3 positives & negatives from impressive victory over Newcastle

Positive #2: Midfield masterclass

Every one of our starting midfielders were excellent in this game. Jorginho allowed us to retain control of the match with his ability to dictate a game with his passing, Odegaard was at his silky best and Granit Xhaka added the physicality to supplement.

In fact, Jorginho was so impressive that Sky Sports pundit, Gary Neville, compared his performance to that of Manchester United legend Paul Scholes.

"“The reason why Manchester United players and Pep Guardiola have said Paul Scholes is their favourite player was because in moments in the hardest atmosphere in a difficult away game those players are unique. “They have the composure, the balance to get the team playing. That’s what Jorginho reminded me of – he was fantastic.”"

That is very high praise, and in my opinion, it was more than deserved.

Negative #2: Forwards struggled to make an impact

None of Arsenal’s front three were poor, however, they all struggled to have the same impact we have become accustomed to. Gabriel Martinelli was arguably the brightest of the three, providing the cross that lead to Newcastle’s own goal and coming incredibly close to getting on the scoresheet himself, but, for the most part, the front line struggled as a collective.

Newcastle are an excellent defensive team and had it not been for the sheer brilliance of our midfield, we would have found goals hard to come by.

Continued on the next slide…