What an exciting weekend of Barclays football we’ve just experienced, with fun and thrills galore – especially for Arsenal supporters.
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We kicked off the weekend festivities with a Saturday evening match against Bournemouth. Last season’s encounters with Bournemouth were filled with strange moments.
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At the Emirates, their winning goal was permitted to stand despite Evanilson clearly handling the ball before scoring. And who could forget when we visited Bournemouth, and VAR sent off William Saliba for an incident that took place well beyond the halfway line? The subsequent commentary attempting to justify the decision was equally memorable.
So, as Gabriel passed the ball directly to Evanilson at the edge of our box with David Raya out of position, it was understandable to think, “Oh no, not again.”
Especially with Don Goodman praising Bournemouth’s start. Come on, it had only been two minutes!
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This moment might have echoed the thoughts of many watching who were waiting for something to go wrong.
What’s remarkable about Gabriel, though, is his ability to bounce back from defensive mistakes by contributing offensively. Just as I was commenting on this to Jo, he scored a wonderful equalizer following excellent footwork from Noni Madueke.
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After the half-time break, Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard took control of the match. Odegaard seized on a loose ball from Gyokeres’ challenge, setting up Rice to curl a stunning finish from the edge of the box. Then, Odegaard assisted Bukayo Saka, who had come on from the bench, sending him racing down the right.
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As Saka approached the byline and pulled the goalkeeper out, he cut the ball back for an unmarked Rice to net his second goal of the night, marking his first Premier League brace.
Game over? Not quite – this is Arsenal, after all.
Some loose defending allowed Bournemouth to score a stunning goal, setting up a tense last 20 minutes. However, Bournemouth never really threatened to find an equalizer, as demonstrated by one player who tried to win a penalty by throwing his head at Gabriel’s elbow. Even Chris Kavanaugh was unconvinced by that one.
Perhaps that incident prompted Kavanaugh to blow the final whistle just as Bournemouth was about to launch a last-ditch effort.
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With our forwards switched up, we secured three points, foiling Manchester City’s attempt to leave Antoine Semenyo stranded on the south coast.
Overall, a successful evening.
And it got even better. Some Liverpool fans are still holding onto delusions of defending their Premier League title. But let me break it to you – it’s not happening. Cody Gakpo scored a 94th-minute winner against Fulham, only for Harrison Reed to score a dazzling equalizer just three minutes later.
With Liverpool sitting on 34 points from 20 games, they might still have a mathematical chance, but their reality looks grim.
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I expect us to clarify Liverpool’s position in the standings when we face them on Thursday night.
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In further positive news, Chelsea, currently without a manager, managed to hold Manchester City to a 1-1 draw thanks to a 94th-minute goal from Enzo Fernandez. While I’ve never been a fan of Fernandez and still have my reservations, I can’t deny that his goal contributed to our cause, even if it seemed he tried a bit too hard to miss.
After a tense spell where City was closely chasing us, in just two matches over three days, we’ve seen our two-point lead stretch to six.
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Finally, some much-deserved breathing room after a strong performance during the busy Christmas fixture period.
To top off the weekend, we learned that Manchester United has decided that Ruben Amorim is not their go-to choice to bring back the glory days at Old Trafford. This prompted some odd comments from Rio Ferdinand, who suggested he’d be consulted on the next appointment, right after Sir Alex Ferguson, of course. He even mentioned that Mikel Arteta – yes, the same Mikel Arteta who is leading Arsenal towards a promising future – would seriously consider an offer from United.
Honestly, Rio? Really? WHY?
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This take was so bizarre it almost made me forget there are still people suggesting that Unai Emery is a better manager than Arteta, the man who succeeded him at the Emirates.
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He certainly didn’t appear to be the better choice last week, did he?
You didn’t think I would miss mentioning Arsenal’s brilliant performance, did you? Big matches this season seem to follow a similar script, with the team spending the opening segments assessing the challenge before unleashing their potential in the second half. Bayern, Atletico, and now Villa have all fallen in similar fashion, offering something to keep in mind for Thursday’s match should it feel tense early on.
This time, Emi Martinez’s inability to focus on the play against the towering Brazilian resulted in a crucial goal for Gabriel, opening the floodgates.
By the time three clinical finishes from Zubimendi, Trossard, and a Christmas miracle from Gabriel Jesus hit the net, Unai had had enough. In a dramatic exit that Noni Madueke would have admired, he dashed down the tunnel, leaving Mikel looking bewildered, searching for him for a post-match handshake.
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Emery clearly hasn’t heard of the concept of a camera.
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Clearly, there are many prying eyes at the Emirates, and he was quickly found out. Both coaches downplayed the incident in the aftermath, but we all know the narrative would have unfolded differently if Arteta had done the same to Emery.
Arteta’s poise in accepting a last-minute defeat graciously just weeks before stands in stark contrast to the man who evidently was never up to the task at Arsenal.