And here is David Hytner’s match report from the Emirates.
Time for me to pass the baton to Tom Davies, who is keeping an eye on all the 3pm kick-offs. Arsenal are four points ahead again, at least until 7.30 tonight. They now have a 42pc chance of winning the title according to Opta, which means they’re still on course for one of the all-time great trophyless seasons. Thanks for your company, correspondence and strong views on VAR.
Mikel Arteta’s transfer decisions last summer, which baffled a few people at the time, are now looking rather good.
Officially official 🧤
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) May 4, 2024
David Raya wins the Premier League Golden Glove award ❤️ pic.twitter.com/lZihE7Q0Dp
That last remark of mine didn’t go down well with Joseph Saviri. “You should be getting every thing right,” he says. “No, we remember crucial decisions [VAR] has got wrong. And. You. Wonder. Why. This. Country. Is. In. Such. A. Mess.” Oof. Can you let us know if there’s a country that gets all its refereeing decisions right?
“Another Premier League game,” says Filip Gieldon, “yet more evidence that English referees and VAR in particular are completely useless. Should have been a straight red on Christie for that horror tackle on Saka, was a clear dive by Havertz and I still don’t know why that Bournemouth goal was disallowed. 3/3 clear mistakes by VAR. Oh and what’s that – an article posted by The Guardian on how great VAR and refereeing has been this season? Got it.” Ouch. It is possible, isn’t it, that the system (maddening as it can be) gets most things right, and we remember what it gets wrong.
In other news, Ipswich are back in the Premier League. What a story that is: two seasons as manager for Kieran McKenna, two promotions. And Birmingham have gone down to League One, paying the price for their dismal decision to sack John Eustace. All the details here from Scott Murray.
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Here’s Declan Rice, who now has seven goals and nine assists this season. The crowd have been serenading him with Rice Rice Baby. “Gets me every time,” he says with a smile. “First half, I was fuming to be honest. Could have been four or five… Still think we can improve in the second half, became a bit of a basketball match and that’s not really our game.”
Arsenal won the first half 1-0, when it should have been 4-0. And they won the second half 2-0 when it could easily have been 1-1. Bournemouth were hard done by having that goal disallowed, but they couldn’t complain overall because they didn’t turn up for a 12.30 kick-off until 1.45.
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FULL TIME! Arsenal 3-0 Bournemouth
And that is that. Arsenal get their 26th league win of the season and lift their goal difference to +60.
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90+8 min Jesus did the hard work, jinking in from the right. Rice picked the ball up in the middle of the box and swerved right to carve out enough space to finish. He deserved that.
GOAL! Arsenal 3-0 Bournemouth (Rice 90+7)
A lovely move, rounded off by a fine shot.
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90+5 min Raya has a dicey moment, coming for a chip and then dropping the ball, but his defenders manage to clear. Christie commits a foul in midfield and finally goes into the book, about 80 minutes after he should have.
90+3 min Iraola has made two more changes – Aarons for Smith and Faivre for Kluivert.
90+2 min The corner is overhit, allowing Arsenal to get upfield.
90+1 min There will be eight extra minutes. Bournemouth get a free kick on the right, which leads to a corner on the left – their first of the day.
88 min The player of the match is Declan Rice, who settled the contest, and the crowd’s nerves, by getting the only assist.
88 min Arsenal couldn’t complain about that, unlike Bournemouth when they had the ball in the net.
Disallowed goal!
A scorcher from Gabriel with his left foot… or maybe his shin. But the flag is up, probably for Havertz.
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85 min A second Arsenal sub: Jesus replaces Saka, who gets an even bigger ovation than Trossard.
84 min Bournemouth have some possession without managing a shot. When Arsenal win the ball back on their left, Havertz draws a foul from Adam Smith, who goes into the book.
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83 min Martinelli instantly races into the area and thinks he’s won a penalty, but David Coote doesn’t agree and neither does the VAR.
81 min Havertz misses a sitter, hitting the bar – but he’s offside anyway. Trossard goes off, pursued by a fond ovation that would not have happened if he hadn’t finally scored.
