Three positives and two negatives from Arsenal's 2-1 win against Leeds United

Three weeks is a looong time in football and life in general. It is so easy to forget things when you are out of practice.

Arsenal know all about that, judging by the FIVE offside calls which went against them inside the first 23 minutes here. They also seemed to forget just how intense the Premier League can be, given they did not lay a glove on Leeds United for over an hour.

Three positives and two negatives from Arsenal’s hard-fought 2-1 win against Leeds United

But there was one thing that they remembered quick: they are the champions. Mikel Arteta saw his men raise their levels after the James Justin opener and turn this match around in double-quick time, netting two goals in eight minutes – the first coming seven minutes after the Leeds breakthrough – to seal a momentous win.

Here are three positives and two negatives for Arsenal to take from a hard-fought 2-1 triumph at the Emirates Stadium.

Negative #1: Arsenal still on the beach

Not content to have a three-week break from club action, Arsenal opted to take the first 65 minutes off here too.

Their first-half efforts were quite indifferent as they ‘enjoyed’ lots of possession without ever posing a threat to the Leeds goal. Then, they mixed things up with an awful, sloppy start to the second half which culminated in the visitors taking a 1-0 lead.

All the signs were there that the Gunners were sleepwalking towards yet another disastrous Premier League result.

One should remember, of course, that Leeds are a good team (unbeaten prior to this match) and it is not realistic to expect Arsenal to steamroll them, champions or not. Also, the transitional threat they pose means Daniel Farke was happy to let the home team keep the ball and try to force turnovers to pick them off on the counter.

However, none of that excuses the sub-par performances of the first hour. Arsenal have the quality to give Leeds something to think about themselves and they simply did not tap into it whatsoever until after the Justin goal.

They did the same at Brighton and paid the price. Here, to their credit, they woke up and got the job done.

Positive #1: Perfect reaction to Leeds goal

Thank you very much, James Justin!

Funny enough, his goal was the best thing that could have happened to Arsenal. It seemed to flick a switch amongst the group, make them realise they had a game on their hands and would need more fight if they were to claim the win.

More flow, intent and urgency coursed through them from that point on and it put a hitherto on-top Leeds on the back foot.

Fortune often favours the brave and it certainly favoured Arsenal here, with the equaliser coming just seven minutes later followed by a beautiful team goal that was expertly finished by Bruno Guimaraes off the bench.

Their great reaction also extends to the final twenty as the Gunners gave Leeds much less freedom to pile forward and saw the game out with a degree of comfort – a marked change from the bullying job Dominic Calvert-Lewin had brilliantly done up until then.

For all the concerns Arteta will feel about the match overall, he will take a lot of encouragement from this response.

Negative #2: Attack not firing

Has anyone noticed it before?

Frontline toils are an ever-present topic of conversation at Arsenal and injury prompted Arteta to try something different at the weekend, selecting Noni Madueke on the left flank in place of the stricken Christos Tzolis.

Fair to say it did not bring immediate riches. Madueke failed to have much of an impact, often taking a poor touch or attempting a bad pass to kill any offensive momentum. Bukayo Saka was almost just as ineffective on the other side and, together, their shortcomings meant Kai Havertz had nothing to feed off all game.

It was summed up in the final moments, when Saka fluffed his lines in a one-on-one against Trafford while Viktor Gyokeres – in such ridiculous goal-scoring form for Sweden – inexplicably chose not to shoot after rounding Trafford late on.

Typically, one might excuse it as him being low on confidence but that is far from the case after his electric form on the international stage.

It only spells out, once again, how this team is crying out for a superstar talent up front. How much longer do fans have to wait?

Positive #2: Proactive Arteta

Once upon a time, Arteta was considered stubborn and too risk averse to turn games around when on the back foot.

He has evolved over time, though, and made risky calls to try swing momentum during the 2025/26 title-winning campaign, like his quadruple change early in the second half against Manchester United back in January (spoiler: it did not work).

It happened here too as three substitutes came on just after the Riccardo Calafiori goal, with Jurrien Timber, Gyokeres and match-winner Bruno Guimaraes all introduced to change the game when there was still time on the clock.

Sometimes too much change too soon can backfire but it worked a treat here as Bruno G put Arsenal ahead and played well overall (much needed after a poor game at Brighton) to claim an unexpected MOTM award.

There are still elements of ‘handbrake football’ in this Arsenal team but, every now and then, Arteta throws caution to the wind and this time it worked out.

Positive #3: Three points in the bag

It is not about how you start but how you finish.

Defeat is harsh on Leeds after a spirited performance, though Arsenal showed great resolve to come back into the game in the final half hour.

This win feels significant as back-to-back losses might have sent alarm bells ringing amongst the fans, while the manner in which they achieved it will help revitalise the team after their 3-0 mauling away at Brighton.

Given the legal clouds hanging over Manchester City, it seems this title is for Arsenal to lose and they need it too. Even if the title win was brilliant, this project deserves so much more than the two spaced out trophies it has yielded so far and more dropped points would not have done much to boost any confidence of them fulfilling that destiny.

Tough questions were asked and, thankfully, Arsenal answered them in style. Three points against an unbeaten Leeds is not to be sniffed at.

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