Posted by Arsenal had played relatively the same side in the six weeks since appointing Mikel Arteta, so it was more than a little surprising to see four out and out attackers:
This was peak-attack for the Gunners: The four attackers plus a winger playing left back and Dani Ceballos in place of Lucas Torreira in the center of midfield.
If nothing else, Arsenal’s lineup would make for an entertaining game.
The Game
| First Half | |||||
| Time | Phase | Sequences | |||
| 0:58 | Attack | Mustafi (+1) finds Nketiah (-1) between the lines, but his layoff goes behind Ozil. | |||
| 1:50 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) finds Ozil in the hole. | |||
| 2:08 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) curves the ball around a Newcastle defender to set Bellerin up to cross. | |||
| 2:47 | Attack | Bellerin (-1) tries to head the Newcastle clearance back to Pepe but doesn’t get enough on it and turns it over. | |||
| 2:53 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) picks up the ball and skates past two defenders… | |||
| 2:57 | Attack | …but not a third—Ceballos (-1) stuck. | |||
| 4:06 | Defense | Mustafi (-1) gives up the cross from Joelinton. Saka (-1) dangles a leg and gets beaten. Aubameyang (+1) tracking back to clear. | |||
| 4:43 | Defense | Mustafi (+1) wins the corner. | |||
| 5:09 | Defense | Saint-Maximin beats Xhaka (-1) down the side of the Arsenal box, and the Arsenal man looks to bring him down. no foul called. | |||
| 5:41 | Attack | Aubameyang (-1) overhits his cross out of bounds. | |||
| 7:15 | Attack | Xhaka (-1) turns the ball over trying to squeeze it into Ozil. | |||
| 7:20 | Defense | Pépé (+1) forces Saint-Maximin into Ceballos (+1), who steals. | |||
| 7:43 | Attack | Aubameyang (-1) inaccurate with his layoff to Saka. | |||
| 7:51 | Defense | Ceballos (-1) caught covering space instead of man, allowing Almiron to sprint past him. Xhaka (-1) drags back Lazaro and takes a silly yellow card. | |||
| 8:07 | Defense | Aubameyang (-1) gives up the cross because he’s looking at the linesman to give out of bounds. | |||
| 8:42 | Attack | Belerin (+1) calmly nutmegs the Newcastle man with the pass to get Arsenal out of their own end. | |||
| 9:27 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) sprays the ball to the left, putting Saka into a 1v1. | |||
| 10:20 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) sees Bellerin’s run down the right and plays him over the top. Bellerin (-1) wastes the header. | |||
| 12:43 | Defense | Xhaka (+1) wins the free kick. | |||
| 13:23 | Defense | Ceballos (-1) nearly heads the ball into his own goal attempting to block the shot. Leno (+2) terrific save. | |||
| 13:50 | Defense | Aubameyang (-1) ducks out of a header. Ceballos (-1) gets spun by Saint-Maximin. Bellerin (-1) shades too far over leaving Joelinton, who shoots wide from inside the six. | |||
| 15:36 | Attack | Pépé (+/-) crosses just too far for Aubameyang. | |||
| 16:09 | Attack | Aubameyang (-1) loses the ball on the left wing. | |||
| 16:34 | Defense | Saka (+1) gets over just in time to knock the Newcastle cross field pass out of bounds. | |||
| 16:56 | Defense | Saka (-1) gets beat by a Lazaro flick. Mustafi (+1) comes over to clear. | |||
| 17:35 | Attack | Saka (-1) doesn’t get enough on his clearance. | |||
| 17:43 | Defense | Ceballos (+1) gets a foot in to block Newcastle’s entry pass and knock back to Leno. | |||
| 17:57 | Attack | Xhaka (-1) impatiently hits deep and turns the ball over. | |||
| 18:17 | Attack | Leno (-2) passes straight to Newcastle. | |||
| 18:23 | Defense | Ceballos (-1) gets beat 1v1 and drags down Saint-Maximin inside the Arsenal third. | |||
| 20:28 | Attack | Saka (+1) wriggles through two Newcastle defenders with the help of an Aubameyang (+1) backheel. His curling shot goes a few feet over. | |||
| 21:45 | Attack | Mustafi (-1) overhits Saka on the diagonal. | |||
| 22:19 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) calmly brings Dubravka’s goal kick down, gets the ball back from Ozil, the first-times ahead to Nketiah. | |||
