Three positives and two negatives as Arsenal defeat Sunderland in the Premier League

Even if the score flattered them a bit, both Arsenal and Mikel Arteta will be very happy with this 3-0 win.

Going nine points clear is a huge boost for the Gunners – often accused of mental weakness – ahead of the Sunday schedule; Manchester City must win at Anfield (something that Pep Guardiola has only done once before) if they are to keep the gap at six.

So, forgive those who get carried away, who dare to believe the 22-year title drought will come to an end soon; indeed, Paddy Power have paid out on Arsenal winning the league with 13 games still left to play.   

Fans and critics alike now believe and, despite a few Black Cat scares, there was lots to fuel that hope this weekend.

Three positives and two negatives from Arsenal’s 3-0 Premier League win against Sunderland

Here are three positives and two negatives from a comfy Arsenal victory (in the end) over Sunderland at Emirates stadium.

Positive #1: Goals from open play

Fed up of set pieces and the odd own goal, Arsenal showed off their full repertoire by grabbing three goals from open play.

You do not need corners when you have a right boot like Martin Zubimendi; his rocket gave Roefs no chance in the visitors’ net. Elsewhere, there was not a pity penalty in sight as Viktor Gyokeres scored his fifth and sixth goals in seven matches across all competitions (though Gabriel Martinelli left it on a plate in added time here).

Open-play threat is something the Gunners often seem to lack, especially against good defences like Sunderland. Therefore, to pick them off as they did will bring Arteta much encouragement whilst also helping him to silence a few sceptics.

 Replicating that at Brentford is no easy task.

Negative #1: Mistakes at the back

At least none of them proved costly.

Arsenal bear a reputation for good defending and many teams struggle to get a shot on target, never mind score against them.

The Gunners did their stats the world of good here, too, by recording a 13th clean sheet of the Premier League season – their third shut out this week – and largely reducing Sunderland to the odd speculative effort from outside the box.

But it could have been very different. David Raya flapped at one or two early crosses, while Riccardo Calafiori made several horrible clearances that gifted the visitors possession in good areas and could easily have been punished.

You cannot be so careless when pushing for the biggest prizes – it haunted the team during their loss to Manchester United a fortnight ago.

Arsenal lived to tell the tale on this occasion, who would have thought the Black Cats’ luck would fall their way?  

Positive #2: Viktor Gyokeres finds form

That £64m spend is finally coming good.

Despite his past life in English football, Gyokeres has found it hard to adapt at Arsenal and faced huge criticism from the fans.

But he plays like a man who backs himself and that sort of self-belief has seen him get back amongst the goals recently. On the pitch for just 30 minutes, the Swede still had time to rip the net twice, with his first being a particularly good, powerful strike that gave the Gunners a cushion just when it felt like Sunderland might get back into the game.

His goals were the cherry atop his fine overall performance as he ran the channels well and terrified the away defence with his strength to hold off their challenges – he played with a freedom Arteta has not seen since his arrival.

It is great news for Gyokeres and better news for Arsenal as they reach a crucial point in the quest for an unprecedented quadruple.

Negative #2: Leandro Trossard injury

You cannot have too much of a good thing, so the football gods struck Arsenal down with more injury woes as Leandro Trossard hobbled off near the end.

It is not the first time the Belgian has suffered a knock this campaign: ankle problems forced him out of the matchday squad versus Brentford and Chelsea before Christmas, while he was rested for a UCL trip to Club Brugge.

But it is still scary to see him go off as he is Mr. Consistent on that left wing and has enjoyed his best year at the club this term. Arteta made no mention of Trossard in his post-match interviews, so fans will have to wait until midweek for an update.

To be fair, it did not look too serious for him, but you never know with Arsenal – both Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard picked up knocks from nowhere. Trossard’s injury past offers hope that it will not keep him out for long.

Positive #3: Back after United wobble

Fans thought it was over after the loss to Manchester United; seven points dropped in three matches left Arsenal just four points clear.

Now, the Gunners are back! They followed up that loss with two Premier League wins as well as their Carabao Cup win against Chelsea, securing their first appearance in a final since the FA Cup triumph six years ago.

That is the response you expect from a world-class team, even if it did not look likely a fortnight ago. It owes to the temperament of Arteta and his men, along with the incredible depth that Berta did so well to assemble last summer – look at how well Gabriel Jesus, Gyokeres and Kai Havertz have done together since returning to fitness.

Faith will dip and wobble plenty more times between now and the end of the campaign but it looks good right now for the Arsenal and could look even better before the weekend is out; the lead could stay at nine.

Let’s not get carried away...