Result: Arsenal 3 – 1 Burnley
Competition: Premier League
Date: 22nd December 2018
Venue: Emirates Stadium
Arsenal: Leno, Maitland-Niles, Sokratis, Monreal, Kolasinac, Elneny, Xhaka, Guendouzi, Ozil, Aubameyang, Lacazette
Subs: Cech, Lichtsteiner, Torreira, Ramsey, Iwobi, Saka, Nketiah
Arsenal got back to winning ways with goals from Aubameyang, and substitute Iwobi, to seal a 3-1 win over Burnley at the Emirates. Aubameyang scored the first goal after a defence splitting pass from Ozil found Kolasinac teed him up for an open shot on goal. Aubameyang scored early in the second half while Iwobi wrapped things up in injury time.
Monreal’s injury does compound fitness concerns for the defence as the team is light on numbers at the back as they move into a heavy festive schedule.
First Half
In what looked like a major U-turn in fortunes, Mesut Ozil started the game as captain after missing out last week’s North London Derby due to “tactical reasons”. The game also saw Elneny feature in his first league match of the season in place of Torreira who was given a rest with a place on the bench.
Arsenal set up in a 4-4-2 formation with a midfield diamond, 2 strikers up top, and Monreal dropping in as a centre back.
The match started at a high tempo. Arsenal almost scored within the first minute with Tarkowski clearing a deflected cross from the path of a lurking Aubameyang. Burnley countered immediately and exposed the Arsenal defence to go one on one with Leno. Fortunately, the shot was deflected for a corner.
Some good work on the left wing saw Lacazette whip in a tantalizing cross on the 7th minute. Elneny headed the ball on goal but Burnley managed to block and smother his attempt clear.
Arsenal finally managed to break the deadlock on the 13th minute and it was Ozil who was the chief architect. After some intricate exchanges on the right wing, Ozil threaded a precise through ball that cut through the packed Burnley defence to an onrushing Kolasinac on the opposite flank. The Serbian Bosnian pulled the ball back for Aubameyang in the penalty box who buried the ball into the bottom corner. 1-0 Arsenal.
The Gunners continued to dominate possession comfortably through while holding a high line. Arsenal’s confidence was personified in Lacazette who executed a rabona to cross for his teammates.
Tempers started flaring when Ashley Barnes and Sokratis grappled by the byline with the former claiming that there was an elbow thrown in by the Arsenal centre half. Barnes got a yellow for his shenanigans. The two clashed again towards the end of the half, the Greek this time being booked for a pull on the Burnley forward’s jersey.
Things started looking shakey again for Arsenal when Monreal walked off with an injury in the 35th minute and was replaced by Lichtsteiner. The Swiss international slotted in to the right centre back position while looked like Arsenal reverted to a back three – Xhaka being moved to a left centre back berth.
The switch in formation resulted in Arsenal ceding possession in the midfield. Burnley took this opportunity to look for an equalizer. However, Arsenal managed to hold them at bay and went into the second half with a lead for the first time in the Premier League this season.
Second Half
Just a couple of minutes into the second half, Guendouzi started a counter attack and put Kolasinac through. The team moved the ball quickly from the left flank to an unmarked Aubameyang on the right. He lashed an unstoppable strike through the roof of the net that left Joe Hart stranded. That’s Aubameyang’s 12th league of of the season as he went top of the league’s goal scoring charts. 2-0.
The Gunners were involved in a couple of precarious moments on the 55th minute. The team stepped up to catch Burnley offside on a free kick but the linesman played on. Sokratis recovered quickly to clear the ball. Kolasinac then pushed a Burnley player in the back when defending a free kick but the opposition’s theatrics meant that the referee waved away calls for a penalty.
Emery decided to close out the game as early as the 58th minute with the substitution of Elneny for Torreira. Unfortunately, this did not have the desired effect as the team struggled to clear a free kick from deep. Barnes pounced on the ball and made it 2-1.
Arsenal struggled to get their shape right as Cork he was left in acres of space on the edge of the box to strike on goal. His shot looped wide but it was a warning as Burnley pushed for an equalizer.
The last Arsenal substitution came in the shape of Iwobi for Lacazette in the 77th minute to pack the midfield which was struggling to win the second balls. The Frenchman did not look happy with the decision as he took it out on his teammates with some verbal barbs.
This time, the substitution paid off as Iwobi sealed the win for Arsenal in injury time after Ozil’s shot was deflected into his path.
The match ended 3-1 for Arsenal.
Never in doubt…
So many games could be formalities. Emery has this team working harder than any side in the league, maybe even Europe. Imagine how good will we be with a normal back 3, proper wingbacks, Xhaka and Torreira behind Ozil, with Lacazette and Aubameyang up front.
