Posted by Lineups
Scorecard
Reminder: The minute by minute is located here. The final scorecard is below:
| Att | Att | Att | Def | Def | Def | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | + | - | +/- | Goalkeeper | + | - | +/- | Total | Minutes |
| Aaron Ramsdale | 2 | 2 | 0 | Aaron Ramsdale | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 90 |
| Defenders | + | - | +/- | Defenders | + | - | +/- | Total | Minutes |
| Oleksandr Zinchenko | 5 | 1 | 4 | Oleksandr Zinchenko | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 77 |
| Gabriel Magalhães | 2 | 3 | -1 | Gabriel Magalhães | 7 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 90 |
| William Saliba | 0 | 1 | -1 | William Saliba | 9 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 90 |
| Ben White | 2 | 1 | 1 | Ben White | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 75 |
| Kieran Tierney | 2 | 0 | 2 | Kieran Tierney | 0 | 1 | -1 | 1 | 13 |
| Takehiro Tomiyasu | 1 | 0 | 1 | Takehiro Tomiyasu | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 | 15 |
| Midfielders | + | - | +/- | Midfielders | + | - | +/- | Total | Minutes |
| Thomas Partey | 4 | 8 | -4 | Thomas Partey | 4 | 2 | 2 | -2 | 90 |
| Granit Xhaka | 7 | 2 | 5 | Granit Xhaka | 1 | 4 | -3 | 2 | 90 |
| Martin Ødegaard | 9 | 3 | 6 | Martin Ødegaard | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 90 |
| Emile Smith Rowe | 1 | 1 | 0 | Emile Smith Rowe | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Attackers | + | - | +/- | Attackers | + | - | +/- | Total | Minutes |
| Gabriel Martinelli | 14 | 1 | 13 | Gabriel Martinelli | 3 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 90 |
| Bukayo Saka | 6 | 4 | 2 | Bukayo Saka | 3 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 84 |
| Gabriel Jesus | 21 | 10 | 11 | Gabriel Jesus | 0 | 1 | -1 | 10 | 84 |
| Eddie Nketiah | 3 | 1 | 2 | Eddie Nketiah | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Total | 79 | 38 | 41 | Total | 40 | 25 | 15 | 56 | 990 |
Player Ratings
Gabriel Martinelli
[+13 Att | +3 Def | +16 Ovr]
It’s hard not to pick the guy with four goal contributions as the Man of the Match, but the numbers don’t lie. Gabriel Martinelli was immense.
The biggest difference in his game this year is his strength on the ball. Ask Tim Castagne:
Or the €90 million-rated Wesley Fofana:
Martinelli looks a changed player in year 2.5 under Mikel Arteta, and two-game caveats notwithstanding, looks to have added a pass to his work-rate and eye for goal. He’s doing virtually anything he wants with the ball:
And scoring for fun. His goal in this one showcased everything Arsenal fans love about him:
The hunger defensively to win the ball back, the drive to make up 10 yards on Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to get into scoring position, and the skill to smash the ball past the GK.
I’m not sure who enjoyed the performance more, me or Mikel Arteta.
It would hard for me to be more impressed.
Gabriel Jesus
[+11 Att | -1 Def | +10 Ovr]
Gabriel Jesus had two goals and two assists, and probably could have had two more of each. It’s hard to overstate how impactful he’s been for Arsenal, in just two games.
His seven shots against Leicester City were one more than the Foxes managed across their entire team. I still can’t get over that he’s an Arsenal player. I’m not sure if I ever will.
Look here. This is absurd center forward play, even if he doesn’t score:
So is this, even though he does:
I don’t have a lot of analysis to add here that’s not obvious. Jesus toys with Johnny Evans on the wing, find Martinelli running inside the box, then collects the ball back and puts it both over the GK and under the crossbar.
Here’s the last sequence of his I clipped. Pay attention to how hard he hauls ass at the beginning of the play, and how quick his feet are to bait Amartey into kicking him.
He should have earned a penalty. In the end, he had to settle for just the four goal contributions on the day.
Martin Ødegaard
[+6 Att | +2 Def | +8 Ovr]
Just a quick note on Ødegaard: He runs and runs and runs, and that’s not even remotely close to the best quality he brings to the team. Arsenal so clearly set up their entire build up and attack around him; a lot of it doesn’t show up on the scoresheet.
He’s not even in the picture when the below sequence starts:
But not only does he win the ball back, he finds Saka with the back-heel like he’s on the training ground, not in Arsenal’s defensive third during a league match.
Here’s another one. He’s having a laugh:
It’s only a matter of time before the goals—and especially the assists—come. And I, for one, can’t wait for it.
Looking Ahead: Matchday 3 at Bournemouth
After a surprise 2-0 win vs. Aston Villa on the opening weekend of the season, Bournemouth were reintroduced to the Premier League big boys on Saturday to the tune of a 4-0 thwacking by Manchester City.
On form—and probably just period—Arsenal are closer to Man City than Aston Villa. You’d expect the scoreline to show that. Would it be irresponsible to predict the Gunners to score 5+ goals?
Prediction: Bournemouth 1 – 6 Arsenal