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SHEFFIELD, England — There was a time when Arsenal He struggled to justify favoritism on nights like this, but it is a measure of his transformation under Mikel Arteta that Sheffield United They were cowering in fear before kickoff. Empty seats were dotted around Bramall Lane at kick-off and many home fans presumably feared the worst after a torrid campaign to date. They were not wrong.
In 15 minutes, Martin Ødegaardto Jayden Bogle own goal, and Gabriel Martinelli had put the visitors 3-0 up and some home fans headed for the exits. More left in 25 minutes when Kai Havertz shot in a room. Declan RiceThe fifth goal in the 39th minute was the starting signal for more starts.
Blades boss Chris Wilder wrote in his program notes before this about how his team might have to “suffer without the ball” on Monday night and he was right, although not in the way he had planned.
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Sheffield United became the first top-flight team to concede five or more goals in three consecutive home games and any appreciation of Arsenal must come with the caveat that Wilder’s side are on course to become the most porous team of history. first division history. It is no exaggeration to say that the first half was an abject humiliation for a team with an overwhelming chance of relegation.
“We didn’t have an answer to anything they had,” Wilder said. So much so, in fact, that it was as if they didn’t even understand the question.
No top-flight team has ever conceded five or more goals in three consecutive home games. And the thing didn’t stop there. ben white He added a sixth with a clever left-footed shot just before the hour mark and Arsenal became the first team in the history of English football. win three consecutive away games by five or more goals. That streak includes beating the bottom player Burnley and extends a ruthlessness against lesser opposition, which is a trait Arteta has instilled in this side.
“This is the Premier League, so you know the level of the opponent,” he said. “You can’t be satisfied. When it comes internally from them and that level of demand, that’s what I see every day in training. They push each other and try to make each other better. That chemistry is really important if we want to have the opportunity to achieve what we want.
“We were very aggressive and positive and showed real quality in the final third to take the game into a great position for us. Then we kept the pace, we kept the hunger and I love that about the team.”
Remember the days when a familiar topic was whether Arsenal (among other clubs) “could do it on a rainy night in Stoke?” The suggestion was that the Gunners could often demonstrate an unusually soft touch against inferior teams on paper.
It was an affliction that seriously undermined Arsene Wenger’s final years in charge and Arsenal offered a more recent example of that fragility in this area four years ago, when Sheffield United won 1-0 in October 2019. The manager then The Gunners, Unai Emery, was sacked for a month. later.
Before Monday, Arsenal had a 14-0-1 record against newly promoted opponents in their last 15 games. Their record in the previous 15 games was 7-4-4. Arteta inherited a team capable of finding a banana peel on an arid road. They are now ruthless against weaker opposition: he has won 19 of his 25 games against newly promoted sides.
The growing gap between the Premier League and English as a foreign language championship quality, but that’s a debate for another day. In any case, Arsenal routinely struggled to translate that apparent superiority on the scoreboard in years past, not necessarily exclusively against newly promoted teams, but away from home against teams they were expected to defeat.
The end result here is another night in which the goal difference moves noticeably in their favor. With a goal difference of +45, they have the same number with which they finished last season. And significantly, it is six times better than the leaders. Liverpool and ten ahead city of manchester.
In what could prove to be a close race with fine margins, it is a notable advantage. “The fact that we score so many goals and don’t concede them is a great sign,” Arteta said. “But now it’s about winning every game and those are the demands that those two clubs [Liverpool and City] have put on top [other teams] in the last six or seven years. That is the task ahead of us.”
Arsenal were so comfortable that Bukayo Saka was withdrawn at half-time due to a minor illness, Fabio Vieira made his first appearance since November following groin surgery before Thomas Partey appeared for the first time since October after a persistent hamstring problem. And to complete a remarkable hat trick, Gabriel Jesus He also entered his first start since January 30 after a knee problem.
There was a note of caution when Martinelli limped off with the help of two team physiotherapists attempting to take weight off his right foot due to a cut, but this was nevertheless an overwhelmingly positive night for Arteta, who has repeatedly expressed the importance of being as close as possible to a fully fit team after missing out William Saliba so bad during filming last year.
“[We are trying to] “Improve each player and the mechanisms and the culture around the team,” Arteta said. “They’re doing it, but it’s still the most important part of the season ahead of us, that’s for sure.”
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