Arsenal may have won 5-1 but the game against Palace was very chaotic

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·23. Dezember 2024

Arsenal may have won 5-1 but the game against Palace was very chaotic

Though we won against Crystal Palace, we would certainly be better off with more control than chaos.

Arsenal got back to winning terms in the Premier League with a pretty resounding win over Crystal Palace. As resounding as the 5-1 scoreline might be it’ll still be misleading to an individual who didn’t watch the game. This was due to how easily closer the scoreline could’ve been if they were more clinical.

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Arsenal for their part were very ruthless and efficient in finishing off their chances, something we weren’t able to do against Fulham and Everton, however it was the defence that was suspect in a game where Raya bailed us out on a couple of occasions.

It almost looked like the 2022/23 Arsenal, excelling in a very chaotic game. We struggled to cope with the gegen style pressing from Crystal Palace, especially at the back with the trio of Raya, Gabriel and Saliba leaving us at the edge of our seats at times due to some risky build up from the back. We should’ve conceded really from one of these risks in the 20th minute when Saiba gave the ball away deep inside our half, but Raya spared his blushes with a really good save to deny Mateta from close range.

The game was almost end to end at times and another reason for it was arguably our midfield, Thomas Partey wasn’t at his best in midfield with the Ghanaian arguably being at fault for the goal we conceded.

Considering the general midfield structure then it wasn’t surprising to see him struggle a bit, Havertz simply doesn’t offer the control and extra cover that Rice brings to the side even though I think the German played fairly well. It wasn’t surprising at all that we had more control when the England international came on for Havertz. Gooners were surely delighted to see us play and emerge victorious in such a chaotic game (especially in the first half) but it’s just not sustainable in the long run.

Gabriel Jesus of Arsenal scores his team’s first goal as Dean Henderson of Crystal Palace fails to make a save during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace FC and Arsenal FC at Selhurst Park on December 21, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Things could’ve been much different against Palace, prior to Havertz’s goal killing things off in the first half, Palace had chances to pull level. Even throughout the game, they attempted more shots than us and also had the same number of shots on goal, in what was a keenly contested game between the pair.

In another world where we weren’t as clinical and they were, it could’ve been a very different story! Furthermore, such games are energy draining and could very well lead to injuries like we saw happen to Saka. Looking at the fixtures ahead and the busy January period in store for us then injuries and fatigue is the last thing that we need at the moment.

We were forced into the type of game they wanted to play due to their aggressive approach but we certainly could’ve done better in avoiding it by keeping the ball more and having more composure. The personnel will also be a deciding factor, but we should have the squad depth to play that way regardless.

With that said, we actually won 5-1 and did it quite comfortably at the end too so maybe there isn’t much to bother about the game!

BENJAMIN KENNETH.

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