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Arsenal recorded yet another pre-season victory against MLS side Orlando City and we take a look at five talking points post-match.
THE PERFECT RUN CONTINUES
Arsenal continued their 100% record in pre-season following a 3-1 win over Orlando City in the early hours of Thursday morning. The game was at risk of being cancelled due to bad weather but in the end was only delayed slightly due to rainfall, prior to the match.
The Gunners got off to a flying start after Gabriel Martinell’s effort deflected into the net five minutes into the game. Facundo Torres grabbed the equalizer for the MLS outfit just on the half-hour stroke. The game went into the tie at the break but second half strikes from Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson ensured Arsenal grabbed another win, just like Mikel Arteta had doped for.
Without much ado, let’s take a look at the best talking points from the game.
Jesus and Nketiah can play together
In a previous article, we explained what Jesus’ presence could mean for Nketiah and how the latter could struggle for chances once again. However, they could well feature together on couple occasions, like against Orlando City. With Arteta opting for Nketiah to lead the line, Jesus came on in the second half and immediately improved the attack.
Both forwards seemed to complement each other and it was only fitting that Jesus was heavily involved in Nketiah’s goal. It might be nothing as well but both forwards shared the nice gesture of performing the ‘phone call’ celebration together and it sort of shows some good bromance building between both players.
It might happen only on few occasions but Arteta will be happy to know that he can deploy both forwards on the pitch if need be.
More strength in depth required
Arteta made eight changes to the team that made the starting lineup against Everton and the first half performance showed a gulf in difference. Players like Pablo Mari, Nuno Tavarez, Rob Holding and Sambi Lokonga were given chances to play.
In the second half, the likes of Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka, William Saliba and Bukayo Saka came on and the difference was easy to see. It is one thing to boast depth and it is another to boast quality in depth. At the moment, the Gunners cannot say they have the latter.
Arteta’s need for a goal-scoring midfielder visible
Arsenal continue to chase an attacking midfielder and one with an eye for goal. It’s becoming clearer why Arteta wants that profile in his squad. Bar the deflected effort in the first half, Arsenal had no real bite in attack and the extra goals from midfield could come in handy in situations like that.
Ben White showed a new dimension
After missing his side’s victory against Everton, he was back in the fold after recovering from a muscle problem. He was moved to right back after coming on and did a decent job while at it. Given Tomiyasu’s injury problems, Arteta will have something to at least consider if he needs a stand in right-back option.
Zinchenko is a Gooner
Though it has not been officially announced, we have seen more than enough to confirm Oleksandr Zinchenko is an Arsenal player. The Ukranian was spotted in the crowd, sitting alongside Arsenal technical director, Edu Gaspar, and that pretty much verifies that he has completed his move to the Emirates.
