Arsenal vs MK Dons: 3 Things We Learned

Arsenal were in pre-season action on Tuesday, cruising to a 4-1 win over League One side MK Dons at Stadium MK.

Arsenal returned to action tonight for the first time since their FA Cup triumph over Chelsea. Although first-team players only returned to training on last weekend, Mikel Arteta started with a strong team. William Saliba made his long-awaited debut and Ainsley Maitland-Niles started despite reports of an imminent move to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Speaking with the club’s media department last week, it was apparent that Arteta wanted to see a “reaction” from his players during pre-season. His team certainly started brightly, as they scored twice inside the first ten minutes. Mohamed Elneny capitalised on an errant pass from the MK Dons goalkeeper to spectacularly open the scoring, before Eddie Nketiah added a second with a composed finish. Rob Holding scored a stunning own goal on the half-hour mark, but second-half goals from Mark McGuinness and Reiss Nelson ensured that Arsenal started their pre-season with a win.

While no one should have any major takeaways from tonight’s friendly, there were three things which were worth noting.

William Saliba Is Very Good

Making his long-awaited debut, the physically imposing William Saliba was as good as advertised. Starting as the right-sided centre-back, his composure in possession was very encouraging. The talented 19-year-old consistently made himself available to Bernd Leno and took every opportunity to advance the ball. The highlight of his display was his fine pass to unleash Cédric Soares in the build-up to Eddie Nketiah’s goal.

Tougher challenges await Saliba, and it is vitally important to temper expectations. Nevertheless, he made a very good first impression before being withdrawn at half-time.

Eddie Nketiah Learning From Alexandre Lacazette

Eddie Nketiah is an interesting player. He has shown himself to be a prolific goalscorer during his young career, however, a modern-day striker needs to do more than simply score goals.

Towards the end of last season, the 21-year-old was preferred to Alexandre Lacazette in the Premier League because of his industry and athleticism. However, when Lacazette returned to the starting eleven for the crucial FA Cup games against Manchester City and Chelsea, his superior hold-up play proved crucial.

Lacazette did not take part in tonight’s game, but Nketiah imitated the Frenchman on numerous occasions in the first-half, often dropping deep to collect passes and ease pressure on the Arsenal midfield. He was not always successful, but if Nketiah can continue to improve in this facet of the game, Arteta will be ecstatic.

Academy Stars Impress

Although Arteta’s starting eleven was strong, multiple academy prospects were allowed to impress in the second half.

Despite his diminutive frame, Ben Cottrell – who usually plays in central midfield – was energetic and composed on the left-hand side, while Tolaji Bola also looked very comfortable in possession. Tyreece John-Jules, who looks set to leave the club on loan in the not too distant future, worked incredibly hard and created a few opportunities for himself with his blistering pace.

Emile Smith Rowe and Reiss Nelson showed their quality and Joe Willock was – intriguingly – deployed at right wing-back. With Ainsley Maitland-Niles’ Arsenal career seemingly coming to an end, it will be interesting to see whether Arteta continues with this project moving forward.

Arsenal return to action on Saturday when they take on Liverpool in the FA Community Shield.