“I can’t bench him for you no matter how bad he plays, he will always start all matches for Arsenal except he’s injured”- Mikel Arteta reveals he has an untouchable player he can never sub off after snubbing a player who was already on the touch line last night against Sevilla
Arsenal have new untouchable as Mikel Arteta snub pays off in narrow Sevilla win
Arsenal beat Sevilla 2-1 in their Champions League visit with Mikel Arteta leaving the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan delighted with two players in particular
Arsenal made a winning return to the Champions League to hand Mikel Arteta a huge boost in their hopes of qualifying after a narrow 2-1 win over Sevilla at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
The Gunners had lost on their visit to Lens last time out but Arteta’s men produced a professional display to return to top spot in Group B after a hard-fought win on a rainy night in Seville. Express Sport looks at four things that we noticed during the absorbing clash on Tuesday night…
Jesus becomes Arteta’s saviour
It took a while for the Arsenal machine to get going. But when the two Brazilians – and two Gabriels – combined with a mesmerising move in first-half stoppage time, there was only going to be one outcome.
Facing his own goal and under pressure from two defenders, Gabriel Jesus used his confidence and swagger to take two defenders out of the game with a masterful ‘Cruyff’ turn. In an instant, and his pass to Martinelli was perfectly-weighted. The youngster showed his composure, rounding the goalkeeper before calmly slotting home.
Then it was Jesus’ turn to wow the crowd in Seville. Biding his time against Jesus Navas on the touchline, he burst inside and found half a yard to get a shot away, curling a stunning effort into the far corner.
That was the kind of finish Arsenal had shelled out £45million to see from their No 9, and Arteta will be hoping it is only the first of many this season as they compete on four fronts.
Pair left out again
What more can Leandro Trossard do to convince Arteta he is worthy of a place in his team, rather than being a mere stand-in for Bukayo Saka? Just three days after rescuing a point for the Gunners in their 2-2 draw against Chelsea, the 28-year-old found himself back on the bench while Saka and Martinelli were picked over him.
Trossard has five goal contributions (four goals, one assist) in eight appearances this season, totalling only 365 minutes of action. It is not as if he is just there making up the numbers, Arteta must be able to see his impact but the Spaniard knows deep down that dropping Saka or Martinelli without an injury concern isn’t an option.
Then there is Kai Havertz, who was given a 20-minute runout as he was against Chelsea and looking a little lost in the midfield. How can the German be expected to deliver after his £65m summer move with so few opportunities in the team? Arteta’s snub to both may have worked on this occasion, but if he doesn’t hand more minutes to Trossard and Havertz soon, he may be left with two unhappy stars.
Partey doubts increase
Arteta has known for some time that Thomas Partey is becoming a problem in his midfield, with the Ghanaian seemingly more absent than present over the past two years.
The 30-year-old was ruled out again after picking up a muscle injury in training and Arteta’s blank expression said it all. This is becoming a problem for Arsenal, who can’t rely on a player only being available for a third or even half of their games in a season.
It’s why he jumped at the chance to bring in Jorginho in January, with the Italian present in the midfield alongside Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard. Partey, left back in England, must be wondering if his time at the Emirates is gradually coming to a close after his latest injury absence.
Raya responds after criticism
Gary Neville said he looked ‘lost’. Arteta disagreed.
The Arsenal boss could have easily dropped David Raya after his clanger against Chelsea on Saturday, but he has made his bed – and the 40-year-old intends to lie in it while Aaron Ramsdale waits patiently.
Raya responded in the perfect way to criticism about his performance and did very little wrong in his distrubution, while the loanee looked confident in claiming the ball from crosses.
He certainly wasn’t to blame for Gudelj’s header as no one picked up the Serbian at the front post, and nearly palmed into his own net at the end, but Arteta will largely feel some vindication in keeping faith in Raya after he avoided another error in Seville.
