Arsenal lost 1-0 to Newcastle United at St. James’ Park in the Premier League. This is another damaging defeat for the Gunners and Liverpool are now seven points clear at the top of the table. Arsenal’s tactics, which we covered in an earlier article, didn’t work in this game. Without further ado, let’s discuss this loss in our Arsenal 24-25 part 7 article.
Arsenal 24-25 Part 7: The Gunners’ Defense Failed to Prevent Newcastle from Scoring
Arsenal’s defense is excellent at its best. However, the Gunners conceded an early goal against Newcastle as Isak scored. This goal ensured that Arsenal was playing from behind for almost the entire game, since Isak scored in the twelfth minute. David Raya isn’t to blame for Isak scoring that header.
Both William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes deserve criticism for allowing Isak to sneak in behind them and score. Saliba and Magalhaes are top-notch defenders, but they’ve had several poor performances lately. This has to change for Arsenal to have any chance of winning the Premier League title.
Arsenal Dominated Possession But To No Avail
The Gunners dominated possession with 64% against Newcastle. However, this didn’t matter in terms of the final result. Defensively, Arsenal’s midfield held up fairly well overall. Newcastle only had four shots on target.
Offensively, it was a different story. Without Odegaard, Arsenal’s midfield failed to create almost any chances against a stubborn Newcastle defense. This directly led to the defeat. Thankfully, Martin Odegaard seems likely to return to full fitness shortly. It is no exaggeration to say that Arsenal badly need his creativity in midfield.
Other players have attempted to provide that in his absence. Despite this, Odegaard transforms Arsenal’s midfield and provides high-quality chances throughout the game for his teammates. Arteta will have to adjust and ensure Arsenal’s midfield functions far better until Odegaard returns.
Arsenal 24-25 Part 7: Arsenal’s Attack Was Toothless
The Gunners only had a single shot on target in the entire game against Newcastle. None of Arsenal’s attacking players performed well in this game and the lack of creativity in midfield meant there were few chances to capitalize on. Arsenal’s attack must step up moving forward to end this winless streak before the season is further derailed.
Manager Rating for Arteta: 4/10 vs. Newcastle
This was one of Arsenal’s worst performances of the season, possibly the worst. The only positive was the dominance in possession, which ultimately amounted to nothing. Arteta failed to set up the team for success and the team paid for it.
Arsenal Play Inter Milan in the Champions League Next
Arsenal plays reigning Serie A champions Inter Milan in the Champions League at in Milan next. This will be another difficult match, especially for a Gunners team that is not in the best of form. Hopefully, Arsenal plays far better and manages a win, or at least a draw, in this game.
Check back soon for more Arsenal content.