Pain in the Arsenal
Fansided

3 positives & negatives from the 4-1 rout against Leeds United

By Harry Dowsett

Arsenal's Brazilian striker Gabriel Jesus celebrates after scoring the opening goal from the penalty spot during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium in London on April 1, 2023. (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal's Brazilian striker Gabriel Jesus celebrates after scoring the opening goal from the penalty spot during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium in London on April 1, 2023. (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Positive #2: Rob Holding

Rob Holding was steady once again. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Rob Holding was steady once again. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images) /

By no means did Rob Holding have the game of his life, or even a very good game for that matter, but he provided another solid display in the absence of the injured William Saliba. The Englishman is never going to be our first-choice centre-back, nor should he be, but his performance levels during the final stages of the season could potentially make or break our title push.

He showed today that he is capable of deputising for Saliba without significantly harming both our defensive structure and our ability to build from the back. That, in itself, is a positive.

Negative #2: Another slow start

Lightning-fast starts have become synonymous with this Arsenal side, but there have been occasions in recent fixtures where the players have failed to live up to those expectations, and this match was another example of that.

We were sloppy in our build-up play and lacked intensity with and without the ball. Perhaps the recent international break is an explanation for that, but this is an issue that was present against Bournemouth, Everton and most recently, Sporting CP.

Just as we did against Sporting, we allowed Leeds to create far too many chances and on another day, could have been losing heading into half-time rather than being a goal up.

Continued on the next slide…

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