Arsenal vs Leeds United: 3 key battles in Emirates Stadium showdown

Battle #2: Bukayo Saka vs Junior Firpo

Pity anyone tasked with suppressing the Premier League Player of the Month.

An incredible strike at Wembley last week crowned the latest Bukayo Saka exhibition of 2022/23, and Arsenal fans will expect similar results here when he takes on the often defensively suspect Junior Firpo.

While quite adept as an attacking outlet, Firpo struggles to perform his backline duties and is frequently ineffective in one-on-one positions – a major issue for Leeds’ man-marking tendencies. He also relies heavily on pace to make recovery tackles and leaves much to be desired in his efforts to stop crosses into the box. Both observations come as good news for the Gunners’ inventive wide set-up.

His reactionary style should enable Saka to steal a march as our Starboy’s supreme intelligence and technical class will help him exploit such vulnerabilities, while ball-carrying aptitude will leave Leeds in two minds about whether or not to engage with him and may open up space for a prolific Arsenal attack.

With Max Wober ruled out of this one, Firpo might be in for a long afternoon.

Continued on the next slide…