

And then... and then... Gabriel redeemed himself for his poor effort for the Newcastle goal with a typical thumping header from a perfectly-delivered Odegaard corner. Just. F*cking. Brilliant! Well deserved, and the beauty of it was that the goal was the fruits of Arsenal keeping going until the bitter end; building the pressure until they forced the breakthrough. 

As I say, this is something that they must continue to do as the season goes on. They must build up the fear factor, and keep their collective foot on the proverbial accelerator. Both the players and the backroom staff will have learned a lot from this, and I am very excited to see where they go from here. Forget the continued narrative from outside about Set Piece FC and comparisons with Stoke City; this is an exciting group of players who can only get better - both individually and as a group. Thanks to Agents Welbeck and Neketiah for your excellent work over the weekend, by the way.

Champions League on Wednesday, and then it's West Ham (new manager bounce) at the weekend. With Liverpool having a tricky fixture, so let's take advantage should the situation arise. Going forward, fitting all his assets into the side is going to be a continuing conundrum for Arteta.

COYG!

A Little Respect

Respect. How much should any manager show to his opponent? As far as many of Arsenal's opponents are concerned, it's clearly OK to take risks and take the game to them, because Arteta's side are clearly superior to almost all of them, and have the stingiest defence in the league. And take chances with those sides he will definitely do. But to Liverpool? To Manchester City? And - as I suspect we may see next Sunday - to Newcastle when Arsenal get to conclude their nightmare start to the season at St James Park? A little more, perhaps...

However, I cannot condone the choice of starting XI for Sunday. It smacked of too much respect. Of fear, even. And when the manager has such an array of talent from which to choose as he does now - as with the game at Anfield - it was the wrong message to send out. As much to his own supporters as it was to his opponents.

Of course, there's a lot of nuance to this. And much of that was discussed following the Liverpool defeat. And whilst I understood and was happy to side with the manager's game plan at Anfield, I cannot support what he did on Sunday. In two positions; not just one.

With all due respect to a very good Manchester City side - any side with Rodri and Haaland in has to be respected - they are not the side they were. Arsenal's team and squad are generally accepted as now being better than theirs. And Arsenal were at home. So I cannot understand the midfield selection. In the absence of Odegaard, the team was crying out for some creativity, yet Arteta went for solidity instead. And it was soon clear that it was the wrong decision. Rice, Zubimendi and Merino. No, I'm sorry. Not at home. To anyone. 

As for the decision to start Trossard on the left... well, that was another interesting one. It's becoming increasingly apparent to me that despite having no less than 4 possible left-wingers in his squad, Arteta is not fully happy with any of them. Madueke clearly prefers the right, and had to play on that side in the continuing absence of Bukayo Saka. Of the others Martinelli continually disappoints in that role with his decision-making, and Eze much prefers an interior role. As for Leo himself, he is looking increasingly like an impact player; not a starter. What would I have done? Well, despite his underwhelming showing in Bilbao, I would have stuck with Eze - and if that required a change in tactics to accommodate his natural desire to play in an inside forward position, I'd have done it.

Clearly, it wasn't in the plan for City to take an early lead. But that was actually down to Arsenal over-committing in midfield. Following a bit of pinball, Gabriel lunged in to win the ball when perhaps he ought not to have done, Haaland got there first and found Reijnders, and then... well, it was nothing short of brilliant from the Norwegian. Firstly, to spot what was on and to react instantly - I was watching from side on and his acceleration and desire to make the most of the situation meant that he left Gabriel trailing in his wake, and City were suddenly three on two. Reijnders driving run and perfect pass; and there was simply no way that Haaland was going to miss. A brilliant goal.

Of course, this left Arsenal in a bind. Especially with a lack of creative spark in midfield. Prior to the goal, City had been pressing high, but they then dropped off a little and let Arsenal have the ball as their defenders stayed disciplined, and Rodri started to drop in amongst them to receive and distribute. What an impressive player Rodri is, by the way. Calm, composed, seemingly able to read opposition players' minds - and a magnificent physical specimen to boot.  

As far as Arenal were concerned, there was far too much of that old umbrella/horseshoe passing that we've grown to hate, with the only out ball seemingly to Madueke on the right. They were creating nothing, playing far too far away from the opponent's goal, and worst of all simply not capable of moving the ball fast enough to upset City's equilibrium. For all of their possession - and there was loads of it - it was frankly quite a boring spectacle, and the crowd was completely subdued. 