I hope we have some defenders back soon, having two proper centre backs would be a big help, and Bellerin is missed on the right.
Burnley could easily have put more of our side out with their rough tactics, they were very dirty and should have had at least one player sent off.
Anyway, we can all relax for Christmas, at least for a few days.
They are now quite possibly my least favorite PL team (aside from Sp*rs of course). They played like poor Stoke out there today. It was absolutely clear they couldn’t win by playing ball, so they were just out to fuck us over. Also, fuck Ashley Barnes.
Burnley are the new Stoke!!
Ashley Barnes their Orc commander!
That pre-assist from Mesut was absolutely sensational. It’s a joy to have him back.
One of the best passes I’ve seen all season. I can only think of maybe 2 other players in the league who could see that pass and execute it.
Deserves to be in goal of the month running. One of my favourites this season, pure class that optimises Emery ball.
He needs to put more fight onto that skill. That’s what the manager seems to be asking. Silva does both for City.
Funny thing is that very logic applies to everyone of our players if compared to their City counterparts.
Honestly if all Burnley have to offer is trying to injure our players then I feel sorry for them. And I’m sick of the commentators (in particular Alan Smith) constantly excusing the oppo for trying to do it. Xhaka gets smashed in the back of the head ‘he was expecting that’. Guendouzi gets stamped on ‘he was asking for that’. Ozil gets pushed over ‘well Burnley are a physical side’. Pisses me off.
The way opposition teams are targeting Guendouzi reminds me a bit of Reyes (though it isn’t quite at that level). It’s still disgusting when you think they’re doing this to a 19 year old kid.
Thought he held up pretty well to the “christening” Burnley gave him. We have a player here, as he didn’t back down from the physicality given his age and experience.
What even worst was when the guy at bein actually said team like burnley never really get a favour from the official. Like what the fuck.
Yes Jack, but the beauty of this Arsenal side under Emery, credit where it’s due do not bow down to these teams. We are no longer going to be regarded as a soft touch.
It wasn’t an entertaining game but I enjoyed the fact that we won the battle. We will be going into another one at Brighton and it will be in their minds that we will be up for the fight.
I didnt think Burnley were particularly malicious,feisty yes, but we have witnessed far worse over the years. I think we stood up to the physicality well today, kolasinac and sokratis gave them enough back. Good balance from the side, and was reflected in the result
Everyone would look better if compared to what the Eduardo, Diaby and Ramsey generation endured. It shouldn’t be used to excuse Burnley, it should be used to highlight how much worse teams were allowed to treat fellow professionals.
Jim you are too kind. Burnley are the new Stoke City. They were malicious and a less lenient referee would have sent off at least 2 players. The way they targeted Guendouzi was disgusting.
Less comfortable than I would have liked, but great to seal the much needed 3 points just before Christmas. Have to say that Kolasinac was amazing today – we’ve really missed him in our side recently.
There’s some Iwobi end product 😉
Oh my, Papa is a proper BASTARD! Loved it.
On a related note, i would like to say fuck off to Sean Dyche and his gang.
I have a Chelsea-supporting friend (I know, I make awful life choices) who really can’t stand them. He’s thanked me for keeping them in the drop zone for Christmas.
Thank him for being on the same points as us after today.
Heh
He claims to now be on a plane and unable to receive my messages
Sokratis vs diego costa would have been fun.
That would be at least two red cards and a few mass brawls, I reckon.
Kola shoulder check on Burnley cunt made me laugh out loud. Great to see our players aren’t push overs any more.
Loved that
Kola is Bonsinan, you English don’t know anything 🙂
Fixed 🙂
He’s Bosnian actually?
I’m actually not sure if I should be taking this as high quality sarcasm or….. ?
Ah, good shout.
And Blogs is Irish, so. . .
And I didn’t write the report!
My thoughts on the game. – I think the diamond formation looks good as we can pack the midfield to close passing lanes as we dont have a ball winner in Torreira. Ozil can play in his natural position while the full backs give us width up high. – Kola is important for us as he gives us penetration, width and power. – Elneny needs to find a new club (probably in the summer) as Emery doesn’t seem to trust him. I think he did ok but he went off despite Guendouzi picking up a yellow and brought on a… Read more »
And Sokratis. What a bastard. Love him.
I’d prefer to assume Laca was disgruntled about the chance he had missed after Sead’s cross, rather than about being substituted. Then again it was a tough game, must have felt his legs when taking off the bandage. I wouldn’t read too much into it.
Lacazette has chances to score and didn’t take them or got unlucky, he shook emery’s hand so I think he was just annoyed that he didn’t score to be honest. Rather see it than apathy and emery has said numerous times now he wants this reaction so I’ll believe him
Ozil, Kolasinac and Aubameyang with great performances. That will keep haters and shit-stirrers quiet for a few days.
