Result: Arsenal 3 – 1 Leicester
Competition: Premier League
Date: 22 October 2018
Venue: Emirates Stadium
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Arsenal starting XI: Leno, Bellerin, Mustafi, Holding, Lichtsteiner, Torreira, Xhaka, Mkhitaryan, Ozil, Iwobi, Lacazette
Subtitutes: Martinez, Medley, Guendouzi, Smith Rowe, Ramsey, Welbeck, Aubameyang
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Arsenal made it 10 wins out of 10 in all competitions as goals from Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang saw them come from a goal down to beat Leicester 3-1 win at the Emirates.
Arsenal started off the game slowly as Leicester dominated most of the first half, forcing an error by Bellerin to register an own goal and the first goal of the game. The Gunners came back to score at the end of the half through a fine Mesut Ozil side foot.
They carried on the momentum in the second half by firing 2 goals in succession, scored by Aubameyang with Ozil expertly involved in the build up for both of the goals.
FIRST HALF
Arsenal returned to Premier League action from an extended Interlull break to play a Leicester City side who were sitting in mid-table with 4 wins and 4 draws.
The Gunners had an injury scare at left back as both Monreal and Kolasinac were rested due to tight hamstrings. Veteran defender Lichtsteiner stepped in on the left side of defence while youngster Zech Medley made the bench for the first time. Further upfield, Ozil returned in his preferred no.10 position and captained the side.
Arsenal started the game in control, calmly stroking the ball out of the back while pushing the full backs up high. However, they were in for a rude reminder of their opponent’s pace and intensity as the speedy duo of Vardy and Iheanacho countered in the second minute with only the 2 centre backs defending. Fortunately, Holding was in place to make a crucial block. Iheanacho showed his prowess again with a teasing shot in the fifth minute that was palmed wide by Leno.
Holding then had a shaky few minutes as he gained a yellow card just before handling the ball in the box. Arsenal were lucky that the referee did not take notice of the hand ball and waved off Leicester’s calls for a penalty.
Lacazette switched off for a moment as he played Maguire onside while defending a free kick. The Leicester defender ghosted past the defence to meet a header at the far post, only to meet sharp Leno who made a crucial save. As with most games this season, Arsenal have been struggling to find their rhythm in the first half and Leicester could smell blood. Maddison has been influential in midfield while their 2 strikers have looked sharp in exploiting spaces in the Arsenal backline.
Arsenal had their first noteworthy attempt on goal on the 25th minute, with Lacazette lashing his shot wildly from outside the box which floated high above the bar.
Leicester made their dominance count in the 30th minute with the first goal of the game. Chilwell found acres of space on the wing as Ndidi slipped a ball in to him. He skipped past Bellerin and took a shot that deflected off the Spaniard, wrong footing Leno and finding its way into the back of the net. (0-1)
Arsenal responded with a flurry of attacks which eventually resulted in a free kick just outside the box. Xhaka’s looping effort was well saved by Schmeichel as the Gunners continued to pile on the pressure in search for an equalizer.
An excellent exchange by Arsenal started with Bellerin dispossessing Leicester deep in our box before a series of quick one touch passes by Torreira, Mkhitaryan, Lacazette and Ozil found Iwobi lurking just outside the penalty box. The Nigerian, who has been bright in the first half, shot right at the ‘keeper as the team chased a goal.
All that pressure on the Leicester box finally bore some fruit as Arsenal equalized just before the break. Ozil drove forward with the ball and passed it to Bellerin on the right who cut back the ball for the on-rushing German playmaker to side foot the ball calmly into the bottom corner. (1-1)
The half time whistle came too soon as Arsenal were developing good momentum to wrestle back the lead.
SECOND HALF
Arsenal came out flying in search of the winner in the second half. The first five minutes hosted a few half chances for the Gunners. Bellerin’s darting run into the box almost produced a thumping header as the ball flashed wide while Mkhitaryan missed a couple of opportunities with volleyed attempts in the box.