| 22:30 | Attack | Bellerin (-2) under no pressure, hits a pass across field that goes miles over Xhaka. | |||
| 23:06 | Attack | Bellerin (-1) loses the ball trying to go 1v1 at midfield. Newcastle waste the counter. | |||
| 23:25 | Attack | Pépé (-1) overhits Nketiah. | |||
| 23:39 | Defense | Pépé (+1) pokes the ball away from Bentaleb in midfield. | |||
| 23:43 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) squeezes the pass into Ozil on the edge of the Newcastle third. | |||
| 23:46 | Attack | Ozil (-1) dribbles himself into a trap and loses the ball just outside the Newcastle box. | |||
| 24:20 | Attack | Tough sequence for Saka (-1): First he gets his cross blocked, then mistimes his jump on the ensuing 50/50 and loses possession. | |||
| 24:26 | Defense | Almiron goes past Xhaka (-1) like he’s not even there. Ceballos (-1) not quick enough to cover. | |||
| 24:33 | Defense | Ceballos (+1) sprints back to kick the ball away. Almiron dives 😑. | |||
| 24:36 | Attack | Bellerin (-1) takes too long on the ball, inviting pressure then clearing poorly. | |||
| 24:45 | Defense | Pépé (+1) wins the ball off Saint-Maximin inside the Arsenal box. Not sure how much he knew about it though. | |||
| 24:46 | Attack | Bellerin (+1) sends over the top to Nketiah (-1), who can’t bring it down properly. | |||
| 24:51 | Defense | Nketiah (+1) tracks back to the edge of his own box to steal. | |||
| 25:06 | Attack | Aubameyang (+1) threads the ball through to Pépé (-1) on the edge of the Newcastle box, who lacks any intensity whatsoever. | |||
| 25:18 | Attack | Saka ( -1) shoots over and wide from 25 yards. | |||
| 25:56 | Defense | Xhaka (+1) puts the tackle in. | |||
| 26:13 | Attack | Luiz (-1) overhits the long ball. | |||
| 26:54 | Attack | Mustafi (-2) terribly misses Ceballos with a pass. | |||
| 26:59 | Defense | Pépé (+1) sprints back to steal. | |||
| 27:21 | Attack | Nketiah (-1) turns the ball over. | |||
| 28:20 | Attack | Saka (+1) stands a ball up to the back post, cleared for a corner. | |||
| 29:43 | Defense | Aubameyang (+1) sags infield to intercept a Newcastle pass. | |||
| 29:47 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) hits Aubameyang (-1) in stride down the left, but he’s tackled attempting to go 1v1. | |||
| 30:38 | Defense | Saint-Maximin gets the better of Bellerin (-1) and Pépé (-1) to send Rose down the left. | |||
| 30:48 | Defense | Luiz (+1) gets to the cross first to clear. | |||
| 30:57 | Attack | Mustafi (+1) hits Nketiah (-1) to break the Newcastle press, but he can’t bring the ball under control. | |||
| 31:06 | Defense | Aubameyang (+1) sags to intercept again. | |||
| 31:10 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) checks his shoulder then heads on to Ozil (+1), who touches around Longstaff… | |||
| 31:16 | Attack | …then Ozil (+1) plays Aubameyang (+1) down the left, who beats Fernandez but shoots straight at Dubravka. | |||
| 31:43 | Defense | Strong header from Mustafi (+1) at midfield. | |||
| 31:47 | Attack | Pépé (+1) chests past one player then races into the Newcastle box. | |||
| 31:53 | Attack | Pépé (-1) trips over the ball and loses it. | |||
| 32:27 | Defense | Bellerin (+1) tackles off Saint-Maximin to win the throw in for Arsenal. | |||
| 33:09 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) combines with Bellerin to find Pépé on the right wing. | |||
| 33:11 | Attack | Pépé (+1) crosses to Nketiah (-1), who heads the ball in the wrong direction. | |||
| 33:41 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) plays Saka (+1) down the left, who volleys the cross to the penalty spot. | |||
| 34:09 | Attack | Saka plays Ozil (+1) between the lines, who dummies for Nketiah (-1), who turns it over. | |||
| 35:23 | Attack | Saka (+1) slips away from Lazaro to cross. | |||
| 35:35 | Attack | Ceballos tries to combine with Pépé (-1), but the return pass is too heavy. | |||
| 36:04 | Attack | Ozil (+2) passes between SIX Newcastle defenders to find Nketiah for the shot. Right at Dubravka. | |||
