Bodø/Glimt, the most northerly opponent (67°16′57.72″N – thanks, bt8) we have ever faced in our long, though less than appropriately decorated history of European competition, pitched up at the Grove on a mild autumn evening for our second game in Europa League Group A. Their short history and recently highly successful playing style have been detailed in Dr F’s exquisitely researched match preview which I commend, even in retrospect, if you haven’t read it. Before kick-off, Bodø sat top of the group with 4 points from their first two games. The Arsenal are tucked in behind them in second place after our solitary match to date against Zurich. A win in tonight’s game would give us a measure of control of the group after only two games.
There was much pre-match speculation about Arsenal fielding a heavily rotated starting XI for this match, given the 9 matches scheduled for October and particularly with Sunday’s looming match against the Mugsmashers. Verily, the boss rang a series of changes but retained the first XI spine of Gabriel, Xhaka and Martinelli. Those two Brazilians had been able to rest during the recent Interlull while our new Mr Reliable, Granit Xhaka has made himself undroppable. Turner came in for Ramsdale in goal and our first-choice fullbacks from last season, Tomiyasu and Tierney returned to flank the previously familiar combination of Holding and Gabriel at centre back. Vieira came in again at ‘8’ for Ødegaard, despite the latter’s Norwegian connection while Lokonga got another opportunity to strut his stuff in Thomas Partey’s role in deep midfield. Up front we got another chance to see the exciting Marquinos on the right, with local boy Nketiah leading the line flanked by another Brazilian, Martinelli, on his left. Uncontroversially, Xhaka was captain. The calvary (© North Bank Ned) were on the bench.
Arsenal began by stroking the ball around deep midfield as if to draw the Glimters out before themselves initiating a high press. An early attack resulted in a driving run by Nketiah but his shot sailed past the far post then a high ball from the left was taken down well by Vieira in the box but his pass was cut out. There suddenly seemed to be lots of space to run into and Nketiah took the opportunity to run through the Bodø midfield to shoot wide from the edge of the box. Bodø, for their part, showed a willingness to commit players forward. Their winger Mvuka briefly looked dangerous racing down our left but was dispossessed easily as he cut inside. After 7 minutes there was an alarm as Vieira went down clutching his foot after a stamp by a defender but he resumed the field and promptly hit the bar after a neat turn and volley in the box from a deflected cut back from Tierney.
After ten minutes Arsenal’s early surge seemed to abate. Bodø then showed their predicted high press and possession game, dispossessing first Xhaka then Martinelli in midfield but without threatening Turner’s goal on either occasion. In reply, Arsenal regained the initiative but Xhaka’s curving cross from the left sailed out for a throw-in with no one attacking the far post. Meanwhile the Bodø support spent much of the first half jumping up and down – presumably a Pavlovian response to generate warmth after finding themselves in a football ground despite the 14 degree ambient temperature!
A period of Arsenal pressure, as we came towards 20 minutes, enlivened the home crowd who finally woke up and were briefly vocal though a couple of penetrative surges down the left came to naught despite a spill from the keeper as he cut out a low cross. A lob from the left by Martinelli was then beautifully trapped by Marquinos in the box but he promptly ran into a defender and lost the ball. Shortly after that disappointment, Martinelli picked up the ball centrally, dribbled through their midfield and passed to Tierney on the left of the box. Tierney’s firm strike hit the far post and rebounded for Nketiah to make a difficult shot look easy as, under pressure from a defender, he found the back of the net from near the penalty spot.
1-0 to the Arsenal (Nketiah, 23)
Marquinos had frequently been getting joy from pressurising the Bodø left back and another challenge broke to Vieira whose run into the box unfortunately took him too close to the keeper. The resultant corner taken by Vieira from the right was headed away but only to Vieira who had rushed out to meet it and jinked past a defender to curl a beautiful left-footed ball into the box for Holding to head firmly inside the Bodø keeper’s right-hand post.
2-0 to the Arsenal (Holding, 27)
We then sat back and allowed Bodø a spell of possession during which they moved the ball around silkily but failed to penetrate our back four. Our comfortable scoreline encouraged a hitherto somewhat taciturn crowd to vocalisation and a round of Tequila/Saliba was forthcoming.
A Bodø defender handballed on the edge of their box as he tried to block a penetrative move involving Vieira and Nketiah giving Arsenal a freekick in a very good position. That freekick was rolled sideways by Vieira to Xhaka who fired the ball towards the far top corner forcing the Bodø keeper to tip it over his bar. Tierney then drove into the Bodø penalty area after a back heel from Xhaka but fired the ball wide. Shortly afterwards Nketiah dispossessed a centre back but failed to score as he ran in on the keeper.
After 37 minutes, a Glimter with the name of an Italian mineral water had a shot at goal that sailed well wide. Marquinos then showed him how to do it but his shot on target was deflected over. By 40 it was clear we were enjoying ourselves and were doing to Bodø what their coach had claimed they would do to us – we had possession and we pressed high. Xhaka was then carded for handball preventing a Glimter taking it past him as he lay on the ground after a challenge. A few seconds later, Xhaka cut the ball back to Vieira on the edge of the box but his sweet left-footed shot curled past the post.
As half time approached we were sitting back with a low block, wingers alongside the fullbacks, a bank of three in front of the back four and looking very solid.
