{"id":1405,"date":"2020-09-24T06:49:39","date_gmt":"2020-09-24T05:49:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=1405"},"modified":"2020-09-27T19:05:07","modified_gmt":"2020-09-27T18:05:07","slug":"arsenal-move-on-in-the-useless-cup-and-leicester-dont","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=1405","title":{"rendered":"Arsenal move on in the \u201cUseless Cup\u201d – And Leicester don’t"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Eddie does the work. Copyright Tim Keeton\/EPA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Carabao Cup is a funny one. Part of us wants not to have the competition, but that wrangles with the part of us that would be glad for Arsenal to raise it as yet another trophy in the early Arteta years. The boss\u2019s opinion was revealed by the strength of the team he put out on the field of play, starting 7 who hadn\u2019t started against the Hammers in midweek. In his preview Osaka Matt was pretty darn close in a tough ask, missing only Saka for Soares on the wing and Kolasinac for Gabriel at the back. Surprisingly (to me) Leno started in goal; given that leaves us one injury away from having either Macey or new boy R\u00fanarsson in goal at least for our League visit to the Land of Scouse next week. A risk that paid off, fortunately, in Wednesday\u2019s 2-0 win for the Gunners at a rainy King Power Stadium in Leicester.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arsenal kicked off in their new bloody white kit, while the Foxes wore their home blues. With only one win from their last seven visits to Leicester the last thing Arsenal needed was an early goal by the home squad\u2026which could have come had Iheanacho\u2019s volley after a missed Holding header a minute into the game beaten Leno, rather than flying high and wide. Soon after Arsenal also came close through Nelson, who won the ball back neatly from Albrighton on the left, drove infield and unleashed a curler Ward tipped just over. Leno made his first save from Iheanacho after some lovely work by Albrighton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both sides were playing somewhat expansive football, in particular Nelson and Saka down Arsenal\u2019s left, and Arsenal\u2019s defensive shape was largely solid, we looked very calm playing out of the back. After nearly a quarter hour Elneny produced a silly foul on Gray in midfield, yielding the game\u2019s only yellow card from referee Peter Bankes (who refereed the game well, except for one glaring error).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arsenal hit their stride before the game reached its quarter point, with Saka, Nelson, and Pepe exchanging passes but not quite making the final ball count. On 20 minutes Saka beat Albrighton on the left and whipped in a low cross to which Nketiah just couldn\u2019t redirect into goal. Most of the ball was in Leicester\u2019s half, with Arsenal pressure giving Leicester no way out. Holding was just about reining in Iheanacho down his right, and put a beautiful, if slightly overhit, throughball to Nketiah that Ward gratefully collected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Referee Bankes had nothing to say but \u201cplay on\u201d in the 26th minute when Saka went down in the box tangled in Amartey\u2019s legs as he ran onto another throughball, this from Nketiah after Elneny started the move with a fine interception near the center circle. It was as clear a penalty as one could want to ask for; Saka had no reason to go down, rather than take a shot, which he tried, but the defender\u2019s legs were in the way\u2026and, in the absence of VAR Mr. Bankes wasn\u2019t having it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a free kick from Leicester led to Iheanacho offside, Leno started a wonderful move through Holding, Saka, Nketiah, and Pepe feeding Nelson, who forced another save from Ward, this time curling a shot low to the keeper\u2019s left. Arsenal were still on top until about the 38th minute, during which time Luiz needed treatment from a spare Leno elbow as the keeper collected a high ball through his defender\u2019s head. We were sitting pretty when suddenly Maddison looked up, saw Leno off his line after a number of sweet passes, and put a long chip over Arsenal\u2019s keeper. That it came back off Leno\u2019s post directly to Leno was the least part of our good fortune, it would have been a wonderful goal. Throughout the game, Maddison (in his first game back from a long injury layoff) was the most threatening of the Foxes, causing us myriad, if not insurmountable, problems all over the pitch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We went into halftime on 0-0, and Arsenal could feel pretty good about that, though we deserved to be ahead. We were on top for most of the half, under Leicester\u2019s cosh for only five or ten minutes throughout. Nelson and Saka played very well together, were consistently dangerous on the ball, and defended well. Nketieh showed his mettle, running all over the pitch and constantly menacing Ward\u2019s goal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The teams came out from having their orange slices and lucozade making no changes in personnel, and for the first 10-15 minutes Arsenal had the better of the ball, with great pressure on Leicester\u2019s back line coming to naught. Until