Storm Amy was blowing along Holloway Road as we strolled up to the Emirates on a warm but blustery autumnal day. Transport links were affected up and down the land. I bumped into BtM desperately in need of sustenance after his train from Bishops Stortford was cancelled due to the weather and he had to take an Uber to Epping. Never leave a Scotsman with an empty stomach!
But we had a job to do. To avenge the desperately disappointing home defeats to West Ham of the last two seasons. The team news was out and it was exciting.
Raya, Timber, Gabriel, Saliba, Calafiori, Rice, Ødegaard, Eze, Saka, Gyökeres, Trossard
A midfield with two 10s and Rice sitting. Clearly no handbrake. The crowd were buzzing. How would the team respond after a week which had two tough matches since the previous Sunday, a tough physical battle with Newcastle and a slightly tense CL win over Olympiacos, both games resolved with goals in injury time?
Away we went. One of the questions we had been asking ourselves was how would the swirling wind affect the game? We got an early answer when West Ham won a corner and it soared, very unusually, over Raya’s head. We cleared it but it had been a danger (spoiler – probably the most dangerous moment in the game from our opponents).
Although we didn’t have the very high tempo start of the last two games, we slowly got into gear. A typical Nuno low block faced us and we had to unpick the lock. Rice chipped a lovely ball to Saka and he smashed it in. Unfortunately he was just offside. The dose was repeated and after a scramble on the goal line the ball fell to Eze six yards out. Amazingly, he blazed it over the bar.
Then came a key moment. Ødegaard had a clash of knees with Summerville (no fault of the West Ham player). He went down, he got up and tried to run it off. He went down again. He got up again and went down again. Finally, for the third time he went down and was clearly in pain. He had to be subbed. Zubimendi came on and dropped in at 6, Rice moved up to 8 and Eze continued as the solitary 10. Poor old Martin. He had just come back into form and again was cut down by injury. We await the medical diagnosis.
So we were back in a more familiar formation and the admirable Zubimendi began pulling the strings. Patrolling along the horizontal axis, he was constantly scanning, either for an interception or for a progressive forward pass. A Swiss watch of a player whom I love watching. On 39 minutes, after another Saka attack on the right wing, he received the ball maybe 20 yards outside the penalty area and spotted Eze making a run into the box. He played a delicious slide rule pass between two defenders right into Eze’s path. The latter hit a fierce shot which was going into the far corner. Areola did very well to save it, parrying it into the path of Rice who smashed a controlled half volley into the roof of the net. Lovely goal. One nil to the Arsenal.
Calafiori hit the post. The ball cannoned back and hit Areola on the back. Just for a minute I thought we had a replay of one of the funniest goals ever when Jorghino did the same thing to Martinez away at Villa, when it hit his head and bounced in but no, this time it fell safe.
One nil at half time, with Arsenal dominant.
We began the second half in similar attacking style. Trossard sent a lovely arcing ball over the defence to Rice marauding down the left wing. He slid in a lovely ball towards Gyökeres charging towards the six yard line but he missed it by a toenail as he fought off a defender. Then, on 67 minutes, Zubi the creator struck again. He sent in a beautiful ball to Timber on the edge of the area where he had the step on his defender. He moved forward, was fouled and the tussling continued into the area. Timber went down. Peter Brookes pointed to the spot. Michael Oliver on VAR tried to find a reason to deny the penalty but it clearly started outside the box and continued into it. Penalty.
An interesting discussion ensued between Saka, who was Captain after Ødegaard went off and Gyökeres who was clearly suggesting he’d like to take it. It ended amicably, they fist bumped, Gyökeres stepped back and Saka stepped forward. That familiar stuttering run up, then he smashed the ball into the top corner. Two nil and probably game over.
That made it 100 goal involvements for Saka in his two hundredth PL game. It was interesting to see on MOTD that in Arteta’s first game as manager he had started at left back. Afterwards, Saka praised Mikel, saying he had developed his game so much. Amen to that.
That was about that. Declan went off with a back problem. A raft of substitutions saw Nwaneri, Martinelli, Lewis-Shelly and Merino come on.
