Arsenal temporarily will go 4 points clear of the Premier League with a convincing 3-0 win at home to Bournemouth which could and should have been more.
For the third match in a row Mikel Arteta opted to name an unchanged XI from the side that won the North London Derby the week prior. Despite stating in his pre-match press conference that Jurrien Timber was fit enough for selection, the Dutchman did not make the matchday squad. Keeping Arsenal fans waiting for the defenders return.
As the season comes to a close Arsenal can’t afford to do anything but win their games, and showed their intent early on as Bournemouth’s Mark Travers was busy early on, saving efforts from Bukayo Saka and William Saliba to keep the scores level. Leandro Trossard and Thomas Partey also both fired over from inside the Bournemouth penalty area as Arsenal continued to rack up the shots and dominate the game but couldn’t find the back of the net. The biggest chance of the first 40 monutes fell to Declan Rice as a Kai Havertz header was nodded back towards the midfielder but his half-volleyed effort was struck just wide of the post. For all their chances however, it would be from the spot where the Gunners would finally take the lead just before the break when Havertz was adjudged to have been taken out by Travers and after a VAR check, Saka was given the chance to give Arsenal the lead they craved. He calmly slotted away the penalty to score his 20th goal in all competitions in the process, hitting that milestone for the first time in his career.
Despite being in total control with the visitors failing to properly threaten, it was clear Arsenal needed a second goal to put any doubts away. And they should have got it in the opening minutes of the second period when Havertz played the ball across the penalty area for Saka but the young winger saw his strike saved by Travers. As the half wore on Bournemouth began to grow in confidence and saw chances begin to come their way. Dominic Solanke forced Raya to make his first save of the afternoon at his near post and Justin Kluivert struck wide from the edge of the box. However, that second Arsenal goal finally came on the 70th minute when a pass from Rice found Leandro Trossard who finished confidently into the far bottom corner to double the lead and all but secure the three points for Mikel Arteta’s side.
Although, the lead could easily have been wiped back to one just two minutes later as Solanke’s deflected finish found the back of David Raya’s net, however luckily for Arsenal VAR ruled out the effort due to a foul on the Arsenal keeper. The home side also had a goal of their own chalked off as a brilliant half volley from Gabriel found the far top corner, however unfortunately for the Brazilian defender Havertz was offside in the build-up.
Eight minutes were added on and that would prove to be long enough for Arsenal to score one more as Rice ran onto a pass from substitute Gabriel Jesus and finished into the bottom corner with a powerful strike to round of a excellent individual and team performance. The final whistle blew soon after, securing three points for Arsenal, their 26th win of the Premier League campaign.
Mikel Arteta’s team travel to Old Trafford in their penultimate game of the season, after Manchester City play twice…
Player Ratings:
David Raya: 7 – Had little to do but another clean sheet confirmed his Golden Glove win
Ben White: 7 – Did well up against Kluivert
William Saliba: 8 – Brilliant on the ball and defensively including a key tackle on Solanke in the first half
Gabriel: 7 – Made a shaky error in the first half but was bailed out by Saliba, recovered afterwards though
Takehiro Tomiyasu: 7 – Quietly very solid. Made a number of important clearances
Thomas Partey: 7 – Another confident showing from Arsenal’s no.5
Declan Rice: 9 – A goal capped off a excellent display which deservedly saw a 10th MOTM award for the season for Arsenal’s £100 million man
Martin Odegaard: 8 – Ran the show at times with his delightful footwork
Bukayo Saka: 8 – Scored the opener and was a threat all day, should’ve had a second though
Kai Havertz: 7 – Won the penalty and put in a real shift upfront both on and off the ball
Leandro Trossard 7 – Scored the crucial second goal to continue his fine goalscoring form