Pain in the Arsenal
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Arsenal Vs Wolves: 5 things we learned – Mikel Arteta’s best performance

By Andrew Dowdeswell

Arsenal, Bukayo Saka, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Photo by Sam Bagnall - AMA/Getty Images)
Arsenal, Bukayo Saka, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Photo by Sam Bagnall - AMA/Getty Images) /
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WOLVERHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 04: Bukayo Saka of Arsenal scores his team’s first goal during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal FC at Molineux on July 04, 2020 in Wolverhampton, England. Football Stadiums around Europe remain empty due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in all fixtures being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
WOLVERHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 04: Bukayo Saka of Arsenal scores his team’s first goal during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal FC at Molineux on July 04, 2020 in Wolverhampton, England. Football Stadiums around Europe remain empty due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in all fixtures being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images) /

2. Move the ball quicker

The first half was a very tactical and controlled affair. Neither team wanted to expose themselves. Not conceding space was of the utmost priority for both and ensuring that they kept their opponents in front was the name of the game. As such, with Wolves sitting deep and difficult to break down, Arsenal needed to move the ball quickly. They didn’t.

Especially before the drinks break, they took painfully long to release passes out of the back three. All three defenders were guilty of slowing down the play. They were not only culprits, however. Granit Xhaka hid in midfield, not showing for the ball like his Wolves counterparts, while the movement among the front three was either limited or 50 yards up the pitch, thus requiring a difficult long pass to bypass the Wolves ranks. Arsenal could not play through the thirds.

When they did, though, they found success, as evidenced by the first goal. The move starts with Emiliano Martinez. Arsenal move the ball quickly across the back three, out to Cedric who then finds Aubameyang who immediately tees up Kieran Tierney out wide. Tierney plays a first-time cross and Bukayo Saka provides a first-time finish. The ball moved quickly and it paid dividends.