Match report – Participant rankings – Arteta response – Video
Arsenal moved again to the highest of the Premier League after a scrappy 1-0 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage yesterday. It was removed from a basic, however incomes three factors at a floor the place we’ve taken only one within the earlier two visits is a giant constructive.
The beginning XI held few surprises. Eberechi Eze was chosen within the Martin Odegaard position, and the toss up on the left noticed Leandro Trossard get the nod forward of Gabriel Martinelli. Early on, I assumed we struggled a bit. Some uncharacteristic sloppiness in possession introduced Fulham with some momentum, and so they had a few half-chances within the opening quarter-hour or so.
Within the opening 20 minutes that they had 4 makes an attempt on aim to our none, and whereas none got here significantly near a aim, we had to enhance. Which, I believe we did. By the break we’d had eight pictures, a aim disallowed for offside, and proper earlier than half-time there was an opportunity for Declan Rice which he curled not far extensive from the sting of the field. It wasn’t sensible, nevertheless it was higher.
The second half started with extra of the identical by way of Arsenal’s territorial dominance, nevertheless it felt fairly much like final season’s encounter at Craven Cottage. Whether or not it was their plan or not, Fulham sat with 11 males behind the ball, and that’s at all times tough to interrupt down. I’d have appreciated a bit extra craft from Eze at occasions, and whereas Viktor Gyokeres had a few first rate makes an attempt on aim that Bernd Leno was equal too, he nonetheless feels a bit on the margins.
The workrate is unquestionable, he supplies actual bodily presence, however at occasions he simply seems to be a bit industrial. In a staff the place silky first touches are the rule, he’s an exception to that. In a centre-forward I simply marvel if it’s only a query of time for him and people round him to mesh correctly, or one thing we have now to study to dwell with to an extent. That stated, when Eze performed a sensible cross in the direction of him within the field, that physicality as he challenged for the ball led to the Fulham participant poking the ball out for the nook from which we scored, so credit score the place it’s due.
After taking some ‘garbage corners’ (by his personal admission), Bukayo Saka’s supply was good this time, Gabriel flicked it on, and there to get the ball over the road along with his knee was Trossard. I do know I’m repeating myself right here, however yesterday is precisely why the Belgian was stored round. A good recreation requires gamers who can rating clutch objectives, and this was positively certainly one of them. He’s much more helpful to us this season than any cash within the financial institution, and a winner at Craven Cottage is all of the proof you want for that.
He’s our joint prime scorer this season, tied with Gyokeres, Saka and Gabriel Martinelli with three in all competitions. Not stellar numbers, however we’re spreading the objectives round, and for me that’s at all times a constructive. Then got here the penalty incident, when Saka was challenged by Kevin simply contained in the Fulham field.
At first, making use of my rule of how I’d really feel it was given in opposition to us, I felt it wasn’t a penalty as a result of the Fulham participant bought one thing on the ball. Afterwards although, with the good thing about extra post-game replays, it appears clear there was contact on Saka earlier than he bought the ball, so it’s a type of the place I believe when VAR checked out it, they might simply have stated ‘Sure, some contact on the ball, nevertheless it got here after contact on the participant so the ref’s choice stands’
Nonetheless, I don’t know if Anthony Taylor bought to see that individual replay, and if he did it wasn’t introduced to him in slow-motion HD like we bought on TV afterwards (when will we genuinely have a severe dialog in regards to the high quality of the VAR footage?). The display screen by the facet of the pitch wasn’t working at first, he needed to cope with an annoying little child gurning at him as they tried to get it to work, and my guess is that they solely took under consideration the contact on the ball. No penalty, a lot to Saka’s disappointment who stated afterwards:
“In fact, I perceive he touched the ball, however I felt an excellent contact to my proper knee, you understand, earlier than he touched the ball, and for me, any contact within the field like that could be a penalty. I don’t need to dwell on it. Let’s simply transfer ahead. We’ve bought the three factors.”
It meant the ultimate stage of the sport was performed on that 1-0 knife-edge the place something can occur. We did have some possibilities, the aforementioned Gyokeres shot which drew an excellent save from Leno after which Martinelli on the rebound, and regardless of a couple of moments in our remaining third, Fulham by no means actually appeared like scoring. It’s a testomony to our defensive solidity that that is the second consecutive recreation the opposition have did not have a shot on the right track, and there are at all times going to be video games it’s important to grind out the three factors and Arsenal did that efficiently yesterday. We drew there final season and misplaced the season earlier than, so there was one thing to place proper, and we did precisely that.
Afterwards, Mikel Arteta stated:
The latest historical past wasn’t in our favour and we wished to vary that like we did in opposition to Newcastle and West Ham at house and that’s one other step, having that mindset and that potential to win these sorts of matches in opposition to a very good opposition, a very tough place to return.
And on one other aim from a set-piece:
In opposition to these low blocks after they don’t actually need to drop and commit that many gamers there, we have now one other alternative to place the gamers that we wish within the place that we wish with the position that we wish, and we have to exploit that.
I do discover among the dialogue round our set-piece prowess a bit odd, as if it’s one thing we should always nearly apologise for. They’re as a lot a part of the sport as anything, and whereas I’d love us to be extra free-flowing and rating extra open play objectives, I’m not going to argue with the truth that being actually, actually good at corners is such a weapon for us. It’s value remembering what Arteta stated final yr about how he needs his staff to be the very best at every little thing, and whereas there’s at all times room for enchancment in different areas, there’s no query we’re the very best at this and that’s what helped us to a few factors yesterday. If different folks need to be snobby about that, nice, nevertheless it’s simply counter-intuitive to me that being sensible at one side of the sport is one thing to be vital of.
Not least when a win away from house places us again on prime of the desk, and means we’ll keep there for an additional week no matter what occurs in right now’s video games. All in all, a very good win and one other recreation which – in comparison with final season – has added factors to our tally primarily based on these fixtures.
Proper, I’ll depart it there for now. Get pleasure from your Sunday, again with extra on the weblog tomorrow and an Arsecast Additional. Till then.