the 57th minute, when suddenly we were up 1-0. Arsenal\u2019s throw-in from midfield broke to Fuchs, who lost the ball to Nketiah in Leicester\u2019s half. He fed Pepe down the right, and Pepe took it to the endline before having his cross blocked by Ward. The ball fell kindly to Pepe again, who put in another cross that banged off Fuchs and into the net beyond the straining efforts of Amartey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arsenal 1-0 Leicester (Fuchs, o.g., 57)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, shortly after the goal Leicester started to apply the pressure on Arsenal, to get back into the game. They held possession for more than half a dozen passes for the first time all half, though it didn\u2019t lead to much but takeaways by our well-drilled defense. I do think their pressure forced a change in structure on about 65 minutes, when Maitland-Niles dropped into right back, Arsenal forming a back four rather than playing three at the back. Leicester\u2019s Praet came on for the dangerous Maddison, whose race was run, and Willian came on for the excellent Nelson on 72 minutes. Shortly after that Holding hit a first time clearance to Nketiah, who forced Morgan to clear off his line with an excellent volley over Ward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will note I\u2019ve said nothing about Kolasinac all game. He was largely quiet, doing his job, but as is his wont gave away the ball a time or two. One sequence of play that illustrated his game came after Perez came in for Dewsbury-Hall and Ceballos came in for the efficient Willock in the 78th minute. A pair of Arsenal corners led to the ball breaking to Kolasinac at the edge of the box, only for him to give away the ball with an ineffective shot\/cross off Perez. Kola then chased down the play and intercepted Albrighton\u2019s return ball to Perez past the halfway line. The large print giveth, and the small print taketh away, it has been said. Kolasinac seems to be much better playing at speed with Saka and Nelson in front of him, and some speed of thought inside with Xhaka out\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Neither team could gather themselves for the last few minutes of the game, again exchanging half-chances, though Perez should have done better from an 81st minute freekick, with his free header going wide of Leno\u2019s half-open goal. Arsenal kept Leicester penned in their own half after a snapshot from Praet, and then the Maestro rolled his last die, swapping Bellerin for Saka in the 87th. Saka had a great game, again a candidate for MOTM, and we should all be well pleased that he is an Arsenal player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the clock ticked down to the last minute Leno bowled a ball out the right, which Nketieh ended up having to play across to the left to be recycled. Holding played a medium punt to Pepe behind Thomas again on the right; Pepe found Bellerin at speed, who beat Fuchs and Choudhury all ends up, and squared for Nketiah. He put his first touch through the falling Amartey, then beat Ward to the ball and poked it into the corner of the net. Game, set, match. A true poacher\u2019s goal after some excellent team work passing the ball around the entirety of the pitch (albeit with a couple of Leicester touches, blocks or tips).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arsenal 2-0 Leicester (Nketiah, 90)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so, on the 28th anniversary of Arsenal\u2019s signing of the inimitable Ian Wright Wright Wright his heir apparent (and MOTM) Eddie Nketiah secured Arsenal\u2019s victory with a goal the elder striker would have been proud to show in his highlight reel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arsenal\u2019s overall game was effective, organized, and composed. Young guns Nelson, Saka, Willock, Nketiah, and Maitland-Niles all had very good games (or better), our defense made few mistakes and none that cost us even a goal let alone the win. I was impressed with Elneny in midfield, he played a quiet, very effective game, always running seeking the right place to be to cycle the ball so the team could move through their paces. Leicester never got going excepting a couple of spells of pressure on our backline, and the one Maddison ball that should have been a goal. My sigh of relief at that hitting the post was probably audible from California. Congratulations to OM, as well, for nailing the \u2018Holics pound. I hear we get Liverpool next\u2026bloody useless, this cup…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Carabao Cup is a funny one. Part of us wants not to have the competition, but that wrangles with the part of us that would be glad for Arsenal to raise it as yet another trophy in the early Arteta years. The boss\u2019s opinion was revealed by the strength of the team he put […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1405"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1405"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1405\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1417,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1405\/revisions\/1417"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1405"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1405"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}