Arsenal drew 2-2 with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. This is a bad result and it comes due to a mostly poor performance from the Gunners. Arsenal should have played much better and won this match. Let’s dive into the details.
Arsenal 23-24 Match 12: Arsenal Didn’t Defend Nearly Well Enough
The Gunners’ defense is known to be quite good away from home in the Premier League. You wouldn’t know that if you watched Arsenal defend for most of this match, though. David Raya had another shaky performance in the Arsenal goal. Arteta should drop him immediately and bring Ramsdale back in as the Gunners’ starting goalkeeper.
It is frustrating to see the Arsenal defense play so poorly after playing so well against Manchester City. Zinchenko deserves plenty of criticism. He provides quite a bit for Arsenal offensively, but he gets caught out defensively quite badly sometimes. That is what happened against Chelsea.
Expecting a far better performance from the Arsenal defense in the next match is reasonable. However, Raya should not start that game. That shouldn’t even be much of a debate at this point.
Arsenal’s Midfield Led by Rice Was Decent
The Gunners’ midfield deserves the least amount of criticism out of any one part of the Arsenal team. Arsenal had 56% possession against Chelsea and overall, the midfield played decently. Jorginho deserves recognition for his good performance and Declan Rice continues to impress. Rice inspired Arsenal’s comeback against Chelsea with an excellent performance capped off by a cleverly-taken goal.
However, Martin Odegaard didn’t play well. He is not having his best season in general so far. It is likely that he will return to form soon, but this was a forgettable match for Odegaard.
The Gunners’ Attack Didn’t Get Enough Shots on Target
When one looks at Arsenal having 13 shots in this game, it doesn’t look too bad. However, the Gunners only got three shots on target in the whole game. Martinelli and Jesus were all right, while Saka did fairly well.
Leandro Trossard stepped up off the bench to help Arsenal salvage a point thanks to his second-half goal. Trossard is a major asset for the Gunners and proved his worth yet again. Trossard is likely to feature prominently, especially so until Martinelli returns to full fitness.
Arsenal 23-24 Match 12: 6.5/10 Manager Rating for Arteta
Arteta deserves plenty of criticism, too. His tactics largely didn’t work for most of the match and Arsenal had a horrific first half. Starting Raya and Zinchenko also backfired. Arteta’s substitutions are what saves him from a lower manager rating, since Trossard helped Arsenal rescue a draw. Still, Arteta receives a 6.5/10 manager rating for this match.
The Gunners Play Sevilla in the Champions League Next
Arsenal’s next match is a significant one, as they travel to Spain to play Sevilla in the Champions League. Arsenal needs to win this game after losing to Lens in the Champions League last time out. It is a good bet that Arsenal performs far better and wins this time after such a poor showing against Chelsea.
Check back next week for more Arsenal content.