Forget the ‘boring’ talk – Arsenal’s dominance isn’t luck, it’s pure quality
Let’s put the teasing aside and get straight to it, Arsenal are a brilliant football team, aren’t they? In the Champions League, Mikel Arteta’s side made light work of Atletico Madrid, which is no small feat.
So, why can’t this team go all the way? Sure, they haven’t lifted a trophy in five years, so expecting two, three, or even four in a single season might sound wild. But honestly, they look absolutely outstanding right now.
Call them dull. Call them efficient. Call them whatever you like. They’re not just nothing but just good.
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Everyone knows that champions league nights always carry a different kind of energy, but something more special is the Arsenal team’s 4-0 victory over Atletico on Tuesday night demonstrated everything that they are.
The reason they scored from two set pieces was due of the instinctive center-forward play of Viktor Gyokeres in one, Gabriel Magalhaes’ goal-scoring ability and aerial dominance in the other, and Declan Rice’s exceptional delivery in both.
The main reason Arsenal is able to make set-piece goals appear fashionable is because of Rice’s flawless, David Beckham-like delivery.
After a lacklustre first half, Gabriel’s header on minute 57 to open the game was just incredible. As if he had scored it himself, Rice celebrated the goal, knowing it too.
Although it wasn’t as visually appealing, Gyokeres’ second set-piece goal was what makes it more interesting as he made it two goals for the evening.
It demonstrated the Swede’s amazing positioning and strength as he held off the defender and used his thigh to guide the ball in from a yard out.
Between those two goals, impressive youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly led a quick counterattack that saw Gabriel Martinelli score, then Gyokeres scored his first goal in eight thanks to a huge deflection.
Under pressure to find the net, Gyokeres, however, didn’t care how it entered; what mattered was that it did.
Arsenal’s transitional threat was just as evident as the set-piece threat. Starting in his own half, Lewis-Skelly’s dribble forced four Atletico players to leave the game.
The timing of the pass was flawless, as Jan Oblak was unable to stop Martinelli’s curled finish. An extremely lofty objective. The second half for Arsenal was nonstop.
Their attacks were vicious, but they were also infamously frugal in the rear. The 77th minute was the only time Atletico managed to get a shot on goal.
Nevertheless, Julian Alvarez’s smashing of the bar from outside the box was undoubtedly a turning point. If it had been a few inches lower, the game might have turned out very differently.
That long-range attempt, however, was ultimately the closest Atletico came to scoring at the Emirates. When it comes to attacking or defending, this Arsenal squad is formidable.
They are the greatest team in England, if not all of Europe, when combined. There are now only two potential exceptions: Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich.
The quality of each player on the pitch is now of the highest calibre. Each and every starter merits special recognition for their efforts against Atletico and for their season-long output.
In addition to being a superb one-on-one defender, if you watch the match closely, you can see Jurrien Timber is absurdly cool and collected when playing.
For any striker, Gabriel and William Saliba are a dangerous prospect. Additionally, having Lewis-Skelly and Riccardo Calafiori at left-back gives Arteta incredible depth.
With Trent Alexander-Arnold and Kevin De Bruyne out of the Premier League, Rice may have the greatest delivery in the league, despite the fact that he is by no means a set-piece merchant.
Then there’s Martin Zubimendi. Wow, just wow because he really burst my brain tonight and you can just feel there’s something special about him. He’s a really good player. I think he should not be neglected, he worth being mentioned.
In the middle of the park, where he keeps things moving and makes vital tackles and interceptions, he is just as talented offensively and defensively as Arsenal as a team.
Although Zubimendi feels more like a “final piece of the jigsaw” addition than Gyokeres, Arsenal’s main problem over the past two seasons has been the absence of an all-star center-forward. £60 million already seems like a good deal.
We don’t need to argue about this anymore because it’s just so simple right mow, Arsenal is a fantastic football team. You cannot deny it, whether you love them or hate them.
Obviously, they won’t win the quadruple, so we’re not going to go all out and proclaim that. However, you must admit that they appear to be reasonably priced for each competition they are participating in this season.
And don’t forgot, their squad is so deep for once that it would take a historic injury crisis to defeat them.
The team is full with talented players, and Arteta has the luxury of starting Mikel Merino, Christian Norgaard, Ethan Nwaneri, Benjamin White, and Cristhian Mosquera off the bench.
They aren’t letting up in the absence of captain and midfield star Martin Odegaard. Credit to Arteta for this great work, he deserves more praise than he get.
That there wasn’t a more appealing or insightful story for you people is regrettable. Sometimes it’s sufficient to take a step back and acknowledge that a team strives for the highest level of performance.