Leicester threatened in the 57th minute with a header that hit the post from a corner attempt. Arsenal had to be reminded to not allow the Foxes back into the game with a lapse in concentration while dominating possession.
On the 60th minute, Emery lined up a double substitution as Aubameyang and Guendouzi came on for Mkhitaryan and Lichtsteiner – the latter of whom never looked comfortable on the left.
Right on cue, Aubameyang did what he does best and scored to put Arsenal in the lead. It was all about Ozil’s “pre-assist” pass which cut through the Leicester defence to find Bellerin down the right. Bellerin’s cut back found Aubameyang who pounced on the ball for an easy tap in. (2-1)
Arsenal immediately turned on the after burners with a sensational team goal which again saw Ozil play a central role in its creation. Bellerin broke down the right who passed to Ozil. The German played a dummy and left the ball for Lacazette who put a through ball in for Ozil who made a run in the box. The German deftly laid the ball off with the outside of his foot, just inches away from a charging Schemeichel, for Aubameyang who was in space to tap in another goal. (3-1)
It should have been another tap in, this time for Lacazette. Iwobi and Ozil exchanged passes around the box for the latter to square a pass to the Frenchman. Unfortunately, Schemeichel was there to smother the ball before conceding a goal.
That was Ozil’s last involvement in the game as he was subbed off for Ramsey in the 78th minute to a rousing ovation. A decisive captain’s performance from the left footed genius.
Arsenal continued turning the screw with a miss by Lacazette. Guendouzi spread the play out to Iwobi on the right who cut back for Lacazette who could only clip the ball over the bar with his shot.
In the end, a good second half more than made up for a lacklustre first 45 minutes, but you can’t argue too much with ten wins in a row.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
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10 on the trot! Good pattern atm, poor, better then winning! Played Auba, Hector and Ozil.
Just when you thought you’d seen the best of Emery ball in that Ramsey goal against Fulham, Ozil, perhaps out of frustration on missing out on that outrageous team effort, goes on to orchestrate another jaw dropping team goal, reminiscent of the Invincible era when we used to cut teams apart with quick, sublime one touch football. If this is what Emery ball can deliver, I can’t wait to see how we perform for the rest of the season ! COYG !!
It’s a bit weird this… even one down after a lacklustre first half I was confident we’d come back and win. A new sensation!
I keep thinking ‘oh shit not this again’ and then we smash it
Ooof, that Ozil. Whoever doubts his importance to this team, or his class, woe to you.
Spot on my beautiful Arsenal friend! Most lards who were packing Ramsay’s bags (and he may well go, but until he does he is Arsenal 100%) were packing Ozil’s too – how’s them TEN apples????
Ramsey
Ozil will never make a good team great but he will make a great team exceptional. Surround him with the players and he will sprinkle stardust
That’s the best description of Ozil I’ve ever heard.
That’s what you get when you play him as a number 10. Really enjoyed watching him play.
The best I have heard is “when you watch the game you don’t see Ozil, but when you watch Ozil you see the game”. He is a superb player imo.
It seems like he takes some time to figure out how to unlock a defense, but once he does, its over. I can wait on him to do that.
Absolutely great to have two lethal strikers to call upon. Great second half performance. Worth staying up till 5 AM in the morning!
I reckon you’re in the south east of asia too then my gooner friend? 6AM now but still buzzing. Can’t sleep.
Also that’s where Ozil belongs. Right in the no.10 spot. Not out wide.
I thought you meant, Ozil belongs in a league somewhere in the south east of Asia.
Luckily I continued on my post, otherwise that’ll make your joke fudging legit!
same. and the same routine for thursday.
During this 10 in a row excitement, lets not forget Coquelin was in Matrix.
http://matrix.wikia.com/wiki/Councillor_West
Good to see old report format
Looks like Ozil’s recent Fortnite addiction has done wonders..
Many excellent performances but Guendouzi, what a fucking player.
Go fcuk yourself Uli Honess!
