The October and November periods have seen choppy waters engulf the Emirates Stadium. Some might say that water was required after the fire that started but Arsenal have finally eradicated the flames and they are back on track.
There is no secret that the Gunners appear to have blown things this season. Yes, their fixture run has been tough but truth be told, they’ve also not helped themselves.
Mikel Arteta might like to blame some injuries, and he might also like to blame some of the officiating – we’re looking at those Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard red cards – but once all is said and done in May, they will likely look back at this period and rue what might have been.
Defeats to Newcastle and Bournemouth have been seismic and before Liverpool face Southampton on Sunday afternoon, Arsenal sit six points behind the league leaders.
It’s typical really, isn’t it? Manchester City have finally slipped away from their extraordinary standards and their biggest challengers of the last two years are still behind them.
Thankfully, the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Saturday has stopped Arsenal’s own slump and they can now finally focus on a potential winning run.
Highest pass accuracy
Saliba (98%)
Highest defensive actions
Murillo (10)
Most interceptions
Dominguez (3)
Most tackles
Partey (4)
Most key passes
Odegaard (6)
Ground duels won
Merino & Trossard (6)
Aerial duels
Awoniyi & Gabriel (3)
Highest xG
Saka (0.29)
Most successful dribbles
Odegaard (3)
There were a whole host of strong performers this weekend but let us praise Ethan Nwaneri, a teenager who’s evoking Cesc Fabregas in north London.
Ethan Nwaneri's dazzling cameo vs Forest
What a performance this was. Still, should we be surprised? 17-year-old Nwaneri has been nothing short of exceptional since being given more first-team minutes this term. In fact, he probably should have played more than he has with Martin Odegaard missing around two months of action through injury.
That said, we’ve still seen some exceptional performances from the Hale End graduate. He has scored four goals already this term, finding the net twice against Bolton and once against Preston in the Carabao Cup.
His goal against Forest yesterday, though, felt more important. It was the landmark moment of this young boy’s career so far. He has been waiting for an opportunity in the Premier League and although this outing was only fleeting, he more than made his mark.
The tone was set within moments of the teenager coming on. He danced past stocky Brazilian defender Murillo with a dazzling step-over before bending a shot just wide of the far post.
He wasn’t going to miss his next chance though. Thomas Partey took a quick free-kick and laid it into the path of Nwaneri who burst forward. His next action was to play in fellow substitute Raheem Sterling down the right channel. Sterling cut it back and the youngster was ready and waiting to fire past Mats Selz at his near post.
By scoring, he became the ninth youngest scorer in Premier League history and Arsenal’s second-youngest goalscorer behind Fabregas.
1. James Vaughan
16 years, 270 days
2. James Milner
16 years, 356 days
3. Wayne Rooney
16 years, 360 days
4. Cesc Fabregas
17 years, 113 days
5. Michael Owen
17 years, 143 days
6. Andy Turner
17 years, 166 days
7. Federico Macheda
17 years, 226 days
8. Lewis Miley
17 years, 229 days
9. Ethan Nwaneri
17 years, 247 days
10. Daniel Jebbison
17 years, 309 days
Still, he’s perhaps not the only one living up to Fabregas’ performance in N5.
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Arsenal's next Fabregas
Nwaneri deserves the plaudits, of course he does, but there were two other key performers at the Emirates on Saturday afternoon.
The first was Odegaard who reminded us all of why he’s so important to this team. He supplied six key passes – the most in the game – with one of those proving to be decisive, the action that supplied Bukayo Saka’s opener.
Unsurprisingly, it is Saka who has been Arsenal’s star boy this term and his performances are certainly evoking Fabregas’ play.
The Englishman is more explosive than the Spaniard, he’s got more pace, he’s got more swagger to his play. But, they are both creative marvels.
Although the former Barcelona man left London behind in controversial circumstances, heading back to his boyhood club, he should still be remembered as one of the finest players from the Emirates era.
He registered an impressive haul of 95 assists in 303 Arsenal games. Ten of those came during the 2008/09 league campaign and another 15 fell in the 2009/10 league season. To sum things up succinctly, he was an assist machine.
Well, as it happens, Saka has become rather good in that department too. Against Forest, he registered another assist, acting as the supply line for Thomas Partey’s goal.
242
303
63
57
58
95
Every 3.8 games
Every 5.3 games
Every 4.1 games
Every 3.1 games
Every 2 games
Every 1.99 games
That moved the 23-year-old to eight assists in 11 Premier League matches this season, and put him on 58 assists in 242 appearances. It ensured he surpassed Arteta’s tally of assists while his goal – Saka’s 51st top-flight strike – saw him move one clear of Fabregas’ own English top-flight goal tally.
It’s not just that goal-scoring nature they share but the levels of creativity we’re seeing from the England international is staggering.
No player has more assists in the Premier League this term, no player has created more key passes per 90 minutes (2.9), and only one player, Tottenham’s Dejan Kulusevski (33) has created more chances as a whole than Saka (32).
He’s a special talent and if the creativity wasn’t enough comparison, then the fact they’re two of the best young players to grace the club should be enough for you.
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