Pain in the Arsenal
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Arsenal Vs Vitoria SC: 5 things we learned – Absolute shambles

By Andrew Dowdeswell

GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL - NOVEMBER 06: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal gives his team instructions during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)
GUIMARAES, PORTUGAL - NOVEMBER 06: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal gives his team instructions during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Vitoria Guimaraes and Arsenal FC at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on November 06, 2019 in Guimaraes, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 27: Kieran Tierney of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium on October 27, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 27: Kieran Tierney of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium on October 27, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images) /

3. At least Kieran Tierney played well

I never want to write a completely negative post-match piece, and so, in search of something vaguely positive, I find myself turning towards the individual performance of Kieran Tierney.

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Used slightly higher up in a wing-back role, Tierney flourish. He won every single one of his attempted tackles, he drove forwards brilliantly, especially when dribbling with the ball, and he again illustrated his crossing prowess with several excellent deliveries, including one very early on that Nicolas Pepe should have gotten on the end of. He also completed 83% of his passes, a very good statistic for someone who was tasked with moving the ball into dangerous areas, even when quite isolated — Ainsley Maitland-Niles, in comparison, completed only 75%.

Quite why Tierney was playing in the first place, I am not really sure. Even if Arsenal had lost this match, it would not really have mattered, and while Unai Emery is under pressure to get results, Sead Kolasinac is a perfectly capable left wing-back.

Nevertheless, Tierney played the full 90 minutes and was the best player on the pitch. At the very least, as he continues to rediscover his macth sharpness, that is an encouraging sign for the remainder of the year.