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80 min Iraola sends on Unal for Senesi. And I missed a sub of his a few minutes ago, sorry – Billing for Scott.
77 min Up the other end, Partey releases Saka, whose cutback looks like a gift for Odegaard … but he shoots into the side netting.
No, no goal
We’re in the netherworld of endless replays… and in the end, the decision is upheld. Iraola can’t believe it, and it does seem as if Bournemouth have a strong case. Solanke was penalised for allegedly fouling Raya, when he didn’t do much at all.
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74 min Bournemouth hit the bar with one volley, then found the net with another – and they think there was a foul against them…
Bournemouth get the ball in the net!
… but the ref blows for a free kick to Arsenal.
72 min Arsenal’s goal difference is now 59. They’re nine up on Man City, and it still may not be enough.
71 min Rice, back to goal, got the assist with a lovely deft touch and Trossard, who could well have been subbed at half-time, finally found a decent finish, slotting the ball into the far corner.
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GOAL! Arsenal 2-0 Bournemouth (Trossard 71)
This is all about Declan Rice.
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68 min The Bournemouth midfield, who had nothing to declare in the first half but their fouling ability, are now playing some masterly through balls. The latest one reaches Semenyo, who could do better than to have a cross blocked.
67 min Solanke, back in his own box, heads a corner clear. The shot count is now 20-6, so it’s been 5-4 to Bournemouth since half-time.
66 min Up the other end, the ball skims across the six-yard box with nobody to poke it home. Where’s Jesus when you need him?
65 min A great ball from Christie sets Kluivert free down the left, but he takes too long pondering his options and ends up having his shot blocked.
63 min The shot from Kluivert goes over the bar. Jorginho is warming up as Arsenal look to regain control.
62 min Free kick to Bournemouth near the D.
60 min The hour glass flips over with Bournemouth still playing a lot better than they were. Arsenal have responded with a few fouls – there’s been a yellow card for Partey for a rough tackle, and now Havertz has got one too, for an elbow in an aerial duel.
59 min Another shot for Bournemouth! From Kluivert, storming in from the left, well struck but wide.
57 min From the corner, Gabriel’s header goes wide of the near post. A moment later, Odegaard shoots way over the bar from a promising position.
57 min Normal service is resumed as Arsenal win a corner. We need a special camera on Ben White.
56 min Bournemouth are being more purposeful, and they’ve even edged the possession in this half, 55 to 45. When they get their final touch right, it’ll be game on.
55 min Half-chance for Saka! Well policed by Lewis Cook, who just manages to curl his right foot round Saka’s left and get the ball.
53 min Bournemouth have a shot! Their first for about 50 minutes. It falls to the right man, Solanke, but the angle is tight and his shot is straight at Raya.
52 min Arsenal dance around the edge of the box. The chance falls to Havertz, whose left-foot shot is not sharp enough.
49 min Chance for Saka! Rice wins the ball back high up and pokes it to Havertz, who slides it square to Saka. He has plenty of time but, for once, not enough composure, and his shot is easily saved by Travers. Saka remains on a mere 20 goals for the season.
48 min A bit better from Bournemouth, who get Semenyo foraging in from the right, but the attack soon peters out.
46 min Arsenal kick off and get forward right away.
It’s been a game of one side.
16 shots and 2.2 expected goals for Arsenal in the first 45 minutes.
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) May 4, 2024
They've not managed more than either of those in any first half in the Premier League this season!#ARSBOU pic.twitter.com/PwJlc7XYcn
Key event
“Havertz’ significant improvement has been a huge relief,” says Alex Whitney, “but there are two downsides to his game that still frustrate – his occasionally leaden feet, and his diving. This was not a penalty. Have to feel for Travers and Bournemouth.”
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This email came in around the half-hour mark. “With many refs both Scott and Christie would have accumulated enough cards to be sent off by now,” wrote David Dein. “That studs-on-knee challenge should have been a red on its own; what the hell is VAR for if it’s not to protect from that kind of challenge?” Good question, and I have one for you: are you the David Dein?