HT: Arsenal 2 Bodø/Glimt 0
Although we were worth our half time lead, we were by no means imperious in that first half and didn’t control the flow of the game. Instead we conceded considerable periods of possession and initiative to the opponent. However, Bodó’s failure to threaten Turner’s goal in the first half contrasted with our clear threat in front of goal suggesting that there might be a gulf in class between the two teams. Bodø’s football in possession was pretty but their moves always seemed to break down against our defensive line.
The Arsenal players began the second half as if Arteta had put a rocket up them. Martinelli dribbled past two defenders as he ran along the bye line and cut the ball back to Xhaka who struck a firm shot on goal that was parried by the keeper towards Nketiah who could only direct his header wide. Then seconds later, Nketiah closed down the keeper who just managed to clear a back pass. However, Arsenal’s early threat proved ephemeral. At the other end a back pass from Holding gave a Glimter of hope but Turner cleared it reasonably comfortably.
A Bodø forward then gave Turner the opportunity to catch the ball with their first shot on target. Berg then ran unchallenged from their half all the way to the edge of our box where he laid the ball off to another Glimter whose shot curved past the far post as another Glimter failed to connect. Bodø came forward again after sloppy possession in midfield and Saltnes shot over our bar. Turner then got down well to a Pellegrino shot in the box that had passed through a forest of legs. Arsenal’s early aggression had faded and our energy seemed to have dissipated. In those first ten minutes of the second half we had given the Glimters too much encouragement.
We were looking distinctly second best as 57 minutes rang up. This game was only going in one direction and action was required. Arteta promptly replaced Martinelli with Jesús, Xhaka with Ødegaard and Saka replaced Marquinos. The substitutions had an immediate energising effect and we began to regain and retain possession.
Nonetheless this remained more of a contest than the first half had been. A free kick wide left in their half for Arsenal was botched and led to another Bodø breakaway attack that was happily smothered. Our midfield now seemed easier to run through than it had been – no Partey and now no Xhaka? Mercifully, their breakaways still tended to fizzle out as they met out back line but on one occasion it was Jesús who made the critical challenge in our box. As the ¾ point came up, Bodø were again dominating possession but happily, still without too much threat. However, it felt that if they got a goal, we would have to survive a very nervy last few minutes. On 69 minutes a flagging Tierney was replaced by Benjamin White and Tomiyasu switched to left back.
A neat move up the left by Bodø led to a centrally directed ball to a forward whose shot cleared our bar before the flag went up for offside. On 72 minutes Solbakken and another Glimter replaced Mvuka and another Glimter. Arsenal responded with a nice run inside from Saka whose ball found Jesús but his instant return from the left was cut out before it reached the onrushing Saka. On 75 minutes, our brilliant number 7 took a hefty kick that left him limping for several minutes. Fortunately, he appeared to run it off. At this point it felt as if we were just trying to see this game out at 2-0. Turner showed his aerial ability firmly clutching a high ball from a Pellegrino free kick and to be fair had competently dealt with the ball at his feet all match.
A now rare flash from Arsenal saw a lovely through ball from Ødegaard to Nketiah to take him behind the Bodø defence but his shot sailed wildly over the bar. On 81 minutes, Nketiah was replaced by Nelson who made his first appearance in 14 months. Jesús moved from the left flank into his usual central position.
Arsenal then appeared to wake up!
A beautiful mazy dribble along the bye line by Jesús who had received a ball in the wide left position from a throw-in, mesmerised several Glimt defenders and as he approached the keeper’s right-hand post he cut the ball back perfectly to Vieira who struck it first time with his left peg high into the net.
3-0 Arsenal, Vieira 84
Jesús then set Nelson free on the left but his shot from the edge of the box was deflected for a corner. Gabriel headed the ball over from the resulting corner.
A swift and fluid move out of defence with passes from White to Ødegaard to Nelson finished with a cross from Nelson to Vieira who was quickly closed down by a couple of Glimters.
In added time, Holding had to hook the ball off the line to preserve the clean sheet after a pass from Pellegrino had found its way to Saltnes inside our six-yard box near Turner’s right-hand post. His shot was pushed upwards by Turner but span goalwards before Holding’s second critical contribution.
The game drew to a close with Jesús making a driving run from the left along the edge of the box, laying the ball off for nice interplay on the right between White, Lokonga, Saka and Ødegaard. The latter chipped the ball towards Nelson running into the box but his effort from the edge of the 6-yard box was blocked by a diving defender. The referee blew for time as a Saka breakaway ended with a heavy touch on the half-way line.
FT Arsenal 3, Bodø/Glimt 0
Three excellent goals, each with an outstanding assist, saw a team that rarely run out together claim a deserved victory over the piece. No-one had a poor game. It was just not as silky and free flowing as the first XI have made us come to expect. Caviar and sausages, as Arsene might observe. For me, Vieira was man of the match. We will see more of that silky left peg.
Yet this was one of those games of two halves. Despite several periods of silky possession, Bodø were distinctly second best in the first half and while we hadn’t exactly dominated the game, at half time it seemed possible that the second half might be a canter against a clearly inferior outfit. However, Bodø seemed a different outfit in the second half and dominated possession until the latter stages. Our second-string players seemed unable to rise to the challenge when Bodø began to assert themselves in that second half and the early appearance of Jesús, Ødegaard and Saka was essential to restore energy and competitiveness to see out the challenge. That second half suggests that we are in for a frosty experience when we visit the Arctic Circle next week.