A regular, comfortable, tension free win. We had 21 shots to West Ham’s 5 and Raya didn’t have a save to make. The quality of the subs we brought on was superb, showing the value of the club’s summer transfer work. The crowd were not raucous, but there was no tension and nothing really to complain about. It was just a regulation 2-0 win and a further three points gained against last season.
So who played well? I thought Zubimendi was superb once he came on for Ødegaard. A Swiss watch of a player who defends the back four by his intelligent reading of the game and a player of top passes vertically which can unlock a packed defence. Jurien Timber, once again was brilliant. Such a strong player who is developing his attacking play every week to go with his strong defending. Timber never lets you down and always seems to have at least a strong player rating of eight every game. There is news that he will be the latest player to begin negotiations on a new contract. Pay the man! Declan had a really good game, taking his goal well and going easily from a 6 to an 8. He is equally strong in each position. I thought Saka had a great game, looking right up for the fray. He had a good right back up against him in Diouf but, even when he couldn’t get past, was able to recycle the ball positively (the first goal came from such an occasion). Calafiori is clearly feeling the heat of MLS behind him because he has raised his game. He was all over the pitch from defending his own corner area to being the most advanced player. His heat map for the game must be ridiculous.
Finally what of Gyökeres? I thought he had a very good game, almost always with two defenders on him (making space for others), playing well with back to goal and laying it off well. He is never going to be the most elegant of players, and can look clumsy but he is having a real impact. Don’t follow pundits’ agendas. Give him time, as we urged here when we bought him. I, for one, will be very surprised if he doesn’t finish the season with 20+ goals.
So, as we go into another interlull, how are Arsenal doing? We have played 10 games, won 8, drawn one and lost just one. We have scored 20 goals (boring, boring Arsenal!) and conceded just 3. We are top of the league, well placed in the Champions League and through to the last 16 of the Carabao Cup. I call that a very satisfactory start to the season, especially with injuries in 6 of the 7 league games so far and visits to Anfield and St James Park out of the way.
Up next before the next Interlull is Fulham (A), Atletico Madrid (H), high flying Palace (H), Brighton (H – CC), Burnley (A), Slavia Prague (A) and Sunderland (A).
Me? Well I’m off to watch the slightly stuttering Women’s team play Brighton at the Emirates next Sunday. Enjoy your Interlull, whatever you’re doing.
Cheers C100.
I’m struggling to remember 5 West Ham shots, but then, as you say, Raya didn’t have a save to make. They didn’t threaten at all.
Routine win indeed, nothing spectacular, but I won’t complain.
This was a day to bump into BtM, then. Looks like he Calafiori’d his way around the ground:he was everywhere.
Super stuff, C100 – agree with every bit of the report and the player assessments.
Gyökeres is doing a great job for all the other attacking players by occupying defenders and creating space in those low blocks. If referees ever get round to issuing a few yellow cards to defenders who seem to like throwing him on the ground by his face, he might be able to stay on his feet long enough to score a few goals as well.
Liverpool have lost 3 games in the last week – their fans on the radio are calling for Salah to be dropped – wondering about Wirtz (what price Ode, Rice or Zubi) – and are wishing they could have back that bloke they booed and jeered off to Madrid. You do have to wonder how they managed to spend £400,000,000 in the summer and made the Champions worse.
On the Odegaard injury – The impression I got was that bruising was the most likely problem. I only saw one slow motion replay but it looked like an impact with no loading on the knee and no obvious twisting in the impact.
Bruising, therefore, looked the most likely problem rather than a ligament tear, but guessing off the telly is a touch less reliable than the scans which will reveal all.
Trev – is the knee brace he was reportedly wearing yesterday significantly?
An absolutely complete and excellent summary that leaves very little room for additional commentary, C100. Great stuff. That first corner and the header that followed had me gasping. The ball could easily have gone into the net and we’d have been faced with a doubled-up deep block I suspect. Thereafter, calm ensued.
I think time will show that Zubimendi’s signing last summer was extremely significant for the project’s goal of ‘winning it all’. Superb talent. I do hope that Trev’s assessment of MO8’s injury is on the money and is confirmed by scans. I too thought Victor played well and have to compliment Mavropanos on some superb centre-half play (usually ably supported by another spammer) to deny our man from Sweden.
