Arsenal began the defence of their Premier League title in convincing fashion with a comfortable 3-0 victory over newly-promoted Coventry City at the Emirates Stadium.
Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka put the Gunners firmly in control during the opening 23 minutes before Martin Odegaard added a third shortly after the restart. It was an impressive opening-night performance from Mikel Arteta’s side, with summer signing Christos Tzolis once again catching the eye.
Tzolis shines as Arsenal take control
Arsenal started brightly in front of a jubilant Emirates crowd and Tzolis was at the heart of much of their best attacking play.
The Greek international went close himself after cutting inside from the left before another effort was cleared off the line by Bobby Thomas.
The breakthrough arrived after 14 minutes, and Tzolis was again involved. He won possession from Milan van Ewijk before finding Riccardo Calafiori, whose pass reached Havertz. The German produced a composed first-time finish into the bottom corner to make it 1-0.
Arsenal doubled their advantage nine minutes later.
Declan Rice helped launch the attack from inside his own half before Tzolis received the ball on the left. His low delivery was pushed back into the danger area by Coventry goalkeeper Carl Rushworth, leaving Saka with a simple finish from close range.
Coventry struggled to threaten David Raya at the other end, while Arsenal went into the interval with complete control of the contest.
Odegaard wraps up an emphatic opening win
Any hopes Coventry had of finding a way back into the game disappeared just three minutes after the restart.
Saka and Ben White combined down the right before White reached the byline and pulled the ball back towards Odegaard. The Arsenal captain didn’t make the cleanest contact, but the ball spun beyond Rushworth to put the Gunners 3-0 ahead.
Tzolis continued searching for a goal on his full Emirates debut and forced Rushworth into a good save with a low effort from distance before departing to a warm reception.
With the result secure, Arteta was able to introduce Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino as Arsenal comfortably managed the closing stages.
It was ultimately a straightforward night for the champions and a perfect start to their title defence. Five consecutive Premier League seasons have now begun with an Arsenal victory, and once again they start the campaign sitting at the top of the table.
Arsenal now have a 10-day break before travelling to Aston Villa on August 31.
What did you make of Arsenal’s opening performance, Gooners? And just how impressive has Christos Tzolis looked in his first two competitive appearances? Let us know in the comments.
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Who are these amazing new signings Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard?
Is Martin the one who has just rowed across the Atlantic to play for us?
Captain Odegaard is like a brand new signing
What’s the Greek word for bargain!
They never decided on one. They were always too busy haggling over it.
His decision-making ability is top-notch, but we still need a pacier and trickier inverted LW who’s good in 1-vs-1 situations to open up ultra-defensive teams
If Arsenal sell Martinelli, they’d likely have to pay more than £100m for a new left-wing attacker. I hope it won’t be the slow Alvarez or the overhyped Barcola who couldn’t even play ahead Kvaratskhelia/ Doue down PSG’s left wing
We should go for Yildiz
The left wing would be in absolutely safe hands with him and Tzolis
I’d prefer Mitoma as a short-term solution who’s obviously a better dribbler than Yildiz, much cheaper, way more experienced and EPL proven
@Gai I like Mitoma but he is too injury prone and he doesn’t invert much. So may be Rafael Leao who can also play 10. Not many proven better winger than Matinelli are available for sale.
Yes Mitoma is injury prone, but Leao is declining, would likely cost more than £70m and might not be better than Martinelli
“If Arsenal sell Martinelli, they’d likely have to pay more than £100m for a new left-wing attacker”
Hopefully not. There are other good alternatives for half the money, such as Iliman Ndiaye. It’s crazy how fans and clubs agree to pay sky-high prices for the star players.
I think we’ll need a pacier LW instead the slow Ndiaye
Tzolis
It is true, the young Greek is looking like a bargain .
What a great start for the season. I do not even know where to start, the straightforward style, our midfiled creativeness, tearing their defense apart, left side sharpness, and this is not even our best defense yet? Keep this going boys, make it a reliable trajectory and the rest of the league will truly fear us.
Good game and slowly Odegaard is coming to his best form. The rest of the league be warned! And it’s only Coventry if I may add. North London take a bow. Tzolis was just electric down the left. Saka on the score sheet bodes well.
I was a bit unhappy with the lads who came on as substitutes; they weren’t able to score a goal,still being the 2nd best which isn’t good.
We can’t please everyone🤷
Bring Lazy Tuna on next time to get a better tune out of them.