All the home side had to show for their territorial advantage was a series of corners; but with the giant Donnarumma in goal they had to vary the delivery, with the ball being aimed either near or far post to avoid him; but in truth there was little real threat. Things did improve towards half time, with Madueke causing most of the problems for City (he forced one smart save from the giant Italian goalkeeper), but it was quite disheartening on the whole, and there was a clamour for personnel change in the stands as the whistle blew.

Thankfully, Arteta took ownership of the team selection issues and made half-time changes. Saka for Madueke was forced - the former Chelsea man has a knee injury on which we await news of a scan - although I doubt that the plan was to give Starboy a whole half of football on his return. The other obvious change was Eze for Merino. The sight of those two standing ready to come on caused havoc in the concourses as - for a change - people rushed to get back into their seats instead of finishing their pints. As my daughter said to me: 'What's going on? We've never had to queue to get back to our seats after half-time.' Well, there's her explanation.

Anyway, the changes made an immediate impact as Eze, playing right 8/10, started to get on the ball straight away. And Saka showed why that - for all his undoubted ability -  Madueke is never going to keep him out of the side. Saka began to run at his full back, and City were pushed back even further.An  early Eze shot saved by Donnarumma, and another from Zubimendi just over the bar were better signs. But there was always a threat going the other way. On one swift break Doku ran 40 yards before a brilliant pass split the Arsenal defence and sent Haaland away at Raya. We expected the worst; but the shot was straight at the keeper.

One bizarre incident to report as Bernardo Silva (or 'the little sh*t' as we called him in block 17) - who had already literally scythed Gabriel to the floor and been booked for it - attempted to win an Oscar when Trossard, who he had hit with the ball when on the ground, threw the ball back at him and hit him in the stomach. The diminutive Portuguese flung himself to the floor holding his face. It was pathetic! My mate @mattkandela of The Arsenal Opinion podcast, back in the UK for a flying visit and taking up his seat next to mine, was out of the aforementioned seat in a flash and down to the front of the block to give Bernardo a piece of his mind from close range. His mother would be proud of him, I'm sure!

Anyway, back to the football, and all sorts of strange goings on as Pep began to systematically take off all of his forwards (including Haaland) and replace them with centre-backs. City were getting pushed further and further back, and for every defensive change Pep made, Arteta made an attacking one. It was like watching the crazy Wenger days when he would simply chuck every forward player onto the field.

The corner count continued to mount, the half-chances came and went, and it was strange to comprehend a Guardiola team resorting to playing in such a fashion. I've literally never seen it before. And they finally paid the price, in the 92nd minute, in the most unusual of circumstances. For some strange reason the City defence found themselves in a high line - all 5 of them (with the other 5 also in their half)  - as Eze picked the ball up in midfield. A quick look up to see Martinelli starting a run between two of the centre-backs, a lofted ball into 25 yards of space behind the line, and the Brazilian was clear on goal. One delicate touch to control the ball, a glance up to see Donnarumma in no man's land, and a deft lob with the outside of his right foot... And that's two vital goal contributions from Gabi in the space of a week - great to see.

It felt like time stood still as the ball bounced once and then nestled into the far corner of the unguarded goal. What a relief! And if it didn't feel entirely what Arsenal had earned - loads of sweat but little guile -  it certainly did feel that Pep had brought it on himself by making all those negative changes. At this point who cares; but there's plenty of learning for even the great Guardiola to take from that.

5 minutes of basketball-type football, with neither side settling for a draw but no clear cut chances to follow, and that was that. Points shared. But was this another chance blown by Arteta? I'd argue Yes, I'm afraid. A little respect for such exalted opposition as Manchester City is all well and good, but he'd shown too much. All the talk on the way out of the ground, and then in the media, was on the same lines. 

Mikel must surely start taking this on board and be prepared to go after sides from the very start. Especially with the defence he has assembled to fall back on. I have been one of his biggest supporters, but times like these do make me wonder whether he does have it to take Arsenal all the way. Still... who else is available to take up that mantle? Much as I dislike Jose Mourinho's for the way he used to abuse Arsene Wenger, I do wish that Arteta would swap defensive thoughts for Mourinho's pragmatism. Still, despite this being his 6th season it's still Arteta's first ever management job...

Anyway, that's done. The gap to Liverpool is already 5 points, however, and it's Newcastle away next. I wanted 14 points by the end of next weekend, but it can only be a maximum of 13 now. And it needs to be 13. Port Vale away before then, and a shadow Arsenal side I'm sure. But let's keep moving on. COYG!

Madueke Makes His Mark

Wow! Where exactly do I start? A scintillating attacking performance from Arsenal, leading to comprehensive victory; and from which there are numerous talking points. Let's get straight into it.