And that’s what Ozil brings to the party. Without that beautiful incisive pass to Kola for the first goal, we just pass the ball aimlessly around the edge of the box, looking in vain for a way in. Of course, there’s no excuse for slacking off or not toeing the line, but hope Emery continues to find a way to accommodate him in the team. Speaking of Kola, he was absolutely fantastic today – but Auba was my man of the match. I know it’s easy to give it to the guy who scores two goals, but by god this… Read more »
League leader in goals! What a poacher.
Yes, a great poacher – but there’s more to him than just that, the second goal today and few others earlier this season from outside the box suggests he has got great skill on the ball as well. Problem is everyone is comparing him with Henry, which really is quite unfair.
I think emery should get some credit for the performance. We don’t see it regularly enough from Ozil and today he got a response from him. Ozil played, arguably, his best football under mourinho who is much more of a cunt than emery so perhaps Ozil actually needs this sort of “tough love” treatment to get the best out of him
Great to see we can match a team as physical as that…Sead… Socratis.. Torreria… animal stuff…and that was a pass at the end by Ozil for Iwobi!! COYG!!!Merry Christmas All!!
Really enjoyed that, Kolasanic was superb, and we’re clearly a much better team with Ozil and Lacazette starting, and Iwobi as an impact substitution.
A gritty win. Delighted with that. Enjoy christmas in the drop zone Dyche. Ha!
Kolasinac is Bosnian not Serbian… sorry to be pedantic. Not the best performance but at least we got the 3 points. Really missing Bellerin , AMN did his best but is not the best in that position.
Awkward..
Just a heads-up as it may be sensitive: Kolasinac is Bosnian.
The Burnley bully boys couldn’t handle our resilience. Dyche has turned them into the new stoke.
I was just going to say that… Burnley = New Stoke. I hope Championship will have a big warm welcoming for them next season ha!
Once again lads showed great character out there, not the most exciting game but we got the crutial 3 points.
Ozil haters can fuck off back into hiding again. Thank you for a solid, strong performance. Up the Gunners
Too bad, he already used up his 1 good game in a 5 quota against the mighty relegation fodder burnley.
To be fair I do think most of them begrudgingly admit to his brilliance. They just expect to see it all the time.
The pass was sublime though, still drooling over it.
Yes, the expectation for our man Ozil to do more are always very high. (Guilty as charged here.) As stated, hope all this speculation about him and the club is behind us, and we can get back to concentrating on all the other stuff our glorious team has to offer. On to Brighton!
Time and time again Özil makes people who love criticising him look stupid. Some people need to stop overdosing on the daily/weekly news cycle. Even if there’s ‘something’ going on, it’s a problem for the coach and players to fix, not for us to endlessly speculate over. That’s not football.
Now, Sokratis and Kolasinac roughhousing, that’s football. Özil’s killer passes and Auba’s finishing, thst’s football. Us spoiling Leno’s clean sheet because we couldn’t win headers against Brexit FC, that’s football!
I really like Ozil – he is one of the best in the world when he’s at the top of his game. But even an Ozil fan like myself should be willing to admit he lacks consistency. He is either a 5/10 or a 9/10. Given his game is creativity and he’s a liability defensively it would be nice to see games like this more often. More 7/10 rather than 5/10
Tbf he also makes his die hard fans look stupid too.
It doesn’t make sense to take a fixed position with him. Sometimes he’s hardworking and effective, other times he’s a lazy waster. He’s been here 4 and a half years now, that’s just how it is
My fixed position is we’re lucky to have him, even if we don’t need him for every game because he’s a no.10, and 10s are tricky to shoehorn into modern football teams. He’s one of the hardest players to defend because he sees angles others don’t and runs hard to find spaces to create those angles. That’s where he exerts most of his energy, not in duels. That’s what Emery means by ‘tactical reasons’ for leaving him out of certain games. He’s been here 4 and a half years you’re still using tabloid insults to analyse his game? You lazy… Read more »
I mean we should know him by now and criticize him for not delivering what we have seen him deliver consistently, but instead people still ask for things he has never done. And those 7/10 performances are what he delivers consistently, you just won’t remember this performance by the end of the season. What will stick out is his Leicester performance and he will be criticized for having that performance only this season. People have already forgotten his Watford and Liverpool performances right now, perfect 7/10. or just go back and look at what the player ratings say, you will… Read more »
I would agree we’re lucky to have him, but then he takes up such a large portion of our wage budget, without the equivalent output (and probably it’s unfair to expect that of him, cos frankly his wage is ridiculous). So it’s a difficult one Like sure, his off the ball runs will always give him one of the highest distance run stats. But he treats games too much like a marathon, rather than a series of sprints. When he needs to put in a burst of acceleration or go for a 50-50 ish ball, he often won’t. Those moments… Read more »
Let’s stop pretending football economics and player analysis are the same subjects. If Ozil’s salary is ‘ridiculous’, so is Torreira’s and Aubameyang’s. What’s the difference? Some imaginary number you made up? One of the biggest myths in football is ‘football players are overpaid’. They aren’t just paid to play games, they’re also paid to sacrifice and stay in elite shape 12 months of the year. And for all his flaws, players like Özil are the reason Premier League football is a billion dollar global behemoth. Didn’t mean to be rude to you earlier btw. I was making the point that… Read more »
Aww, poor ballers. paid to stay fit and healthy.
how cruel.