Happy Birthday Arsene Wenger!
He was just deflecting all the blame away from all the poor Bayern players. It’s the mugs that believed him that worry me.
That peach of ball for Hector for the second goal was absolute class. Great all round performance!
I’ve been watching that goal on repeat, hope Mesut keeps it up.
Happy birthday to Wenger. Hope he enjoyed the goals the team served up.
I’m sure he did, it’s part of his proud legacy.
What better way to celebrate Arsenal Wenger’s birthday than score a goal his best teams of the late 1990s and early 2000s would have been proud of. A swift and stunning yet smooth and sublime team goal executed with such flair and fluid !
I’m a virgin so I can’t say for certain.
But did that 3rd goal feel like an orgasm?
If it’s your first one then yes… it came and went pretty fast.
Just rub one out already
Oh Mesut, our Mesut we do love you. Somewhere there is a German man smelling his arse fingers crying
Nice image that
This is the funniest comment I have ever read!
There was no better way for Ozil to answer his critics than this game and at this time and our expectations grow.
He’ll have a lot more time to do that when he is coaching Munich1860.
We’ve got Ozil!
What a class performance by him. Auba being a fox in the box. And great job by Bellerin to shake off the own goal and grab two assists!
Ozil gave me multiple goosebumps
Much will be said about Ozil and Pierre Emmerick but so good to see our once promising but then stagnating youngsters Alex and Hector (or Chef Hector as I like to call him) finally bursting back and consistently showing their considerable talent.
Rode our luck again but ultimately got the win.
If we could switch on for the first half hour we could really push hard this year
This team is about as lucky at winning games as we used to be unlucky at always conceding with our first shot on target back in the not so distant past.
The nature of luck is such that u cant get lucky 10 games in a row.
Have you considered this “warming up period” in the fist half of games may be a cunning Emery plan? 🙂
I have, and we’re definitely relying on our improved fitness to make an impact in the second half. I’d still like us to tighten up in that period though
I really like that we maintain the tempo.
Absolute masterclass from both Emery and Ozil today. Subs were perfect, as usual, and Ozil – wow! Back to his very best – completely dictated the game!
The third goal was pure goalgasm.
But my word lichtensteiner is off the pace of this league!
He was playing on the left, i dont think he was that bad, he’s put in good performance in previous games
Xhaka – best left back in the league
What a move by Unai!!!
Haha yeah I was surprised at that but I think his success there was due to our improved game management. The team protected Xhaka well from being exposed to any pacy runners. I liked how we controlled the game after going ahead – slowly down the tempo at will.
Some takeaways from the game today. The Good: – 10 games unbeaten! – I never thought Ozil was captain material but he proved me wrong today. He turned on the turbo and he played a part in all 3 goals. His goal was meant to look easier than it really was thanks to his impeccable technique. Many a player would have fluffed that. His pre-assist and assists for the 2nd and 3rd were sublime. He was a decisive force tonight. – It’s been 2 games in a row and dare I say, Mustafi has looked pretty decent and stable. I’ve… Read more »
Probably doesn’t know his opponents well enough yet to prepare the lads perfectly enough. Once he observed their patterns I’d posit that he gave them better instructions in the second half. I could be wrong though.
Quite possible. I was surprised that Leicester played in a diamond midfield formation. I thought Maddison was going to be on the left but he took up a CAM slot behind the 2 strikers who both drifted wide. I don’t think the team coped well with it in the first half. Credit to Puel for this unorthodox tactic too.
Similar to us then, once Ozil came off.
Ramsey played in the no.10 and I’ve noticed both Laca and auba peeling off to the wide areas with increased frequency.
But yeah, caught by surprise too the formation Leicester played. Must have caught emery out too.
I’m suspecting he wants the team to survive the first half and hit them back in the second, if the opponents are doing well in the first at least.
Mustafi only looks good because he´s being protected by an absaloutely brilliant player. Yes Torreira has been very good and growing.