Firstly, do you remember how you used to feel when you saw that Arsenal's starting XI was missing Saliba, Rice, Saka and Havertz. Or when within the first few minutes Martin Odegaard was forced to leave the pitch, to add to those injury worries? Well, welcome to the new world of Arsenal, when a side shorn of all those players failed to worry us at all. 

Such has been the summer strengthening that there are now at least two players for every single position on the pitch; and I'm not just talking about back-ups. Just go through the list of summer purchases:

• Kepa - a more than adequate back-up in goal, who started for Bournemouth all last season
• Mosquera - currently looking like the bargain of the century at an initial £13m from Valencia. With Saliba out, he hasn't missed a beat in his place
• Hincapié - yet to be seen, but by all accounts likely to be very good indeed
• Zubimendi - getting up to speed, and looking rather tasty
• Norgaard - again yet to be seen, but was Brentford's captain last season
• Madueke - an absolute revelation!
• Eze - I mean; what can anyone say?
• Gyökeres - three goals in 4 games is an excellent start

Every single one of those players could make a case for being a starter. Arteta can put out two sides when everyone is fit, and there would be a case for suggesting that the so-called 'Second Team' might even be pressing for a Champions League spot! 

I remember sitting in my seat at Highbury one Saturday afternoon 20+ years ago and leaning forward to say to my friend Jill - who now sits two rows behind me instead of one in front - that she should take in the wonders that we were seeing as Arsenal strolled to yet another comfortable 3-0 win because it couldn't possibly get any better. Yet on Saturday I started to get the same vibes.

Look, I know that this version of Arsenal haven't got any medals to show for their efforts yet, and in comparison to The Invincibles they're possibly short of a few absolutely world class players (that side possessed Bergkamp, Henry, Pires, Vieira and Cole to name just a handful). And yet... as a collective, they are possibly the best squad of players that the club has ever put together. There can be little or no excuse this season for Arsenal not to be challenging on every single front available. The ownership have put their hands deep into their pockets, and the new Sporting Director has delivered. It's up to the Manager and the players to deliver, and I am excited - because I think that this time they will. It might be difficult to find excuses this time round.

Here are some statistics for your delectation. In 4 PL matches this season, Arsenal have scored 9 times and conceded just one - from a 30+ yard worldie of a free kick. And in that time - including visits to Old Trafford and Anfield - have racked up a miniscule 0.89xGA (expected goals against). In total!!! 

Whilst fans were complaining after Anfield that Arsenal lacked ambition, and were showing little progress (something with which I personally disagree; even allowing for criticism of the timing of the second half substitutions they were just that amazing late free kick away from a commendable draw at that most difficult of away venues), I think that we started to see on Saturday just what this team is capable of doing. Forest are no mugs - they occupied a Champions League spot for much of last season - but they were blown away by the quality of Arsenal's attacking play on Saturday.

A baptism of fire for Big Ange. What an awful place to go to for an ex-Tottenham manager's first game in charge. 'Cheer Up Postecoglou' got an early airing, but as Arsenal cruised to victory in the second half we fans amused ourselves further with sparkling renditions of 'Sacked In the Morning' and 'Are You Tottenham In Disguise?' He hasn't had time to impose Angeball on his charges yet, and we can expect Forest to become more expansive in the near future. But in Arsenal's second goal we saw what this new look Arsenal are capable of doing to a high line.

On the plus side, there was much to admire. It seems a shame to draw attention to any defensive deficiencies, but it's my job to do so; and there were some. A poor throw in across midfield from Calafiori in the first half almost led to a chance, and there was a single moment in the second half when a ball deflected goalward by the barrel-like chest of Chris Wood hit the crossbar - via the fingertips of David Raya - fell back into play and a certain amount of indecision almost let in Hudson-Odoi. The imperious Mosquera cleared that situation up. And truth be told any defensive issues Arsenal suffered were of their own making. One might almost accuse them of being over-ambitious at times, but I for one am willing to see that trade off between taking chances and trying to move the ball quickly, and leaving themselves open to counter attack. With a defence as solid as Arsenal's, it's worth the risk.

And there are plenty of excellent performances on which to remark. From back to front: 

Raya had one decisive action to make (from that Wood effort) and did what he needed to do. A clean sheet on his 100th start for the club. Timber gave his wingers nothing, but at the same time looked to get up the pitch to support Madueke - both on the interior and the overlap. Bar that one mental error as he dithered over a clearance, this was another 8/10 performance from the Dutchman. 