Having arrived late (wind stops train!) I was making my way toward the Chip Inn Fish Bar (a one-time favourite) when I bumped into C100 who, helpfully, pointed out that the stadium was in the opposite direction 🙂 I settled instead for a Subway foot long (very good) and then had the great good fortune to be accosted by TTG who twisted my arm up my back, marched me to the stadium bar and insisted he buy me a Guinness. Good man. Then on the way home, there was Ollie who sadly couldn’t be persuaded to extend his sojourn and visit the Inn On The Green to watch the Dippers getting thumped in the company of The Aristocrat – very understandable given the challenges that Ollie’s journeys home present. A Holics extravaganza on a very enjoyable day
Thanks C100. A good report on a very straightforward win, especially given we played in the Champions League on Wednesday and it was a testing match .
Firstly I can get my card stamped because I not only saw Btm ( he sat in the row in front) but also shared a Guinness with him – 5 points !) Guinness needs to be poured much more slowly than they do it at Arsenal but speed is of the essence , just like on the pitch. I also saw the estimable CER .
As to the game I really thought our defence and midfield were excellent . Zubimendi is a diamond of a player and Timber is possibly the best right back I’ve seen at Arsenal in 67 years. Can anyone name a better one ? Calafiori was excellent and gives us some very useful options when he gets forward. Ned mentioned that sublime bit of control by Eze in the second half on the previous blog. He is going to be very important this season .
Two slight concerns. Saka had some lovely moments but he doesn’t look fully fit to me still. My observation was shared by a bloke I met on the train home as we followed events at the Bus Stop. But he still is a major difference maker even if not yet fully fit .
As for Gyokeres I was impressed on Wednesday but yesterday he was physically dominated , particularly by Kilman, and although he might get 20 plus goals I’m not sure they will come against the very best sides . He didn’t knock the skin off a rice pudding yesterday although his work rate is admirable .That may not matter if Havertz comes back sharp because I think he will start most big games with Gyokeres an impact sub off the bench. I hope he grows into his role but my TTGometer has him way below the likes of Henry, Bergkamp, latter Van Persie and even peak Aubameyang ( only lasted a short time) He is in the hands of a great coach so I’m not writing him off but I’m also not wearing rose- tinted glasses . I’m interested in other opinions as I’m a card- carrying curmudgeon!
C100 @4 – I didn’t see the brace but I would imagine just precautionary. The physios were presumably resting for ligament pain / laxity on pitch and would not have let him carry on if those tests were positive. Therefore, presumably dead leg and / or bruising ….
TTG @6. It must be our week for (politely) disagreeing. I completely disagree with you about Gyokeres. Were you calling out Henry and Bergkamp after 8 games? Because, you will recall neither of those had fast starts. It takes time. But I think he had a good game yesterday. Did you notice how Saka (who didn’t look unfit to me at all) was not being double teamed like he was all last season? That was because both centre -halves were fully engaged with Gyokeres. The phrase .”couldn’t knock the skin off a rice pudding” was unfair and untrue. From my seat in row 9 I could see how hard he was fighting with both centrehalves. Many times he won the ball and laid it off positively. Actually I thought Mavropanos (formerly of this parish) had an excellent game.
But all opinions are possible, everyone agreeing is boring and time will tell!
Thanks for the reassuring thoughts Trev. We are all fearing an MCL or worse, an ACL. We eagerly await the results of the scans.
Spot on, C100. How you describe the game is exactly how it looked from 3,500 miles away on an unseasonably warm and windless day.
I’m not sure that Gyokeres will end up with 20+ goals this season, but I do think a couple of other players will get deeper into double figures than they otherwise would have done as a result of his presence. The TTGometer@6 is calibrated against some world-class strikers. Gyokeres isn’t a fox-in-the-box predator. But he works tirelessly, harries defenders constantly, and the quality of his hold-up play will be pivotal now that we are mixing up going long with playing out from the back. He might always be a bit of a bull in a China shop, but that may not be a bad thing. He offers a set of physical attributes we haven’t had in a long while. In recent seasons past, we wouldn’t have scored the first goal against Olympiacos, for example. Starting Havertz against technical teams and Gyokeres when we need a bulldozer to open up low-blocks could be a winning combination.