HALF-TIME! Arsenal 1-0 Bournemouth
They should be 4-0 up, with all the chances they’ve had, but maybe Arsenal will take 1-0 after doing everything right except being clinical in front of goal. They have cut through Bournemouth’s midfield at will and had 16 of the 17 attempts on goal. They should still run away with this, but you never know.
45+4 min Iraola has been waving his arms, willing his team to get up the pitch. They respond with another of their half-minute spells of possession.
45+2 min We’re having four added minutes, which the crowd are using to do some triumphal singing.
45 min Saka kept calm and slotted the ball to his left, while Travers went the other way. Pressure? What pressure?
GOAL! Arsenal 1-0 Bournemouth (Saka 45, pen)
Saka steps up … and scores!
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Penalty confirmed!
After a dozen replays, the VAR agrees with David Coote.
Penalty to Arsenal!
41 min Travers may have got it wrong this time, bringing Havertz down – though the keeper is insisting that Havertz dangled a foot out…
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40 min Save! As Rice closes in on a teasing chip from Odegaard, Travers dives in and punches the ball away. He’s made of stern stuff.
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39 min That brought the biggest oooh of the game so far, and there have been a few.
38 min Big miss! Rice has a golden chance from ten yards but the ball is spinning away from him and it goes wide.
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37 min Havertz can’t sort his feet out at point-blank range, so the ball just hits him – but the flag goes up anyway, as White had gone too early.
35 min Saliba gets into a race with Justin Kluivert, who matches him for pace but then fouls him. Arsenal go a-probing again.
33 min Bournemouth finally string together some passes in the middle of the field.
31 min Arsenal are playing so imperiously that Bournemouth look like the team who were 19th in the autumn. But still, after half an hour, there’s no goal to show for it.
28 min Someone has dared Ryan Christie to see how many times he can foul Saka without going into the book. He’s now on three.
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27 min Arsenal reassert themselves, probing on the edge of the box. The chance eventually falls to Partey, whose left-foot strike is not as surgical as it needs to be.
26 min Newsflash: Bournemouth have kept the ball for half a minute. Just a shame they’re playing sideways at the back.
25 min Havertz goes down in the area … and gets penalised himself, for an elbow on the defender. Fair enough.
23 min As Bournemouth get some respite from the offside flag, a stat box tells us how the possession has gone for the past five minutes: Arsenal 96 per cent, Bournemouth 4.
23 min Another big chance! Odegaard curls the free kick to Tomiyasu, who nods it down for Partey – whose shot flies into Row Z.
22 min There could easily have been three or four cards so far. Instead we’ve now got the first, for Alex Scott, for a late tackle on the ubiquitous Trossard.
21 min From the corner, Tomiyasu gets up for a free header and it’s hard to see how he doesn’t score. That was the best of Arsenall’s 11 chances.
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20 min And here’s the tenth, a shot from Saka, who is fine now and twisting his way into the box. Pushed away for a corner.
19 min Arsenal’s defending has been immaculate until now, when Gabriel stumbles under pressure from Solanke. His mate Saliba gets him out of trouble… and a minute later gets a chance himself, in the inside-right channel. His shot is saved by Travers, and then Trossard has a go for the umpteenth time. Arsenal have already had nine attempts.
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15 min We’ve just had a huge round of applause for Daniel Anjorin, the 14-year-old Arsenal fan who lost his life in the sword attack.
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14 min Saka is back on. Yet another shot, from Havertz, and yet another block.
11 min Bukayo Saka is down and beating the pitch in pain. He was kicked on the knee by Ryan Christie, whose boot was decidedly high.
10 min A glimmer for Bournemouth, snuffed out by Raya, playing the sweeper-keeper.
9 min Big chance! For Trossard, as Havertz sets White free with a backheel and the cutback comes in.
8 min Another shot, from Saka, worming his way into the box as he so often does. Blocked again.
7 min Shots! From Trossard and then Odegaard, both blocked. Trossard had more time and space.
6 min Arsenal have a four-on-three with Declan Rice advancing imperiously, but he delays his ball to Saka and finds him off-balance. Saka still does enough to win a corner.
