After Declan Rice’s controversial sending-off early in the second half, Arsenal unfortunately dropped points at the Emirates. We review the main takeaways.
Rice red card nonsense
Writing in today’s Sunday Telegraph, former top referee Keith Hackett provided an expert analysis of the red card incident: “The decision to send off Declan Rice was absolute nonsense. All Rice did was tap the ball, and it barely went a yard. His actions had no material impact on the match and hardly slowed the game down, which was the explanation offered by the Premier League for the second yellow to be shown.”
Slings and arrows
Red cards are inevitable over the course of a season; some are justified, others, like yesterday’s, are ridiculous. The best teams must learn how to react and remain composed when reduced to 10 players. Arsenal panicked in the nine-minute period between Rice’s sending-off and Joao Pedro’s goal. Although the Gunners recovered well and created good chances towards the end of the match, they need to improve their game management under such circumstances.
Havertz is Arteta’s striker
A neutral fan might have thought Arsenal didn’t possess any center-forwards if they were watching fans’ increasingly manic transfer deadline streams on Friday. Yes, Mikel Arteta wanted Benjamin Sesko in the summer, but he is also satisfied with Kai Havertz as first-choice striker and Jesus as a backup. Havertz showed genuine class with his finish yesterday and has registered two goals and an assist in the opening three games.
Sterling waits at stage left
Raheem Sterling’s last-minute switch from Chelsea on deadline day caught the football world by surprise. Arteta has long been an admirer of Sterling, and the two became very close in their Manchester City days. As a starter, neither Gabriel Martinelli nor Leandro Trossard has nailed down the left-wing berth, creating an opportunity. Sterling is straining at the leash, having played no first-team football this season. The winger could be a serious contender to start the next Premier League game.
The NLD looks a tougher assignment
Arsenal will be seeking a third consecutive away win at Tottenham when the Premier League resumes after the (dreaded) international break next week. With Rice now on a one-match ban and Mikel Merino out injured, the manager’s selection options look more limited. We saw some interesting tactical tweaks after the red card, especially with Jurrien Timber and Oleksandr Zinchenko playing as wing-backs. Perhaps therein lies a clue for a Tottenham strategy … we’ll see.
The post Arsenal 1-1 Brighton: The Five Big Talking Points appeared first on AFTV.
https://ift.tt/yl1SU9vfrom AFTV https://ift.tt/Rhs4TWY
via IFTTT
0 Comments:
Post a Comment