I believe we start slow because of the changes in the team imposed on us by injuries and fitness, such as Lichenstiener at left back. Good on him for stepping up but he’s a right back for heavens sake! Has Emery ever fielded the same team twice? The old saying in football is that you don’t change a winning team and its true. Unfortunately the changes have been imposed on Dick and not down to his tinkering. Arsene used to say if you change more than three players you have a different team and Arsene knows. Leicester must have thought… Read more »
Thumbs up for calling him Dick
I think I might need to have a wank after that football-pornish third goal!
Arsenal > my wife.
The substitutions work very well.
After they scored, they saw a different Arsenal.
The teams below us, if they in front or level are not quite sure if they should press us when we shakily try to play out from the back. Once we settle, our attack blows them away in such instances.
Love how this guy rotates the team. Benches players who think they are something special by running down their contracts. Players playing with confidence and pace, no panic stations when we go down a goal. Still haven’t rid me of the jittery feelings when we are under attach but this is definitely a new direction for us and long may it continue
I’m not saying our run of form won’t end, but I’m just loving pundits disregard, then have to explain us away match after match!
That was Liquid football. What a second half. Iwobi, Ozil… Wow
Just grinning from ear to ear watching those goals. Exciting times! Come on you Gunners!
This team can become truly great. We can go down to lower teams level now and scrap it out in a dogfight knowing that our superior forward play will click at some point. Iwobi continues his good form. Was good even in the 1st half where we were very poor as a team.
Captain Marvel Ozil was sublime, and it’s nice to see both Iwobi+Bellerin playing with smiles on their faces and with real quality.
The game could easily have swung the other way, but our football in the second half was of the highest quality, it seems we’re having a PL goal of the season contest with ourselves
“it seems we’re having a PL goal of the season contest with ourselves” Comment of the day Rich! Happy birthday Arsene.
Thanks for a wonderful birthday present.. Great game, we are getting there gradually. COYG
All three goals were good, especially the third one, excellent. Second half was great. Mesut was magnificent. Good displays from all around, Hector, Torreira, Xhaka, Guendouzi, Mustafi, Auba, Laca. Well I could just name all of them. 10 in a row, good times.
1. Ooof…Ozil made that No. 10 spot his own with a languid drop of the shoulder…that was one of his best performances in an Arsenal shirt…almost everything he did from that equalizer onward was a class apart, every movement of his body reminding the high priests of German football what they are going to miss by pissing this man off, and the experts of English football going from “His body language is just not right” to “This man is world class” with every touch he took. Just wow! 2. Does anybody have any idea what formation we were playing once… Read more »
Bit more like the Arsenal of old, sadly for me just played a wee game of have a drink every time Bellarin says “err” in the post match interview, pray for me liver you sweet sweet lovely people #cannayseeanymore!
Being french, I have to say I was not happy about the Emery choice at all. I was enthusiast when he arrived to PSG but I quickly changed my mind as he he was really bad for them. He managed to not win the ligue 1 in his first year with a loaded roster and then was terrible in the management of Neymar’s ego, and in big games he was ok at best. But now I understand it better : He’s not the “ego-manager” a rich club like PSG or Real need. He is a tactician. He need to be… Read more »
wenger was good too when he had freedom to try what was in his mind.
the referees, sanchez, ownership change, fan hysteria and media vitriol marred his last two years, but he cleaned up the place before he handed over the keys.
Virtually everything we did right in this game had Ozil in it…I hope he gets more appreciation now from those fans who have been quick to slack him off this season… Ozil is a fantastic player…given the right setup he flourishes… definitely Aubameyang needs to start the next EPL game ahead of Mkhitarryan, he was amazing… Lacazete was really unlucky not to get on the score sheet..Feels good to see that his teammates were trying their possible best to get the ball to him so he could have a share of the cake…To be honest Bellerin was really good today…his… Read more »
Fifty shades of Xhaka … Anybody else spot the Christian Gray similarity?