Mosquera... another superb performance from a young man of just 21 years of age, who'd been thrust into the spotlight at Anfield the week before and scarcely put a foot wrong either there or here. Honestly, would anyone have thought that the team wouldn't miss Saliba at all? 

A couple of superbly timed tackles and a tricky headed clearance were the main highlights. But he also showed loads of composure with the ball at his feet. Gabriel was his usual solid and reliable self. Calafiori a menace going forwards, but perhaps less comfortable defensively (that's the trade-off with him). He created the second goal with a long, clipped diagonal into the outside left slot, and apparently had license to wander wherever he wanted. As I pointed out at one point as he appeared in the Right 8 position; 'That's our left back, by the way...' 

In midfield, Zubimendi not only did his day job but popped up with two goals - thus equalling his season's tally from 2024/25 for Real Sociedad. The first a thing of beauty, as he caught a volley from just outside the D perfectly. It was a shame that the slight deflection from the head of Murillo that took the ball fully away from Sels in the Forest goal diluted the purity of the strike. 

And that was a goal the team needed; with 32 minutes of domination gone and nothing to show for it, that moment broke the game open. 

Arteta bought into the goalscoring form (4 in two games for Spain) of Mikel Merino to give him a start and thereby give Declan Rice a rest, and the Spaniard did a decent job. He was one of three players whose clever flicks had the crowd oohing and aahing at various points. 

Martin Odegaard again didn't last long, as he landed awkwardly on his bruised shoulder early on. I sincerely hope that it's nothing serious (and as my wife pointed out he does look a little light of frame compared to his team-mates, and perhaps needs to bulk up a bit or put on a bit of muscle). Incidentally, that trio of players had last started together for Real Sociedad in July 2020 at Athletico Madrid - a remarkable statistic to my mind! 

In Odegaard's place, Arteta could have slung Rice on, but rightly chose to give Ethan Nwaneri a game. He is both similar and different to Odegaard; dropping as deep as the Norwegian to receive the ball, but willing to carry it further into the opposition half than his skipper. He had a solid enough game.

Up front, however, is where a lot of the praise needs to be given. I would hope that those who had foolishly laid into both the club and the player over his summer signing are now willing to make their apologies, as we saw a sparkling performance from Noni Madueke. He was relentless, driving forward constantly at his full back and causing chaos both on the interior and exterior, and getting to the bye line time after time. On a different day he might have had two or three assists to his name. It is a measure of his performances thus far that we're barely missing Bukayo Saka, and how Arteta manages to get them both into the side when Starboy is fit is an unenviable task. Especially when Eberiche Eze is playing on the other wing...

Eze is a different type of winger to Madueke; more willing to move into interior spaces, and full of feints and tricks. He's another whose flicks drew admiring noises from the crowd. And his assist for Gyökeres' goal was both well thought out and beautifully executed. He adds a dimension to the left had side that Arsenal have lacked recently. And that's nothing against Leandro Trossard, who has been very productive indeed over the years and whose assist for Zubimendi's second was his 50th goal involvement for the club.

Viktor Gyökeres worked extremely hard up front, leading the press and keeping the pressure on the Forest centre backs. His style means that he is always going to appear workmanlike, but he's a battering ram of a centre forward, and he gives Arsenal something they've probably not had since - dare I say it? - Ian Wright. He got his goal; reading the play well, keeping tabs with the Eze run, and putting himself into exactly the right place to blunderbuss the cross home. There's a good chance that he's going to turn in a 20+ goal season, and that'll do very nicely.

To sum up; this was comfortable, but the aspect I liked most about the performance was the extra willingness to take risks that is starting to show as relationships begin to develop all over the pitch. With some top players still to return, and the opportunity to keep the squad fresh, I suspect that we're going to see nothing but improvement in both the style of play and also results as the season progresses.

It's a big week, as we start the long drag of games every three to four days almost all the way until February now. The squad will be needed, and provided Arteta is willing to keep players fresh by rotating and not over-playing them, we can anticipate a successful season. Liverpool look the most likely threat, but they're certainly not firing on all cylinders yet. Although they of course still have Isak to introduce. After them, Manchester City and Chelsea look to be the only other conceivable title challengers. 

For Arsenal, it's a first foray into the Champions League this season on Tuesday. Atletic Bilbao will be no pushovers, in my opinion; especially if Nico Williams recovers from his minor hip injury. After that comes yet another big early test, as Manchester City and their titan of a centre forward visit The Emirates next Sunday. A game to really savour, I would suspect. 

Meantime, let's ride the wave of confidence that the team gave us on Saturday. COYG!