Arsenal produced their best performance against the Emirates on Saturday, but Newcastle were unable to match them. Here, we break down the numbers behind their performance.e.
From the moment the first whistle blew at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, Arsenal’s relentless attack tormented the visitors.
Events in recent fixtures have meant that Newcastle United have developed into fierce rivals for Mikel Arteta’s side, and this home game has been unfairly criticized by sections of Arsenal’s fan base, and no doubt by Arteta himself. It was a perfect opportunity to take revenge on this controversy, which was considered to be a controversial issue. It happened in November when we lost 1-0 at St James’ Park.
As well as the motivation of a chance to send another warning shot to their title rivals, Arsenal also had the chance to get back at Eddie Howe’s side. Captain Martin Odegaard admitted after the win: “What happened to us last time against Newcastle gave us a little bit more energy today.”
The crowd was anticipating it, and it created a decent amount of noise before kick-off, but the noise inside the stadium was nothing compared to the show put on by the players. Big games often become spectacles because of the atmosphere, with players catering to the fans, but in this game it was the opposite. Arteta inspired his team and his players put in a performance that had the home fans on their feet.
Arsenal sent the ball forward from the kick-off, piling their players forward to join the attack. They won two corner kicks in quick succession right after the start and quickly put Newcastle on the back foot.
Two and a half minutes into the game, Kai Havertz charged from a backpass, forcing Fabian Schaal into a mistake and fouling Kieran Trippier at the corner flag. The pitch was fixed.
Newcastle tried to play their normal passing game to get up the pitch, but were repeatedly hit by the red wall. They just couldn’t get out of there. Arsenal’s press was relentless, suffocating the visitors with relentless efficiency.
Every pass backwards or laterally for Newcastle was an opportunity for Odegaard’s Arsenal to pick up a few more yards, narrow the pitch and make Newcastle’s playing area even smaller. Everyone defended on the front foot and no one had to be asked twice to jump out of position to put pressure on the ball. It was common to see centre-backs William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães stepping into midfield to intercept passes.
The hosts attacked hard in the first half, but Newcastle could not cope with it.
Arsenal amazingly dominated the first 45 minutes. They were 2-0 up inside 24 minutes and the fact that they needed a little help from Sven Botman, who took the lead with an own goal, shouldn’t have detracted from their performance.
Arsenal finished the game having won the ball in the attacking third of the pitch 14 times (the most in a game this season), 11 of which came in that sensational first half. No team has won more possession in the final third in the first period of a Premier League match this season. That total equals two teams from last month’s games: Tottenham vs. Brighton and West Ham vs. Nottingham Forest.
At half-time, Arsenal had 11 shots on target, an expected goals average of 1.73. Newcastle managed just one touch inside Arsenal’s box and failed to take a single shot. It was the first time in about 10 years that there were no shots taken in the first half of a Premier League match (March 2014 vs. Southampton).
Spurs scored the winning goal in stoppage time to beat Brighton, and while West Ham lost 2-0, Arsenal came back to take the lead. Newcastle gained momentum into the game and with their direct play up the pitch managed to get in behind Arsenal’s last line on the odd occasion, but Arsenal scored two more goals and put the game out of reach for their opponents. brought in.
Two of those goals came from set pieces, taking their total for the season to 19 (18 excluding own goals), more than any other English first team. He also leads the league in headed goals with 13.
By the time Newcastle woke up, it was already too late. In the end they had three shots, which also beat Arsenal’s goal, with Joe Willock getting a good header, but it was all too little, too late. Arsenal was not in sight.
Arteta’s side have been in great form of late, with this defeat taking their tally to 25 goals in their last six games. They will be hoping that last week’s Champions League loss to Porto can be erased from being as much of a failure as this display suggests. If Emirates performs like this one again, this deficit will surely be overturned.
The previous six wins have been impressive in their own way, but Newcastle’s performance may have been the best of them all.
Liverpool’s win was even more important as it was against their direct title rivals, but there were moments when Arsenal looked set to throw it away, before scoring an equalizer with few chances. I planned to forgive him.
They then beat Crystal Palace, West Ham and Burnley, scoring more points, but they were playing against opponents who were in poor form. They didn’t perform at their best in the 2-1 win against Nottingham Forest.
Arsenal proved here, perhaps more than ever under Arteta, that they really are mean. Although they may still be third favorites for the title, this was an equally ominous warning for their title rivals.
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