5 min When Bournemouth threaten to break, Tomiyasu does well to win the ball back. Arsenal are already looking dominant.
3 min The first spell of sustained pressure from Arsenal. Plenty of probing without the killer pass.
2 min Arsenal get into the box as a long forward throw from White finds Havertz, who tries to crank up the Odegaard-Saka goal machine. Mind you, Haveertz has become a goal machine lately – a far cry from the forlorn figure who needed to be handed a penalty when Arsenal last played Bournemouth.
1 min Bournemouth kick off, go long and win a free kick on the left wing. Gabriel heads it clear.
Mikel Arteta is in his seat, black-clad and quite impassive. His childhood pal Andoni Iraola is in black too.
“Looking forward to your MBM for the game,” says Vaibhav Raghunandan, “as I’m stuck on a train from Amsterdam to Berlin which has been delayed by an hour due to some trouble on the track. (Not the first time I’ve been on a train to Germany with a delay. Efficient = not.) Hoping for a sufficiently easy Arsenal win – love the Basque connection and the beautiful story, but this is about breaking a petrostate’s hegemony.”
The teams are out there in the spring sunshine. It’s so bright, it even puts Ben White’s tan in the shade.
More pre-match reading. Paul MacInnes has been looking into the impact of VAR … and finding that it’s not all bad.
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An email! “I guess you mean Iraola is this season’s 2022-23 Unai Emery,” says Adam Becker. “Who will be next season’s 2023-24 Unai Emery? Probably nobody, but it’s still crazy to think that Villa looked likely to be relegated only like 20 or so months ago.” It seems a little early to be writing off all of next season’s managers, but you’re right, I did mean that Iraola is this season’s answer to what Emery was last season. He may even go on to be next season’s answer to this season’s Emery.
Pre-match reading: from the last time these teams met, Sid Lowe’s fascinating piece about the two managers, who were born “less than three months and six miles apart”.
Teams in full
Arsenal (4-3-3) Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Tomiyasu; Partey, Rice, Odegaard; Saka, Havertz, Trossard.
Subs: Ramsdale, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Jorginho, Vieira, Smith Rowe, Jesus, Nketiah, Martinelli.
Bournemouth (4-2-3-1) Travers; Smith, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Ouattara; Cook, Christie; Semenyo, Scott, Kluivert; Solanke.
Subs: Neto, McKenna, Aarons, Hill, Kinsey-Wellings, Faivre, Billing, Unal, Sadi.
Referee David Coote.
Teams in brief: two changes for Bournemouth
Iraola makes two changes to the team that thumped Brighton. Illia Zabarnyi and Ryan Christie come in for Lloyd Kelly and Enes Unal.
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Teams in brief: Arsenal unchanged
Mikel Arteta sticks with the XI that won the first half of the north London derby, so Trossard starts and Martinelli is on the bench.
Preamble
Morning everyone and welcome to the first Premier League game of the day. It’s not the Championship finale, obviously, but it’s still pretty appetising. Arsenal are top of the league, even if they are nobody’s favourites to win it. With 80 points in the bag, they already have two more than they needed to seal the title in 1997-98. They have scored the most goals in the Premier League and conceded the fewest. And yet they still have a wobble in them, as they showed in that week when they lost to both Villa and Bayern.
Bournemouth are tenth, which represents a spectacular transformation. On 26 October they were 19th; since the beginning of December they’ve been fifth; since the beginning of March, third. Their manager, Andoni Iraola, has been this season’s Unai Emery. Both of them, like Mikel Arteta, come from the Basque Country, now the most fertile soil in the world for growing football managers.
In the reverse fixture Bournemouth lost 4-0 and became the first of many clubs to be routed by this new, ruthless Arsenal. But that was more than seven months ago. Bournemouth are a very different beast now. With their tireless pressing and rapid counters, they could have been designed to play away from home. Arsenal should still win the game, but may not find it easy. It could be a cracker.
Kick-off is at 12.30pm local time and I’ll be back soon with the teams.