| 36:56 | Pepe shoots over. | ||||
| 38:06 | Defense | Pépé (+1) tracks back across midfield to steal back for Arsenal. | |||
| 38:20 | Attack | Good creativity from Ozil (+1) to cut back and find Aubameyang, who has his shot blocked for a corner. | |||
| 40:18 | Attack | Pépé (+1) fires in the free kick. Dubravka tips over the bar—it was probably going over anyway. | |||
| 40:49 | Attack | Mustafi (-1) lays off weakly after the ball bounces around the Newcastle box from an Arsenal corner. | |||
| 41:04 | Attack | Ceballos (-1) long pass that’s headed clear. | |||
| 41:08 | Defense | Nketia (+1) pokes the ball off Joelinton to Saka, who gets cleaned out. Somehow no foul. | |||
| 41:17 | Defense | Ceballos (-1) shades too far to the play side, giving up the pass into Longstaff. | |||
| 41:28 | Defense | Saint-Maximin goes 1v1 at Bellerin (+1), who stands tall. | |||
| 41:37 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) finds Ozil running through midfield. | |||
| 41:40 | Attack | Ozil (+1) plays Saka through down the left. | |||
| 41:45 | Attack | Saka (-1) tries to go 1v1 and loses the ball, then bounces off the defender after putting a shoulder into him. | |||
| 42:03 | Defense | Bellerin (-1) absolutely roasted by Saint-Maximin. | |||
| 42:20 | Attack | Luiz (+1) plays long to Nketiah (+1), who heads to Ozil. | |||
| 42:46 | Attack | Aubameyang (+1) crosses in front of Clark. Pépé (-1) runs behind. | |||
| 42:50 | Attack | Bellerin (-1) lets the ball bounce then commits the foul. | |||
| 45:03 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) finds Nketiah (+1) who lays off to Aubameyang. | |||
| 45:05 | Attack | Aubameyang (+1) plays Nketiah (-1) through, but the youngster thinks his job is done after the layoff and can’t get onto the end of the pass. | |||
| Second Half | |||||
| Time | Phase | Sequences | |||
| 45:29 | Defense | Aubameyang (+1) and Xhaka (+1) combine to steal. | |||
| 45:26 | Attack | Good feet from Ozil (+1) to get out of a tight area on the left side of midfield. | |||
| 46:13 | Attack | Ceballos (+2) terrific pass over the top to Aubameyang (+1), whose run puts him through on goal. The ball bounces up on him though, and he can only get a toe to it. | |||
| 46:51 | Attack | Bellerin heads Dubravka’s goal kick to Pépé (-1), but he doesn’t get enough on the return pass. | |||
| 47:41 | Attack | Pépé (-1) loses the ball off Ceballos (+1) entry pass into him. | |||
| 47:49 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) sprays the ball to Saka. | |||
| 48:14 | Attack | The Xhaka (+1) cross goes all the way through, missed by Pépé (-1) and Nketiah (-1). | |||
| 48:49 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) plays Bellerin down the right. | |||
| 49:03 | Attack | Ozil (+1) finds Pépé (+1) in the box who beats his man and crosses to Nketiah (-1). All alone at the edge of the six, and he hits the cross bar. | |||
| 50:18 | Defense | Saka (+1) and Aubameyang (+1) combine to steal. | |||
| 50:51 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) puts Bellerin in crossing position with a well-eighted pass to the right. | |||
| 51:03 | Defense | Xhaka (+1) puts a tackle in. | |||
| 51:22 | Attack | Saka (-1) hits his cross too close to Dubravka. | |||
| 52:09 | Attack | Luiz (-1) overhits his pass. | |||
| 52:28 | Defense | Ceballos (+1) reads Joelinton’s touch and nicks the ball. | |||
| 52:30 | Attack | Ceballos (-1) turns back upfield and loses the ball. | |||
| 53:20 | Attack | Good movement from Ozil (+1) and Ceballos (+1) finds him to start the break. | |||
| 53:30 | Attack | Pépé (+2) crosses for Aubameyang (+3) who heads in for 1-0. | |||
| 54:43 | Defense | Pépé (+1) steals the ball. | |||
| 55:24 | Attack | Ceballos (+2) finds Bellerin (-1) inside the box, but his volleyed cutback is behind Nketiah. | |||
| 56:05 | Attack | Saka (+4) beats two players with a nutmeg, then crosses for Pépé (+3) who doesn’t miss. 2-0. | |||
| 57:50 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) squeezes the ball into Ozil. | |||