In the first game you are just tuna-ing up. 😃
Honestly, I was mildly disappointed in that as well. Having a quality squad is obviously very important when it comes to being able to adequately replace a missing starter but they also have to be ready and able to make the best impact later in the game. In this instance, 3-0 was a good result and satisfying on many levels but it could, and dare I say should, have been better given Coventry’s poor organization and overall play. These are the kind of games where you need to run up the goal differential if at all possible. You can bet that City130 or any other real competitor would/will do so later in the season when they play Coventry at their home.
Let’s keep in mind the 4 would be starters in Timber, Konsa, Guimaraes and Saliba were unavailable. The depth is immense. If Alvarez is added on
Got to use that depth by rotating. No more playing through pain or dog tired trying to be at best after 60 games.
When Chelsea and Man City won big stuff, they were rotating.
The difference between PSG and us in the final may have been they were less tired than us.
I got this feeling that MA and rotation, like the great managers have done, just don’t go together, and he won’t do it.
Yeah MG rotating to go upwards and onwards. COYG
Excellent result! I feel like this team can achieve a lot provided we avoid major injuries. Now it’s time we check out our rivals, everyone has strengthened well.
A beautiful first half of flowing attacking football. Ødegaard man of the match was well deserved!
Arsenal had 8 corners but never threatening unlike last term. Is it as the result of the newly introduced rules on corners or no urgency to score via headers?
amba. You can’t have missed our recent short corner routine, which led to goal attempts by Tzolis, whose shot was on target but blocked, and Rice, who put his effort wide.
Okay Jax change of tactics? Thanks I didnt notice that. Good! Would have been more convincing had it bore goals. Hope Jover shows us the best! We’ve become tbh predictable in that front
No Martinelli and Jesus on the bench means close to leaving? Even unused sub Gyokeres in relation to rumours with Alvarez may signal something
Having missed out on Vinni, it has become abundantly clear , Arsenal recruitment team is shifting its entire weight entirely toward securing an elite forward before deadline day.
To accommodate this move, several senior and youth outgoing will gain traction, it’s my opinion of course
Mine as well Gunsmoke. Smells Alvarez is arriving. The 3rd Argie at Arsenal
I had known Coventry City since a Zimbabwean Peter Ndlovu and Gordon Strachan by their sky blue shirt. Yesterday they looked like Sheffield Wednesday with the stripes.
Fantastic result
Great way to start the season
Especially considering that Gyokeres, EZE, Merino, Zubimendi were on the bench. Timber and Saliba (injured).
I checked the predictions and around 18 people got the 3-0 score correct lol
It’s great to see all the players who only played bit part last season, fit to join in again. Havertz, Odegaard and Merino are very talented in their own ways. Having a huge victory parade, it’s hard to explain how our season was actually wrecked by having huge experienced player’s unavailable, off form, playing through pain.
Before we make a team sport all about the players, what about the drills?
On another JA page the other day I was discussing with Bergkampfwagen how this Arsenals teams greatest strength is how quickly they get into the mid low block. We don’t man mark. The second we lose possession, the player nearest to opponent ball carrier, press to disrupt them. But importantly everyone else is ignoring the game and not reacting to the game – that can result in chasing shadows type defending – instead out of possession the transition is all our players sprint back into pre-assigned zonal slots. As a fan, if we ignore the actual game or ball watching just focussing on our Arsenal doing this fast transition, all our players sprinting back into pre-assigned zonal slot for mid low block, it’s beautiful, it’s amazing to focus on. You can measure the transition in micro seconds. It’s a work of art. It should be in the Tate.
Good win to start. No Martinelli or Jesus on the bench. No show from Gyokores. Massive week this week, in the transfer market. We are not getting Alvarez, he doesn’t want to come. Osimhen, is only happening if he takes a pay cut, if he does, its because he wants to come. We need to shift out 4 to 5 players and get in 2 to 3. Big week.
IMO we can defend this title without another signing this week.
It’s all about the drills. Our strength is the team game.
We need a world class player up top. We need the X factor, the bums off your seats player.
We don’t. We actually got more than enough to defend this title.
We don’t need anymore signings at all. We have plenty of depth, flair, strong players in every position.
The league isn’t the problem?
Or shouldn’t be.
Reggie, if what Wrighty said last night is true that Mikel hasn’t spoken to Martinelli, then I think he’s bang out of order. If Mikel wants him gone then he should at least tell him that he doesn’t feature in his plans for this season.