Uh Oh. Seems Odegaard confirmed as an MCL.
https://x.com/jacobsben/status/1974845462084476932?s=61&t=cVFjCyGkt4y-Ne45LtfqkQ
Confirmation on Arsenal.com
https://www.arsenal.com/news/medical-update-martin-odegaard
C100@8: At the risk of more dull agreement, I also thought Mavropanos had a decent game. You will recall there was consternation in the bar at the time he was sold to Stuttgart that we had ‘let one get away’, and cheaply at €3.2 million; West Ham would pay €20 million for him barely a year later. Yet, had he stayed, I would argue, he would not be displacing either Saliba or Gabriel in our starting lineup, and would also be behind Mosquera in the pecking order. Another call Arteta and the recruitment team got right.
In the same vein, another promising young centre back, Dan Ballard, left the club for Sunderland at the same time as Mavropanos. He has prospered there and was instrumental in the Mackems’ promotion last season and strong start to this one (until yesterday’s reverse). Yet there is no way he would be starting for us.
Following Everton’s win over Crystal Palace this afternoon I would like to wish everybody a happy Invincibles day!
How long MØ8 is out for will obviously depend on the grade of the MCL injury, but we must be looking at several weeks up to the infamous three months. On this side of the pond, MCL injuries are common in American football. The lesson from those seems to be that players should not be rushed back before they are fully healed, as there is a high risk of niggling injuries recurring. The priority should be to have the skipper fully fit and available for the second half of the season. Hashtag squad depth.
C100 – well there’s the trouble with trying to guess from one slow motion replay on TV. I’m surprised because a MCL tear shouldn’t be hard to test for even on the pitch. A basic stress test should have caused pain which should mean an immediate withdrawal – especially with the squad depth we now have. Anyway, it seems Martin realised pretty quickly, even if the test didn’t reveal the problem or he insisted on trying to play on, so hopefully no further damage was done.
An example of what I was talking about. This went on all afternoon.
My last point on Gyokeres I promise.
https://bsky.app/profile/scott.cannonstats.com/post/3m2ggc2pjrs2f
I’m delighted that we’ve had some friendly disagreement about the quality of our squad in the bar. It’s one of the reasons that GHF exists in my view.
Firstly let me clarify that the TTGometer is calibrated to assess players that have played for Arsenal so that we might have the world class at the top and the not very good at the bottom . I rather hope all Arsenal players will congregate close to the top and young players will hopefully work their way up the ladder .
Looking at strikers we would have Bergkamp and Henry right at the top , RVP , Wrighty and Anelka right up there behind them, Smith , Baker, Giroud , Stapleton and Radford well up and McDonald up there too.Hawley and Hankin and Chris Whyte ( what a season that was !) were down at the bottom.
I’d currently put Gyokeres in the middle with the hope that he will at least join Smith and Giroud. But he will have to improve and I will be delighted if and when he does . I’m just watching Haaland and you cannot begin to compare him with Gyokeres. You can compare anyone else in that C130y team with our equivalent and we would possibly come out on top. That’s the challenge for Viktor.
You certainly can’t compare Gyökeres with Haaland. Haaland is much much much uglier 😉
That’s the game I saw C100. After that first corner we never looked in any danger, though as Ollie predicted in the last Drinks, their new coach had clearly stiffened the defensive focus and resilience of the opposition. It was deeply disappointing to see MØ succumb to yet another injury and hopefully it’s merely a mild MCL sprain requiring a couple of weeks of rest rather than a tear necessitating more treatment and a longer lay-off. Once again, we really should have made more of the chances we created. Hopefully, one of these days, someone is going to get a proper hammering.
I agree with all your player assessments. Zubimendi was magnificent and the source of both our goals, and there wasn’t a single weak performer on the pitch. Our full backs were phenomenal as attacking auxiliaries, the centre backs absolute rocks, Rice was a midfield dynamo and took his goal well, Eze was constantly inventive, Saka, making his way back to top form, took his penalty well while I thought Trossard, though the quietest of our forwards, had a better game than midweek. Raya was, of course, after the wind-assisted, tricky, corner scare, impeccable with hands and feet and totally unruffled.
As for the Gyökeres debate, I think it’s so long since we have had a proper ‘centre forward’ that we’ve forgotten that their role is not simply to score goals. As others have observed, he spent the whole game occupying the two Spammer centre backs and made space and played balls for others. He may not be as prolific as Haaland or as silky as Henry but he certainly adds to our offensive threat. I am sure that goals will come.