| 58:13 | Attack | Pépé (+1) taking it to Newcastle now, cutting inside before being fouled on the edge of the box. | |||
| 58:17 | Attack | Referee plays advantage but Nketiah (-1) takes too long inside the box and has his shot blocked. | |||
| 60:33 | Attack | Ceballos (-1) spins back toward the Arsenal goal, but his touch is too heavy and he loses it (and commits the foul). | |||
| 61:17 | Defense | Xhaka (+1) wins the ball back on the edge of the Arsenal box. | |||
| 62:20 | Defense | Pépé (-1) slow to recognize the overload down Arsenal’s left, and when the ball is played there he’s got too far to make up. Mustafi (-1) sags too deep allowing the ball into Clark, who should score. He doesn’t, maybe because Luiz (+1) gets a foot in. Shot was probably going wide anyways. | |||
| 63:05 | Attack | Nketiah (-2) has time and space to bring the ball down inside the Arsenal box. His poor touch allows the ball to roll out for another corner. | |||
| 63:33 | Defense | Ceballos (+1) sticks Saint-Maximin 1v1. | |||
| 63:37 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) turns Saint-Maximin and earns the foul. | |||
| 64:05 | Attack | Mustafi (+1) plays a first-time ball to Ozil to get Arsenal beyond Newcastle’s press. | |||
| 64:09 | Attack | Ozil (-1) takes a heavy first touch that Pépé nearly rescues, but doesn’t. | |||
| 64:19 | Defense | Pépé (+1) intercepts. | |||
| 64:22 | Attack | Pépé (-1) has his pass cut out, but it bounces back to Ceballos. | |||
| 64:53 | Attack | Mustafi (-1) sends a pass over the head of Xhaka. | |||
| 65:43 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) plays Ozil between the lines. | |||
| 65:45 | Attack | Ozil (-1) shows too much of the ball to the Newcastle defender and loses it. | |||
| 66:30 | Attack | Ozil (+2) plays Pépé (+1) through into the box, who slots back to Aubameyang. His cross/shot skims the cross bar. | |||
| 67:21 | Attack | Pépé (+1) goes up to win the header, knocking it to Ozil in the process. | |||
| 68:12 | Attack | Ceballos (+1) plays into Ozil (-1), whose dummy doesn’t come off this time. | |||
| 68:17 | Defense | Nketiah (+1) tracks back to steal. | |||
| 68:49 | Attack | Ceballos (-1) pass blocked, but only back out to Bellerin. | |||
| 69:33 | Attack | Good sequence culminating in a Xhaka (+1) pass to Ozil (+1). He slots for Aubameyang for what would likely have been a goal, only to be wrongfully whistled offside. | |||
| 71:15 | Attack | Bellerin (+1) cuts inside then plays the ball to Nketiah (-1), who takes an extra touch and loses it, sending Newcastle on the counter. | |||
| 71:31 | Defense | Xhaka (+1) blocks the shot, injuring himself in the process. | |||
| 74:39 | Attack | Ceballos (-1) just about gets the ball under control, then loses it by attempting to pass back to Bellerin. | |||
| 74:43 | Defense | Saint-Maximin shrugs off Bellerin (-1), then beats Mustafi (-1) to shoot. Off the post. | |||
| 75:31 | Defense | Saka (+1) blocks the cross. | |||
| 76:34 | Attack | Xhaka (-1) leaves Ozil short. | |||
| 76:37 | Defense | Xhaka (+1) makes the sliding tackle to recover the ball. | |||
| 76:52 | Defense | Ceballos (-1) goes shoulder to shoulder with Joelinton and bounces off like a he ran into a truck. | |||
| 77:35 | Defense | Bellerin (-1) unconvincing with his header clear. | |||
| 77:42 | Defense | Saint-Maximin beats Bellerin (-1) to cross, but Mustafi (+1) anticipates well to clear. | |||
| 77:55 | Defense | Bellerin (-1) points Ceballos to cover his man, but doesn’t swap to cover him. The result is Almiron free to receive and turn inside the Arsenal third. | |||
| 78:04 | Defense | Luiz (+1) blocks Joelinton’s shot. | |||
| 78:26 | Attack | Pépé (-1) holds onto the ball too long and has it stolen. | |||
| 79:12 | Attack | Saka (+1) dribbles past three players into the Newcastle third, but gets stuck by the fourth. | |||
| 83:01 | Attack | Arsenal playing at a much higher tempo now. Saka (+1) quickly to Xhaka to get the ball over halfway. | |||
| 83:32 | Attack | Xhaka plays long into Ozil (-1), who pulls out despite the ball getting there in the end. | |||