I am sure, there has been conversations within the club. Martinelli has been courted by Galatasaray. He wouldn’t be just left out and nothing said.
A nice solid start to the season. The players looked nice and sharp, Tzolis looked dangerous every time he got the ball. And he’s always positive.
Overall a good team performance. But lets not get to carried away it’s a long season, and with all due respect to Coventry. It was a nice start to have to the season.
Bigger tests to come, then we’ll see if we can deal with the harder teams in the same manner. COME ON YOU GUNNERS.👍
It took Coventry 69 minutes to make their first TACKLE? Yes, I said TACKLE. They were awful. It is not a negative but a reality, lets not get too carried away by this results. Coventry were like rabbits in headlights and starstruck. They will be relegated.
Again, too early to say but preseason (which is no real pointer) and Coventry, Tsolis seems to be involved in goal scoring situations far more than any other player. Early days but a decent impression made all ready.
Please can somebody tell me why eze played off his position last night? he was brought on for impressive tzolis but he was staying at the 9role and havertz has to be coming to the left wing for the ball sometimes while eze stupidly remain upfront.
And rendering our left flank attack useless. Madueke wasn’t good at the right either but atleast he stayed in his position.😀
Arteta needs to get a trickier LW asap, also he should start playing downman and nwaneri at the RW if madueke won’t step up
Calling Eze stupid? We don’t know what manager instructions he was given. I thought he looked quite bright in his cameo.
Noni best moment in World Cup came on left crossing from by line. Maybe like leaving Skelly rotting in stiffs before trying him in midfield, maybe like signing Havertz to play midfield, maybe like playing Rice out of his best position for two years, maybe people have got Noni wrong too and he will actually deliver his best on left wing.
The more I see Eze, the more I think, he isn’t up to it. Needs to improve in spades yet.
He has always looked like a fish out of water in this offence. His performances and display of his incredible skills is like night and day between us and when he was at CP. I desperately wanted him in the club years before he was brought in but I have been forced to realize that it may have been a poor decision to do so.
Agree but 🤞that changes.
Did we play Sheffield Wednesday or Coventry? Since the Zimbabwean Peter Ndlovu and Gordon Strachan I know Coventry by their sky blue shirts not with stripes.
I think Arteta has a point w his argument of more subs place on the bench, i checked and saw that LaLiga and Serie A allows something close to 15
Don’t agree with overloading the subs. I don’t really see the point. Three should cover for any injuries or tactical changes. I’m ok with five because it’s a sign of the times etc., but more than that and you may as well put on a defensive and attacking team just like in American football. Yuck! Wouldn’t that be ridiculous.
@Joe Schettino
“subs place on the bench” 11 + ?(being lobbied for) vs 11 + 9(currently allowed)
not the in game substitution(5) itself
Regarding Eze, as someone has pointed out he currently looks like a fish out of water, or someone who simply can’t adapt or doesn’t belong in Arteta’s system. Considering how harsh most fans have been to Martinelli who contributes much more when on the field Eze has been getting an easy ride. Currently he is a luxury we can afford, someone who the time can carry for another season, waiting for him to step up when it counts but the big question is, will he? The Coventry match was made for him, Arsenal were cruising, there was no pressure, he should have done his utmost to have gotten in the game and then all we saw was that skewed, nothing of a free kick.
So far not so good with Eze but am hoping he clicks this season. It’s his languid style perhaps that sets me at odds with him up till now. He isn’t starting so maybe Arteta isn’t totally convinced either.
It’s hard for any player though when not regular starter, and asked to do different jobs on different parts of the field.
We have definitely got a talented player there in Eze, but what? We should think of his best moments for us. He debuted from bench at Anfield playing pukka left wing, and looked good. He mashed spuds twice playing as conventional 10? His long ball assist to Nelli home to Man City was – as it turned out – a title winning moment.
I’m happy having Eze as a squad depth player. I think maybe we are expecting too much, and overlooking that he is actually delivering from squad depth role?
I expect next week to be the hottest of the season in terms of Arsenal. The transfer heat map is showing me that. Alvarez IN; Jesus, Gyokeres and Martinelli OUT.
Arteta ruthlessly said on Thursday he has to make some footballing decisions however brutal they may appear
I’m in total support with arteta and i hope for the love of football and brutality they’ll add an elite left winger to yo transfer in
Villa are really fired up,
As they usually are against Arsenal
Let’s see how long that goes