Please don’t
Told you we would win 3-1, didn’t I? We seem to have patented a unique way of winning football matches, i.e. 1. Give the opposition plenty of chances early on and ride our luck. 2. Give away a bad goal. 3. Make smart and effective substitutions in the second half. 4. Score at least one world-class goal. 5. Finish the game strongly and take the points. Ozil was MOTM and his sublime pass for the second goal was the highlight of the game. I want to see him do that against Liverpool. Seven PL wins in a row is no… Read more »
Yeah you were sooo right about result and sooo wrong about Mesut
If you had picked the team today fats..?? 🙂
are my eyes deceiving me?
no negativity from fats!
and he just wished Arsene happy birthday!!!!
Good call Fats! Great to see your positive posts and why not!! I am getting close to that old Arsenal religion. You know the one, where we go into every game expecting to win. Like the old days!
“I want to see him do that against Liverpool.” If Ozil can do it against all teams not in the top four it’s still pretty great isn’t it? Cut him some slack mate!
Being french, I have to say I was not happy about the Emery choice at all. I was enthusiast when he arrived to PSG but I quickly changed my mind as he he was really bad for them. He managed to not win the ligue 1 in his first year with a loaded roster and then was terrible in the management of Neymar’s ego, and in big games he was ok at best. But now I understand it better : He’s not the “ego-manager” a rich club like PSG or Real need. He is a tactician. He need to be… Read more »
Credit to the Boss too. His tactical change with Iwobi, and his ability to see the team needed something a smidgen different led to the substitutes that ultimately got the team the win.
Today everything will be about Ozil, but boy somebody please count Torreira’s interceptions!!!!!! What a tiny + tidy vacuum cleaner in the middle of the pitch
We’ve finally got the Henry we wanted.
It was his good interception that lead to the first goal! Also involved in the other ones (although, to be fair, most of the team was involved in them :P)
Some of the passes tonight were at breath-taking pace, leaving the opponent with not time to reorganize. Looks like something is finally coming together for the arsenal. If we could thrash the so-called mid-table teams, arsenal would be in with a shout for something special at the end of the season. Iwobi is also becoming phenomenal game after game. His runs at the opposition’s defenses are becoming a joy to watch
I might as well name every arsenal player who played tonight. Gosh I’m in love! Sweet sweet goals. We’re so full of swagger, full of purpose, full of Emery!
I know Guendouzi was only on for a few minutes but the kid gives me joy.
Oh and a happy birthday Arsene!
3rd goal was nice and everything but what was the xG?
On Wenger’s Birthday, scoring Wenger-ish goals…couldn’t ask for more.
Interesting to see Zach Medley on the bench, he obviously made a good impression on Emery during training over the Interlull. It meant he didn’t have to risk either Monreal or Kolasinac, so one or both of them will hopefully be 100% for Lisbon this Thursday.
Any news on Sokratis?
Cannot find my jaw, it dropped somewhere around the 66th min. Please help!
If you know this game, you will be amazed at how Torreira ties this whole team together – hi is magnificent and allows everyone else to do what they do best without worries. Bravo!
Ozilgasm
That third goal was pure euphoria. Honestly had to wipe my eyes. Just when I count Ozil out, he does that.
As LFO once said “We.Are.Back.”
Hey Blogs. Thanks for all you guys do to bring us fans together. Really appreciate the fact that you’re running tests to improve the performance of the site.
That handball that wasn’t called was pretty interesting. On the NBC feed in the U.S., one of the analysts pointed out that the only reason that Holding’s hand hit the ball is because the Leicester player’s head hit his arm and knocked it into the ball. And because of that, it’s not intentional. I didn’t see that on first viewing but in the slow motion replay it’s fairly obvious. Good eyes on the ref.
10th win in a row! Our Arsenal is back! Exciting times.
I didn’t see the first half, so can’t comment on it (obviously)… Though the second half was fantastic, the most complete performance from us, I have seen in a very long time, seemless possession from defence, through midfield too attack, simply outstanding