| 84:45 | Defense | Torreira (-1) gets spun at midfield. | |||
| 84:53 | Defense | Pépé (+1) tracking back hard to block the Newcastle pass out for a corner. | |||
| 85:21 | Defense | Saka (-1) gets caught under the corner, but easily saved by Leno. | |||
| 85:32 | Attack | Quick again from Saka (+1) to play Ozil (+1), who flicks it back to him and he’s off to the races. | |||
| 85:37 | Attack | Saka (+1) flies past his man 1v1, then just misses Lacazette inside the Newcastle box. | |||
| 86:47 | Attack | Bellerin (+1) dribbles inside at midfield then finds Lacazette (+1), who lays off to Torreira. | |||
| 88:53 | Attack | Xhaka (+1) hesitates long enough for Ozil (+1) to run through. He carries over midfield and passes to Pépé. | |||
| 89:00 | Attack | Pépé (+1) slides the ball into Lacazette (+2), who spins and passes to Ozil (+2) who finishes (somewhat luckily) for the 3-0. A 35-pass sequence. | |||
| 90:57 | Defense | Aubameyang (+1) sags to intercept. | |||
| 92:17 | Attack | Saka (-1) passes out of bounds. | |||
| 92:34 | Defense | Willock (+1) presses high up the field to win the ball. | |||
| 92:41 | Attack | Willock (-1) holds onto the ball too long, then passes straight at two Newcastle defenders. | |||
| 93:24 | Attack | Bellerin (-1) passes to the covered Lacazette, resulting in a turnover. | |||
| 94:25 | Attack | Mustafi (+1) fizzes the ball into Pépé. | |||
| 94:31 | Attack | Willock (+2) plays Pépé (+2) into the box, who slots back to Lacazette (+3), who finishes for Arsenal’s fourth. | |||
Game Recap
Woooooooooooooo!
Woo indeed.
After sputtering through the first half Arsenal turned it on in the second, scoring four goals en route to their most comprehensive Premier League victory of the season.
The performance was a needed one. The Gunners are struggling through their worst season in a generation, and although the mood has lifted in recent weeks following Arteta’s appointment, results haven’t enjoyed a similar bounce; only three of seven Premier League games had been wins.
News on Friday that Manchester City are facing a two year Champions League ban emphasized the need for points to go along with performances. Champions League qualification through the league, thought gone as recently as lunchtime on Friday, returned to the table after Man City left it.
For the opening 45 minutes (and especially the first 30), Arsenal looked disinterested in capitalizing. They dominated possession without dominating the game—Newcastle actually looked the more likely side to score—and didn’t even attempt a shot until the 21st minute.
But the Gunners returned to the pitch a different team in the second half, playing at a quicker tempo that Newcastle couldn’t match. While possession was nearly identical in the second half as the first (69% vs. 67%), Arsenal completed 73 more passes (358 to 285).
It was the same story in the attacking third: Although Arsenal attempted more passes in the Newcastle end in the first half than the second (108 to 92), their success rate was considerably higher in the second than the first (90% to 80%). In the penalty area it’s even more pronounced: 6 of 13 (46%) successful passes in the first half; 15 of 19 (79%) in the second.
Here’s what it looks like to the naked eye, clips from the 21st and 48th minutes:
The challenge when facing a team that sits as deep as Newcastle is to avoid getting comfortable and continue moving the ball at pace, even when afforded time and space to hold onto it. In the first half, Arsenal fell into the Newcastle trap. That changed in the second, almost across the board. And four goals were the result.
Player Chart
A week after putting up a staggering -41 overall against Burnley, with only three starters scoring positively, Arsenal flipped the script to the tune of a +49. Only three players scored negatively.
Nicolas Pépé had his best performance (+11) since coming to the club. Dani Ceballos (+10) matched him with his best game since matchday two against Burnley that had everyone fearing a €70+ million price tag.
