Arsenal defeated AFC Bournemouth 3-0 at the Emirates Stadium and now have 83 points with two matches remaining. This keeps Arsenal’s dream of winning the Premier League alive. The Gunners have now won four consecutive Premier League games. Let’s dive deeper into this vital win.
Arsenal 2024 Season Part 44: The Defense Was Quite Good Overall Aside from One Mistake from Raya
The Gunners kept a clean sheet against Bournemouth and only allowed the Cherries to get two shots on target in the entire match. Tomiyasu started at left-back once again and did well against Bournemouth, limiting Semenyo’s impact on the game. Semenyo has 10 goal contributions in 23 Premier League games this season, so he is certainly a threat.
Ben White continued his good run of form with another solid performance. White got forward a bit more in this game and helped Saka attack the left side of Bournemouth’s defense. White remains a crucial, if somewhat underrated, part of this Arsenal team.
Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba played well, prevented the likes of Semenyo, Solanke, and Kluivert from doing much of anything. Gabriel had an excellent goal unfortunately disallowed for offside. Still, he is one half of the best center-back partnership in the Premier League.
Saliba defended expertly and showed his skill on the ball a few times. His confidence in possession is remarkable for a defender. David Raya made two saves and played well overall, but did make one big mistake that could have cost Arsenal. Raya’s punch in the second half wasn’t a great one and Bournemouth took advantage, scoring a goal that was fortunately disallowed for a foul against Raya.
Raya needs to cut out these mistakes to do his part in ensuring Arsenal doesn’t drop points in the next two games. On a more positive note, Raya won the 2023-24 Premier League Golden Glove award with 16 clean sheets and counting. This is a well-deserved honor for a player who is still sometimes underappreciated by Arsenal fans.
The Gunners Controlled Possession and Dominated the Midfield
The midfield trio of Partey-Odegaard-Rice started again for Arsenal, helping the Gunners enjoy 55.3% possession in this game. Arsenal was in control for essentially the entire match thanks to this midfield trio. Martin Odegaard didn’t register a goal or an assist, but he played well once more and contributed to several good chances from Arsenal. Odegaard could have scored but last-ditch defending from Bournemouth prevented that.
Thomas Partey protected Arsenal’s defense expertly as per usual and even had a decent goal-scoring opportunity, but sadly, he didn’t convert it. Partey being fit for the run-in is key for Arsenal and he showed his class once again against Bournemouth.
Declan Rice continues to make an incredibly strong case to be Arsenal’s player of the season. Rice joined in on the attack on several occasions and provided a clever assist to Trossard, flicking the ball to the Belgian before Trossard scored Arsenal’s second goal. Rice also scored Arsenal’s third goal of the game. He ran forward from midfield and received Gabriel Jesus’s pass well before skillfully scoring from a difficult angle.
Rice, despite his usual description as a defensive midfielder, now has 15 goal contributions for Arsenal this season. He seems to only have improved under Arteta’s tutelage. That quality is why many Arsenal fans have purchased Rice’s jersey this season. Rice is the Man of the Match in this game against Bournemouth.
Arsenal’s Attack Could Have Been More Clinical But Still Played Pretty Well
The Gunners had nine shots on target and scored three goals against Bournemouth. Bukayo Saka caused Bournemouth problems and converted Arsenal’s first-half penalty to put the Gunners ahead at halftime. Saka now has 24 goal contributions in the Premier League this season and 34 goal contributions in all competitions this season. Saka continues to be a world-class star player for the Gunners.
Leandro Trossard scored Arsenal’s second goal after a clever assist from Declan Rice. Trossard now has 12 goal contributions in 16 Premier League appearances so far this season. His goal against Bournemouth was an important one as the Cherries were starting to gain some momentum in the game. Trossard’s goal shut that down in an instant.
Kai Havertz had another solid performance and won Arsenal’s penalty after being fouled in the box by Mark Travers. Havertz may have gone down a bit easily, but it was still a foul. Havertz winning that penalty helped Arsenal take a deserved lead just before halftime and set them on their way to victory.
Gabriel Jesus deserves praise, too. Jesus replaced Saka in the second half and did well to provide the assist to Declan Rice for Arsenal’s third goal. Jesus’s role in the team moving forward is a bit unclear, but he made a difference against Bournemouth this time out.
Arsenal 2024 Season Part 44: 9/10 Manager Rating for Arteta
Arsenal played well overall against Bournemouth, scoring three goals and keeping a clean sheet. The Gunners could have been a bit more clinical and Raya’s mistake is somewhat concerning, given that he also made a significant mistake against Tottenham. However, Arteta set up the team well and made impactful substitutions, particularly bringing on Gabriel Jesus in the second half.
The Gunners Travel to Old Trafford Next
Arsenal next travels to Old Trafford to play Manchester United in the Gunners’ penultimate Premier League game of the season. Naturally, this is another must-win game for Arsenal. Arsenal hasn’t won too often at Old Trafford in recent years, but this current Arsenal team is far superior to the current Manchester United team. Hopefully, Arsenal will win at Old Trafford and keep their title hopes alive.
Check back next week for more Arsenal content.