The late goal at the bus stop has demonstrated the truth of the observations that the Dippers were riding their luck with their own late winners but there are a few others hovering in our slipstream. It’s a pity we can’t keep this momentum going. Apart from the benefit of giving MØ time for a rest without missing more games, it’s annoying that we have another interlull to put up with.
@18 TTG, versus Olympiakos, Victor collected a beautiful through ball from MO8, drove forward with two defenders hanging off him, slammed a powerful right footed drive right through the keeper. Had that gone into the net* rather than hitting the post for an easy Martinelli tap-in, I think it would have hailed as Haaland-like. I’m not saying he’s there, but there’s much more to come from him. Fine margins.
* Note Ollie. Uncle Gladys shares this point of view.
You’re outnumbered TTG. Time to book that appointment with Specsavers.
😂😂
Cheers c100, that was a most enjoyable report. 😎
Many thanks C100 for your match report – it hit the spot perfectly. It was good to chalk off a victory against the Hammers after their previous 2 smash & grab visits. There were many fine performances on show but my pride of place goes to Jurrien Timber – there cannot be any attacking player who thinks they will get the better of him – he defends ferociously and his attacking skills are improving all the time. His attitude is exemplary.
Let’s hope our players return injury free from yet another interminable international break and can resume the fine form they have now attained.
As the number of teams admitted to the World Cup finals increases, the interlulls seem to multiply,. Should there not be less need for qualifying games? They are talking about going from 48 finalists next year to 64in 2030. That is one-third of FIFA’s membership. Why not go the whole hog and admit every nation to the finals and play the tournament in one big lump. It might take two months, but at least there would be no more need for interlulls to chop up the rhythm of league seasons. The reductio ad absurdum would be that one year in four becomes devoted entirely to FIFA’s ever-expanding roster of money-spinning tournaments and competitions.
I’m certainly not outnumbered among Arsenal fans that I know and I know a great many. I’ve met very few Arsenal fans who are cock a hoop at Gyokeres so far. There is a tendency among some fans when things are going well to exaggerate the praise for players who have yet to earn it and Gyokeres falls very much into that category . If the side hadn’t been winning his contribution would be viewed in a very different light . And pictures showing him being closely marked by two hulking centre backs are hardly a surprise . Welcome to the Premier League Viktor .
He has the potential, possibly , to be a great player and I will be ecstatic if he fulfils it . But he hasn’t set the heather on fire yet either in goalscoring terms or in his all round play. When you are in Specsavers next C100 get them to give you new lenses in those rose-tinted spectacles !
There are alternative views on Gyokeres
This from Peter Wood on Le Grove
‘ I’m not really sure what I can say about the Gyokeres performance, we’re in a world right now where his disciples are working really hard to convince folk that values outside goals, shots, and creating chances are really, really important. I’m just not going to be pushing agendas like that, we had that exact same thing with Gabi Jesus, and Kai Havertz. We need more than hardwork out there. Hopefully it’ll come, but anyone positioning that outing as anything other than forgettable is working the propaganda machine for attributes that we already had at a higher level with Kai. I want goals, goals, goals, goals. He has to do better, especially against teams in the bottom third of the league that fully deserve to be there.’
Thanks Countryman for a spirited review! Agree on all observations.
TTG — have we now started quoting Le bleeding grove to bolster our arguments? The world always finds newer ways to appear even more disappointing than one intuits.
Interesting to note that Giroud is now being considered a decent enough striker — even in the same class as Alan Smith — while for much of his playing time here he was busy being replaced by someone else in many Arsenal fan’s fantasies. For many he was never good enough for us. People overlooked his excellent first touch, clever combination play, good techniques and remarkable resilience (he had a very good career after leaving Arsenal) because he wasn’t a prolific enough scorer. Or a bit slow in movements.
Or, for that matter, Kai’s first couple of months with us when he looked tentative and his first touch looked to have completely deserted him?
Gyökeres came with the reputation of “give him space and a bit of time on the ball and he will score, but he is no technical genius to create chances for himself from nothing.” So naturally the opposition coaches instructed their central defenders to not allow him any space or time. That then opens up both the wings for us, and that’s where lot of our technical wizardry happens and high value chances are created. Sooner or later the opposition teams will have to remember that. You won’t win or draw against Arsenal if you put two of your defenders on their number 9.