Player Focus
LB Bukayo Saka [+6 Att | +/- 0 Def | +6 Ovr | 90 mins]
News broke late last week that Saka has only 18 months left on his £3k-per-week contract. His agent has to be licking his chops after this one.
Saka was immense down the left, both in defense and attack, providing the game’s signature moment:
https://streamable.com/rvyi3
In the current system, in which Xhaka covers him to the point that he’s basically an auxiliary left winger, he’s more than serviceable as a left back. But performances like this one give a glimpse into what he can be farther up the pitch. It’ll be a fun one for Arteta to figure out once Tierney returns from injury. For now, he’s clearly cemented himself in front of Kolasinac.
CM Granit Xhaka [+8 Att | +4 Def | +12 Ovr | 90 mins]
Another notch in his redemption arc. No longer tasked with protecting the back four by himself, he’s going on a month of near mistake-free football. He’s still sliding over to cover Saka at left back when Arsenal attack, but that doesn’t mean he’s not contributing offensively:
There was a lot wrong with the Unai Emery era at Arsenal, but nothing worse than his mismanagement of Xhaka. That Arteta’s been able to bring him back into the fold, after a brief flirtation with Germany, is another ticked box for the new manager.
CM Dani Ceballos [+12 Att |-2 Def | +10 Ovr | 82 mins]
Can Arsenal get away with playing Ceballos as the #8 against the top six? Probably not. But in a game in which they knew they’d dominate the ball? This was the perfect game to experiment. Results were encouraging:
https://streamable.com/124s4
Arteta will have to weigh whether his inclusion is worth the drop off defensively—there were two instance where he and Xhaka parted like the Red Sea:
https://streamable.com/efrey
…but there’s no question he’s an upgrade to the position offensively.
CAM Mesut Ozil [+12 Att | DNC Def | +12 Ovr | 90 mins]
It’s probably not a coincidence that Arsenal’s best performance of the season was led by the three center midfielders. Xhaka and Ceballos pulled the strings, but Ozil had his best game for a year in this one. This is vintage Mesut Ozil:
https://streamable.com/94dai
Was his goal a bit of good luck? Sure. Did he deserve every bit of it? You bet.
RW Nicolas Pépé [+5 Att | +6 Def | +11 Ovr | 90 mins]
His best game since joining, and it’s not close. His second half is what Arsenal paid €80 million for:
He defended too, which isn’t what they bought him for, but is going to keep him on the field. He had 10 recoveries, which led all players in the game, and tracked back at a level not seen before from him in an Arsenal shirt:
https://streamable.com/9owki
Are we going to talk about the two massive negative scores?
I don’t want to, but I will.
RB Hector Bellerin [-6 Att | -5 Def | -11 Ovr | 90 mins]
Is it time to start worrying about him? Maybe.
He scored the tying goal so people forgot, but Willian gave him the run around away to Chelsea.
Allan Saint-Maximin might someday be the player Willian is, but he isn’t currently. That didn’t stop him from taking it to Bellerin all game though:
I still think Bellerin is the long-term right back for Arsenal. Just maybe not right now.
What about Eddie Nketiah?
The other big negative output on the day.
ST Eddie Nketiah [-11 Att |+2 Def | -9 Ovr | 85 mins]
Lacazette has been in poor form all season, but it was a surprise that Nketiah took his place instead of Gabriel Martinelli. He was basically Lacazette poor-form 2.0:
It’s clear Arteta likes him, and there will be minutes for him moving forward, even if it’s not from the start of the game. He wasn’t good in this one. It’s not cause for alarm.
Looking Ahead — What does it mean for Everton?
Arsenal have a Europa League game against Olympiakos on Thursday, and that game will likely get the best lineup Arsenal have to offer. With the Everton game three days later, it will be interesting to see what rotation exists in the squad.
Everton have been on a tear since Carlo Ancelotti was hired on the same day as Arteta, and they’re sure to present an attacking threat greater than the hit-and-hope strategy Newcastle employed. As such, I wouldn’t be surprised if Lucas Torreira came in for Dani Ceballos, despite the Spaniard’s quality performance against Newcastle.
Shkodran Mustafi and Bukayo Saka have cemented their places in Arsenal’s backline. I could see a change at right back, with Maitland-Niles coming back in for the struggling Bellerin.
On paper, Arsenal have more quality in their side, and the 4-0 win over Newcastle could kickstart their Champions League chase.
Prediction: Arsenal 3 – 1 Everton