Arsenal vs Newcastle: The Gunners played out a goalless draw against Newcastle at home, with the fans not happy. The away faithful were celebrating the stalemate as a ‘major win’, while the Arsenal fans wanted more from their team. It was not a pretty game and the referee lost control on multiple occasions. VAR did not help the home side either and the fans were just happy about the fact that this was like DEJA VU for them for the “nth” time!!
This did not make the Gooners across the globe really happy. A lot of angry reactions and responses flooded Social Media as always. Not because Arsenal had been poor. But because Arsenal vs Newcastle had been spoilt once again by poor officiating and a useless VAR!!
The game did not produce any goals at all, though the home side came close on multiple occasions. However, they were not able to find the final pass and create the perfect opportunity. Newcastle also defended really well and kept the hosts at bay.
Here are five concerning things that we learnt from the Arsenal vs Newcastle goalless draw at the Emirates-
Newcastle Played Like A Burnley In Black And White
After spending all that money in the summer and getting some great reinforcements under new boss Eddie Howe, Newcastle is going places. They have been playing some really good football in recent times. This season has been the start of something special. However, in Arsenal vs Newcastle, they played liked a recently relegated side that was never really liked by any rival Premier League fans, Burnley. What a bore!!
Despite that, it showcased how solid the Newcastle defence is. They are going to be a serious threat to all top teams including the champions in the years to come!!
Arsenal vs Newcastle: Midfield Overload And 3-5-1 Formation Neutralized Arsenal
The idea of Eddie How was just simple. Overload the midfield, add more numbers and don’t let Arsenal’s midfield play. That is why the likes of Odegaard and Xhaka, who create most of the moves, were totally blocked off. Thomas Partey was often isolated from the forward play. If other teams do emulate the same, things could get tough for the League leaders!!
And to add to that, there was a serious lack of communication. This was rather visible in the second half. Once the Newcastle defence and midfield (mainly) had tired out, their job was done. The threat of closing down their opponents had infested the mind-set of the Arsenal creative players. Errors continued to happen with every attempted final ball.
Arsenal vs Newcastle Was The Worst Game Of The Season For Xhaka And Odegaard
The tactics of Eddie Howe worked perfectly in this game. He choked out the creative players of Arsenal and blocked them off from the rest of the team. This impacted the smooth transitions and the movements around the ball. This was the first time that something like this was done, in such a crucial game.
Though this killed off any serious attacking threat from Newcastle, the idea was to “not lose”!! And it indeed worked for the visitors!!
Arteta Had No Confidence In His Subs; Just Brought On Tomiyasu And Played It Safe
Now, though not all fans agreed with this point on Twitter, it seems the opinions were quite divided on this one. Some felt that Arteta didn’t want to risk losing the match. Others thought, why change your best playing XI!?
Some felt that the likes of Fabio Vieira should have been brought on. On the other hand, there was a side saying he lacks the physicality to face Newcastle. Further, Kieran Tierney was mentioned as well. A few like me also thought that Marquinhos could have been possibly one final option if nothing else was working!!
But Arteta chose against it all. Only Ben White went off in the match to be replaced by Takehiro Tomiyasu. And that was about that!!
Will These Two Points Dropped Hurt The Gunners’ Title Charge!?
Manchester City beat Chelsea 1-0 on a weekend where Arsenal vs Newcastle ended in a goalless draw. Both teams from the top 6 dropped points. This benefitted the Cityzens, who want to retain their title. The north London side were hoping that their ‘city rivals’ Chelsea, would do them a favour.
Despite the biased prayers, Pep Guardiola’s men secured a narrow win over their rivals. It was a 1-0 kind of game and the team from Manchester came out on top. They closed the gap between them and Arsenal to 5 points now. Both teams are yet to play each other in the league this season. Let’s see which way things go now!!
