Kevin Whitcher's Arsenal Blog

Brentford 0 Arsenal 1    League Cup 3rd Round   Wednesday 27th September 2023 7.45pm    It was obvious that Mikel Arteta was going to use the visit to Brentford to give gametime to the players we’ve not seen much of so far this season for this League Cup 3rd Round tie, and the side he put out performed capably and warranted their progress to the next round, although Brentford did come very close to scoring more than once. What most impressed was that, unlike the normally disjointed performances we generally see in the early stages of this competition, the team looked cohesive and in many respects not very much inferior to a first choice eleven. Granted, the youngster Sagoe Jr lacked the thrust of Bakayo Saka whose position he played in, but the team were generally tidy in possession, except for the odd lapse by Jorginho, which was a little unfortunate after last weekend.    It was a chance for certain players to make a claim for a starting spot at the weekend, not least Aaron Ramsdale

  Arsenal 2 Tottenham Hotspur 2     Premier League    Sunday 24th September 2023 2pm    So, we waited to see if the  Ange Postecoglou revolution was the real deal, and in fairness to Spurs, if they continue playing with the organisation and motivation we saw at the Emirates yesterday, I can see them qualifying for next season’s Champions League. They may have enjoyed a midweek without a fixture, something Arsenal did not, but they made use of whatever physical advantage they may have enjoyed to make this north London derby a difficult one for their hosts, closing down space and forcing errors.    In spite of this, Arsenal should really have won this match, going ahead twice, but unable to maintain or increase their lead. The starting eleven saw David Raya retained, and with Trossard injured, both Jesus and Nketiah started, with Vieira replacing Havertz. Saka benefitted from a deflection to give his side the lead, and that opener after 25 minutes was recorded as an own goal by Romero. A

Arsenal 4 PSV Eindhoven 0     Champions League Group B Matchday One    Wednesday 20th September 2023 8pm    It’s been a while. Arsenal last took part in the group stage of the Champions League in the final months of 2016, and seven years on, elite European competition returned to the Emirates in the shape of a group game against some familiar opposition – PSV Eindhoven. They’d played the Gunners in the group stage of the Europa League last season, defeating them 2-0 in Eindhoven. Arteta’s team had won 1-0 in a re-arranged fixture at home, but last night the margin of victory, and on-field supremacy, was significantly better.   The main talking point in the team selection was that David Raya started again, after making his debut against Everton last weekend. It was a clear indication that the number one spot is his to lose, there’s to be no policy of rotating between the Premier League and Europe, and it seems likely Aaron Ramsdale’s future participation will be in domestic cup games, u

Everton 0 Arsenal 1       Premier League    Sunday 17th September 2023 4.30pm    Arsenal had to be patient, but the seeming injustice of a disallowed goal in the first half didn’t matter in the end as Mikel Arteta enjoyed a win at his old stomping ground in a largely frustrating game at Everton. The Toffees are due to move into a new stadium halfway through next season. It means that this might prove to be the last occasion the Gunners visit a ground that has provided a mix of good and bad memories over their history – either because Sean Dyche’s side could be relegated or dependent on how the 2024-25 fixture list pans out.    The starting selection chosen by the Arsenal manager had a couple of changes with Raya and Vieira starting instead of Ramsdale and Havertz. You’d imagine there will be some changes as the Champions League gets under way and midweek games become the norm, so rotation needs to happen and different players offer different options.    Raya might not have been tested

Arsenal 3 Manchester United 1       Premier League    Sunday 3rd September 2023 4.30pm    It was a glorious September afternoon that saw Arsenal take a deserved three points against Manchester United, although that was in serious doubt until second half injury time. The opposition turned up for all the world looking like Newcastle United, which makes me ponder which Man Utd fans would actually buy such a replica top. More significantly, Arsenal’s defence had a far more familiar look, as Gabriel returned, Zinchenko started and Ben White was moved back to right back. In front of them it was as expected with Kai Havertz retained and Eddie Nketiah given the nod over the not yet match fit Gabriel Jesus.    Havertz did not have a particularly impressive game. He mishit a clear chance to score early on and lost possession in the build-up to United’s first goal, which gave them the lead with less than half an hour gone. There seem to be too camps where the German is concerned. Those that have