Ozil made a massive creative difference today. Glad he’s back. Also he got involved in confrontations with their thuggish players and encouraged our guys. Nice work to win again.
Acknowledging his flaws isn’t “hating”, he’s not above criticism. He hasn’t been performing and dropping him seemed to provoke a response so let’s just enjoy that and move on.
Or maybe dropping him showed that he shouldn’t have been dropped in the first place because our form also dropped.
We seemed to do ok against Sp*rs without him. I like the guy but let’s not pretend like he’s consistently the best player on the pitch either. He takes up a huge chunk of our wage bill which like it or not means the expectations for him are different than let’s say Iwobi. The top players – Messi, Ronaldo, modric, and others slight below are able to consistently change games. Ozil has that ability but he needs to do it more consistently.
Wow that was tense but you can see how much the injuries are making life difficult, can’t wait for mustafi and Bellarin to return – hopefully in time for the liverpoo game
Burnley are a dreadful side. They need to reduce the size of the premier League so we don’t have to watch them and Huddersfield play. Awful
A good win to bounce back from 2 losses.
Btw the tag should be ‘Premier League’ instead of ‘General’.
I know most will talk about Ozil and Auba but for me,Kola was best. I think , we missed him in last few games more than any other player. This guy is showing why he was in Bundesliga x1. And best part, when he is on, you bet no one can dare to touch our players. I f*** love him
Kolasinac MOM, he’s got really quality to go along with his explosiveness in the final third.
It was a real battle out there, but I thought we stood up well to it, nice to see the lads standing up for each other.
£16mill for Sokratis is exceptional value, in hindsight
we spent really well in the summer
I really hope this game is a turning point for Ozil. Unless we sign an incredible winger in January we really need him motivated and in form to finish top 4
AMN is just such a classy player, would love to see him next to Torreira
As much as I think Guendouzi is a great prospect, I don’t think AMN is a million miles away from him. Hopefully he gets his shot in the middle sooner rather than later.
Agree with Kolasinac for MOTM, he was an absolute beast today and we definitely missed him the last couple of games. If he can iron out some of the flaws in his game he could easily become the best left (wing)back in the league. Overall was a battling if a little unconvincing performance, the players looked a little drained. Always tough over the winter period so hopefully we’ll see some rotation against Brighton before the big one against Liverpool.
Absolutely loved how fast we came out and were in the opposition box in 2 passes for the second goal. This is the one big improvement over Wenger imho.
To be fair, we did that brilliantly in Arsene’s best years.. But loved that today also!
Not great confusing a Bosnian for a Serbian…
Why is it that we don’t tackle? We just cede possession and then continue to back off! It’s as if besides Torreira the rest are a team of bloody shepherds!
well the ozil lovers got there wish, not only did he play, but was captain, so lets see how he played over ninety minutes at home to 2nd from bottom burnley, goals no, assists no, creativity no, so there you are, just an average game for ozil, now lets see the ozil loves say what a superb game he had
One assist actually Afan
Your ship will come in after brexit when every team scrounges for mediocre English players. Till then, keep the faith.
What a bunch of absolute cunts this burnley side is.
Great to see Özil back playing well. What a pass to set up the first goal. Also did great for the third one.
And Sokratis, love it!
Once we get our injured players back and maybe sign someone (CB, winger, or both), we can make it into the top 4.
Emery got a response out of Ozil today, I feel.
….. Or Emery learned that we are better when we play our best players in their best positions? Everyone this whole week seemed to assume he left Ozil out because Ozil is lazy, doesn’t offer what Emery wants or because of a fight, nobody said Emery is trying to elicit a response from him. Now that he plays well, Emery gets credit for the performance. If he wanted a reaction, there are ways to do that without sacrificing results, form and confidence of the team. It’s not just players who have to adjust to the manager, managers also havevto be… Read more »
I don’t care what anybody says, I’m registering that Ozil pass as an assist!
Burnley ARE the new Stoke. Who they’ll soon be joining.
Haven’t seen an Arsenal side this dirty since Bouldy smashed David Hirst in ’93 – LOVING It!!!! More please Mr Emery 🙂 Long long long overdue.