What if, as is often typical with the central strikers, Gyökeres took the penalty against West Ham and scored (which he almost always does)? And our first goal against Olympiacos was his effort going in and not rebounding for a Gabi tap-in, and against Newcastle the very obvious penalty was given (it was his movement and it was him being fouled) and he had scored? Would the critics still be similarly skeptical?
New league, new teammates, playing in a team that plays a highly nuanced tactical football, and after the first six weeks or so of the season played a key part in helping the team to have a great start to the campaign, despite of injuries and a tough opening schedule. The whole point of bringing him was how he complements the qualities we already have in the team and how that variation was the only thing lacking from our performances. The planned solution seems to be working, even while it is still in the process of working itself out. 🙂
The GHF Predictathon leaderboard for Matchweek 7 has been posted. Some changes to the top and bottom three, plus some huge swings in position in the middle of the pack. You know where to find it…
Dr F
Le Grove editorial is one of the best in the Goonerverse even if the hipster language grates a bit! What I don’t like about Le Grove is the comments section. It’s full of trolls
The striker hierarchy was entirely mine and made upon the spur of the moment for illustrative purposes.
My overall point was that the benign view expressed by most posters on GHF was far from a universal view on Gyokeres and I illustrated it with Peter Wood’s comments . Johnny Cochrane did a ratings podcast last night on the West Ham game . He gave Timber 9. Rice 8.5, Zubimendi 7.5 ( which is too low imo) and Gyokeres 6 . So there are some who share my view that ( perhaps understandably) he is not smashing it at the moment . But I have a fervent hope that he eventually will .
Here’s what Henry Winter had to say about Gyokeres in his substack.
The £64 million ($86 million) Viktor Gyökeres is a physical, hard-working centre-forward who can score (three Premier League goals already), fight opposing centre-backs and create space and chances for others. Martín Zubimendi, the £60 million ($80 million) midfielder, brings astute positioning, ball-winning and good passing.
All three contributed to the defeat of West Ham.
And another, very balanced view from youaremyarsenal.com
“Now to Gyökeres. The striker’s drought reached six matches, which would be more worrying if the shot value had collapsed. It has not. He finished with 1.37 xG from two shots, both quality looks generated by Saka and Eze from cut-backs and square balls. The issue is timing and chemistry. Several first-half moves broke down because Gyökeres was flat to the line or arrived a step early, which either triggered an offside or narrowed the angle. The possession still benefits from his running, he drew markers away to free Saka and Trossard and he contributed one progressive pass and two box completions, but the final step is repeatable movement cues with Ødegaard/Saka when the ball enters the right half space.”
So – give him time to get used to his team mates.
Gyokeres has scored the same number of goals as Salah so far this season.
Tuchel has called up a left-back, Nico O’Reilly, to replace England’s injured right-back Reece James. Coupled with Tuchel’s remarks at the weekend about MLS needing to be playing regularly at club level to stay in the England squad, it seems that our young defender may be having next summer off unless Calafiori’s form falls off a cliff.
Slightly belated thanks for an excellent review C100.
Personally, I think Gyokeres has done ok so far if I can be so technical.
Let’s see at the end of the season for him and Zubi and the others.
I don’t think I will ever have spectacles rosy enough to believe Giroud the
equal of Alan Smith (though I know TTG was just illustrating a point).
Gary Lineker is confident Viktor Gyökeres is going to start scoring regularly for #Arsenal soon: “I also think that even though he’s not banged loads of goals in yet, but he’s got his fair share, Gyökeres, I think he gives them something different. He gives them a threat behind, which creates more space for the midfield and even the wide players, and he’s aggressive with his running and he likes to spin and he attacks the space in the box.
“The goals will come for him because with the service that I think he’ll inevitably get, particularly now Saka is back in the mix and looks like his old self after his injury. So I think it’s quite promising for Arsenal, I think we might be in this season for a really good title race.”
A fluffy but enjoyable piece on Hector Bellerin, formerly of this parish, winning the BBC Green Sports Award.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/articles/cly17g1yp09o
>>>>>>>