Arsenal prove clinical touch remains with ruthless PSV beatdown

Arsenal put their recent goalscoring woes behind them on Tuesday night as they cruised to a 7-1 win over PSV Eindhoven in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie.

Scoring responsibilities were shared across the team with six different players hitting the back of the net. Captain Martin Odegaard fired in a brace while Jurrien Timber, Ethan Nwaneri, Mikel Merino, Leandro Trossard and Riccardo Calafiori all got on the scoresheet.

While the Gunners have not always had their scoring boots on this season, their record-breaking win at PSV showed they can still be clinical.

Arsenal show they can still be clinical with PSV win

Of course, a piece about goalscoring has to inevitably start with the need for a striker. Arsenal are in desperate need of a deadly goalscorer who can lead the line for the team. However, while there have been struggles over the past few seasons, and this campaign in particular, the Gunners have managed to live life without a striker brilliantly and that was displayed against PSV.

Since the first title challenge under Mikel Arteta in the 2022/23 season, Arsenal have shared the responsibility of scoring across the whole team and haven't had to rely on a single individual to find the back of the net. With six different goalscorers at the Philips Stadion, there hasn't been a better display of that distribution this season.

Arsenal massively outperformed an xG of 2.35 against PSV, and while that is a sign of more unexpected goals being scored, there is still no denying that they put on a clinical finishing show.

The lack of reliance on one player to score goals allowed six different players of varying positions to get on the scoresheet. Two forwards, two natural midfielders (one playing as a striker) and two defenders netted in the win.

The variety of goalscorers demonstrates just how clinical Arsenal can still be even without a striker or some of their most dangerous players available.

That has been a recurring theme over the past two seasons and that worked out very well for Arteta's side. While they fell short to Manchester City in both title races, the Gunners were prolific in front of goal, scoring 88 in 2022/23 and 91 in 2023/24. The likes of Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka topped the scoring charts in those campaigns, none being out-and-out goalscorers.

It does seem to be a case that certain players need to step up and that is exactly what happened in Tuesday's victory over PSV. Odegaard looked back to his best, Leandro Trossard showed serious improvement, Ethan Nwaneri was brilliant and Mikel Merino, Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber all did their best impressions of a striker.

Arsenal's win at PSV certainly showed they can still be clinical, regardless of their struggles in front of goal this season, but that relies on various players to make a difference. At a time when attackers are scarce, each squad member must take responsibility and get back to their best form, and if they do so, goals can be sourced from multiple positions, just as the Gunners have done successfully in previous seasons. The victory in Eindhoven should be earmarked as a demonstration that Arsenal can still cause problems for teams this season, even without key figures up top.

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