Leeds United 0-4 Arsenal (Zubimendi 27′, Darlow 38′ OG, Gyokeres 69′, Jesus 86′)
ELLAND ROAD — Arsenal’s last six Premier League goals read as follows: own goal, goalmouth scramble from a corner, a header from a cross, another own goal from a goalkeeper punching the ball into his own net, and two strikes with the game dead and buried.
Before that it was two 0-0s. It seems somewhat churlish to go in on a team opening up a seven-point lead at the top of the hardest league in the world – based on vastly superior spending power alone – with a 4-0 victory. But I just cannot get behind this Arsenal team, not one that wins games like this anyway.
Furthermore, I am more concerned about the general direction our supposed utopian elite division is heading. Especially with this team its market leader, the one fronting the advertising paraphernalia.
The league leaders’ second top goalscorer, one behind a rather uninspiring Viktor Gyokeres, this season is own goals. Going into February. Sir Alex Ferguson had Wayne Rooney or Cristiano Ronaldo. Jose Mourinho Didier Drogba or Frank Lampard. Arsene Wenger lead his line with Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp. Mikel Arteta has deflections off arses and corners.
On initial viewing, this take sounds like it is coming from a position of bitterness or jealousy. It really isn’t. Our beloved game is at stake here.
Leeds United’s Karl Darlow scores an own goal against Arsenal (Photo: Reuters)What Arteta has done, to his credit if only taking into consideration points garnered, is assembled a team of perfect physical specimens. If Sean Dyche was in charge of the Footballer Creation Laboratory, this is what would come out at the end of the conveyor belt.
Almost to a man, Arsenal are littered with six-foot-plus beasts, without an ounce of fat on their torsos, whose piece de resistance is winning duels.
Even the smaller members of the squad, Saturday’s game-clincher at Elland Road, Martin Zubimendi for example, rarely gets beaten in the air. Standing on the shoulders of giants helps, mind.
Flair has been left out in the cold to perish. Guile and ingenuity suppressed by the Arteta Ministry of Truth. Professionalism is mightily effective, but it isn’t fun to watch.
Pep Guardiola has been regularly chastised for doing something similar with more his more flamboyant charges. Jack Grealish was a maverick before he arrived at the Etihad, only to leave a timid, sanitised professional instead.
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But even when Tiki Taka was at its most sterile, teams were still passed off the park with a quality befitting of 100-point champions. Goals were coming from all angles, the quality of some taking your breath away.
The only gasps for air on the pitch when this Arsenal team play are winded defenders from deflecting another goal into their own net.
Saturday’s trip to Elland Road was the perfect Arteta performance. Bukayo Saka’s withdrawal in the warm-up did not help matters – even if the England forward is without a goal in his last 13 games, his longest career drought.
Nonetheless, until Zubimendi climbed highest to head home Noni Madueke’s cross 27 minutes in, Arsenal had not mounted a single attack, never mind tested Darlow in the home goal.
Another Set Piece FC goal later and another three points was in the bag. Gyokeres’ third in the second half came about mostly as a result of poor Leeds defending. Enough, however, to edge the Swede ahead of own goal in the Gunners’ goalscoring charts.
Why it is concerning is that this is no slight on the coaching. Arteta has taken years to craft his squad this way. And it is working.
At all levels now, the diminutive playmaker has become a thing of the past. Elite sides, who spend billions on the best talent, have started employing long throw coaches to target their six-foot-plus towers of strength.
Even in academies now, you ask any parents of skilful teens and they are regularly let go, told they are not good enough, in favour of those kids who are simply taller, leaner, and most importantly, more physical.
If Arsenal do go onto win the title this year, at a canter, in the manner they are doing, the onus on players needing to be physical over possessing otherworldly skills is only going to go one way.
And you don’t have to be a samba-football enthusiast for that to be very concerning indeed.
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