Another win and Arsenal keep on getting better under Mikel Arteta.
Not everything was positive despite Arsenal beating Everton 3-2 at the Emirates yesterday, there was the odd negative that Mikel Arteta will no doubt be aware of but a win is a win and I will leave it for others to pick holes in the win.
There was in fact a ton of positives that one could take from the game, I have, however, kept this list to five as I feel that is enough to discuss right now.
Bernd Leno is one of the best keepers in England
On form, I would struggle to name a better keeper right now and that includes Allison at Liverpool and Ederson at Man City. I am not saying Leno is actually better than those two but based on form right now, I would prefer him between the sticks than those two.
Shkodran Mustafi is actually a very good defender
He is playing out of skin right now and his comeback has been remarkable. He has gone from a player that was told to find a new club to almost an automatic starter. It is deserved, he has earned his resurgence and he proved that yet again yesterday.
Bukayo Saka
You just cannot argue with the stats, he is an assist king and has now proven that age is just a number. If he carries on as he id doing then he needs to be offered a new contract and an England call-up. He is showing at the top level that he is good enough.
Mikel Arteta proves yet again how good a manager he is
Some eyebrows were raised before kick-off when Eddie Nketiah started ahead of Alexandre Lacazette, Sead Kolasinac ahead of Saka and that Gabriel Martinelli was not even on the bench. Well, yet again, the result totally vindicated the manager. Arteta is not afraid to make the big decisions, that is now clear as day.
Nicolas Pepe
He may not have been a man of the match but he is clearly adapting to the English game and when you see three Everton players around him you know the fear he is starting to strike into the opposition. He is starting to prove his worth, he is not there yet but the trajectory is upwards.
So happy for pepe.He got criticized so much and now he is proving his doubters wrong.80%adaptation complete.
Saka has to improve in some areas if he is to keep playing LB but he is a world class player in the making.
OT
Cmon WHU
The truly remarkable thing I think MA has been able to achieve, is to field every player in a position that plays to their strengths. You see it all over the pitch, Pepe stays wide while Auba drifts in when Arsenal are in posession and Ozil exploits the space between midfield and attack. The players have to work harder of course, because they all have to track back regardless of their position in MA’s new system but from what I’ve seen the players are convinced!
Auba was a beast on both ends of the pitch, and this is someone who we know for sure is considering whether to stay or leave. I can only imagine how many of our players have found Arteta’s guidance to be a game changer. They’re obviously listening and that is something we can all be positive about! We’re coming for that UCL spot, and the EL too! COYG
Great article, Admin!
Admin martin
Good read and I enjoyed the article but not to be a doom and gloom.merchant but for all the positives the jury is still out on some
Bernd Leno
Has got better as the season has progressed but still has a long way to go in my opinion to be rated as a great keeper.
Distribution is still sketchy and has a mistake in him every now and then.
Defence has got a bit tighter and isn’t called upon as much but when needed he has done a sterling job for us.
Shkodran Mustafi
Has come on leaps and bounds since MA has taken over but is a time bomb waiting to go off.
Will do a job for us this season but we really need an upgrade if we need to start challenging for top honours. Good sub to bring on but not a starter.
Bukayo Saka
What joy he has brought us and a fresh of breath air.
He gets us off our seats.
He looked a bit leggy late on 2nd half.
Nicolas Pepe
So much is expected of this guy due to the price tag.
Done ok but not enough to sometimes to force defender to stand off and fear him.
Next season I beleive he will be a beast for us and all defenders will fesr him. Still finding his feet in the prem
Mikel Arteta
Was a doubter when he was first appointed but boy he has made me eat my doubts
Giving me hope and a will to actually watch us again.
Dreaded the next game and now i cant wait for the next one..
He is getting a tune out of mediocre players and making us a team again…he has given us belief and passion again..
Cant wait to see what he does with this team when we get players in over the summer.
Onwards and upwards people onwards and upwards
To be honest most of our players are not mediocre, they have not just had the right coach and motivation. Even the so called wonderful players still need the right coach
In addition to the above 5 points I would like to add the mental fortitude part of it. When we went a goal down we fought back to not only equalise but take the lead, whereas previously we would have buckled under pressure. As for the players Mustafi is the most improved of the lot and Saka is just amazing.