Arsenal March Into The Quarter-Finals with Comfortable Win Over Brighton
Arsenal made light work of Brighton to ease into the last 8 of the Carabao Cup with a 2-nil win, thanks to goals from Ethan and star boy Saka. two open-play goals, if I may add —wait, let me check that again to be sure... oh yeah, no set-piece goals on the night, who would have thunk that? The press must be fuming at our lack of set-piece goals. No sarcasm here, Brighton proved to be the toughest test we had encountered in this tourney so far. All sarcasm aside, Brighton has tested us very early in the game so far. As expected, Mikel rotated many players but kept the bench stacked with the heavy hitters, should he need them. The lineup was pretty much what I’d previewed, minus Andre Harriman-Annous, who started as the tip of the spear in attack. He did well, solid link-up play, intelligent runs, and some nice touches, but with Max Dowman absolutely shining, it’s hard to take the spotlight away from him.
Like I said, Brighton made life difficult early on, causing us problems with their sharper team play, especially given they had a slightly stronger squad out there than Arsenal. They looked more dangerous on the break, while we did a good job of shading possession. Keppa had to make some key saves early on, diving to keep the score level. MLS struggled a bit against Brighton’s tricky winger, and Max had a similarly difficult time with their left-back, though both players held their own. Still, despite the pressure, we held firm and didn’t concede. If anything, Brighton might feel they deserved to be a goal up at halftime, but they didn’t test Keppa enough, and that’s what really matters.
A Ruthless Second Half and Defensive Nous
Mikel must’ve given the team a good talking-to during the break, because the second half was a different story. We came out more purposeful, tightened up in midfield, and started asserting control over the game. The breakthrough came from a beautiful move down the left: MLS found Eze, who played a deft backheel to Merino. Merino’s ball to Miles, who overlapped and whipped in a cutback for Ethan to finish with aplomb, was textbook Arsenal. MLS has been stepping up with his contributions, and I love his versatility—moving into midfield and getting involved in build-up play more often. He may still be on the fringes, but it’s hard to ignore how impactful he’s becoming, especially with Calafiori’s solid form. The same can be said of Ben White; despite his injury struggles, he looked solid, though when Timber came on, you could see why the Dutchman’s a step up right now. Timber’s run for the second goal was the play of the night. He really adds that extra bit of quality to our game, and he is a Big reason why everyone is all pumped about Arsenal's defensive solidity, long may it remain. 6 Games 6 Wins 12 Scored and Zero conceded all Month long!
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Image Credits: Sky Sports #ARSCRY |
Overall, I feel like this team still has another gear or higher levels to reach. Defensively, Mosquera and Hincapie were solid, and when Big Gabby came on for Piero, I felt even more confident. All in all, a good day for the Gunners. Arteta took a gamble with the lineup, and it paid off. The team may be on the cusp of achieving something big, and with the quarter-finals draw now out, we’re ready to push on.
All in all, a good day for the Arsenal, rounding off the month of October with another win and a clean sheet. Mikel took a gamble that paid off, and our team may be on the cusp of achieving something BIG this season in terms of winning trophies (touch wood). Let's go win trophies this season, and no, I am not getting ahead of myself. The quarter finals draw is out, and Arsenal would be facing another tough #EPL side in Crystal Palace, who must be in great spirits following their 3 Nil spanking of Liverpool in their 4th round matchup. Slot's number is in Oliver Glasner's Pocket right now with the way Palace has been handing Liverpool Ls this season. That's 3 consecutive losses against the Eagles. The gunners have been lauded for their October run of 6W from 6 games with none conceded....DAMN!! Can we repeat November, a month of our proverbial slump, that ran in the past? Mikel isn't resting on his laurels, though; he wants the team to keep grinding, force those fine margins to fall for Arsenal. No more playing victims, time to make our own luck. The full draws for the Carling Cup are below. Chelsea is the only club that would be facing a non #EPL team.
Looking Ahead: Burnley and the Road to Silverware
Back to the #EPL, the Gunners head to Turf Moor for a date with the Clarets. The Burnley game this weekend is another must-win. We need to put as many points daylight between us and the chasing pack for the dip in form that most likely may come (I hope not). Every team goes through that, remember, Liverpool last season started like a house on fire, win after win, but their second-half form for the season wasn't as great, to their credit, they had banked enough points on board for that drop-off in consistency that found them in the latter stages of the season. It did help that Arsenal and City never really put up a sustained challenge for whatever reasons, but my point is, strike while the iron is hot. Arsenal is hot right now, not because we are playing so well, No, but we are winning in different ways. Arsenal needs to keep that up, pedal to the metal style, especially if there is a dip in form (which every team experiences at some point), likely on the horizon. Look at Liverpool last season, great start, but they couldn’t maintain it throughout the year. The gunners need to remain laser-focused without resting on our laurels. Burnley haven’t had a great start to life in the Premier League, but they do have two wins in their last three, so they’ll be dangerous. Scott Parker will have them compact, playing pragmatically, choosing their moments to attack. They would probably look to frustrate us for the most part, similar to how they almost held Liverpool to a draw until Mo Salah had the final say. I do expect the quality we have should be too much for them to handle.... Ultimately. On paper, the likes of Saka, Gyokeres, and especially Timber and Calafiori (or MLS), we should have enough to break them down. I’d go with Saka and Dowman on the wings, with Max in particular looking like he deserves that starting spot. Yes. I know you can ask why I would put Max in for a start, but watch this kid against Brighton, dude is giving me Jack Wilshire vibes, without the injuries. Arteta probably won't, but I'd love his fearlessness against Burnley's fullbacks. In defense, it's going to be the usual faces beside Saliba, who is still a doubt for this fixture. My teamsheet would look like this:
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| #ArsBur |
