Arsenal kick off their new Premier League campaign tonight at Selhurst Park as they take on Crystal Palace. The Eagles handed the Gunners a costly 3-0 defeat back in April which started a run of three straight defeats, ultimately costing Mikel Arteta’s men a Champions League spot.
Arteta will be hoping that pre-season momentum, which has seen his side win six matches, will help spring a different result this time around. He’ll also be hoping it can be the beginning of a much better start to the campaign than the one endured last season.
Across their opening three Premier League matches last season, the Gunners suffered three defeats and scored no goals while conceding nine times. Arteta though should be confident that his side are set up to avoid such a torrid start this season, as a lot has changed at the club since 12 months ago.
Defensive frailties
One of the most impressive aspects of Arteta’s time at the club is how he has been able to work with technical director Edu to improve the squad in a sustainable way. While there’s been a lot of good business done this summer, this has been actually been a gradual process that’s been going on for some time.
The club’s capture of Gabriel last summer, for example, was a significant move and he’s a player who has greatly improved the defence, highlighted by the fact he had the best defensive duel success rate at Arsenal last season.
The former Lille man was unavailable for those initial weeks of the last campaign though due to a knee injury, and in his place, Arteta was forced to play the likes of Pablo Mari and Calum Chambers to partner with new signing Ben White.
As a result, Arsenal’s defence looked understandably frail across those opening weeks, and it was no surprise that following Gabriel’s return to the side, the backline looked more settled. In the Brazilian's first five appearances, Arsenal kept four clean sheets and conceded just one goal which came during their 3-1 North London derby victory over Tottenham.
Set-piece issues
Of the nine goals the Gunners shipped in those opening three matches, a third came from some form of set-piece. Perhaps the worst was the second goal conceded against Brentford on the opening weekend when a long throw from Mads Bech Sorensen was allowed to bounce in the six-yard box before Christian Norgaard arrived at the far post to head into an empty net.
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher was left staggered at what he watched from the Sky Sports commentary box.“How would you describe Arsenal’s defending here? It’s just Arsenal. Weak. Bullied. Men against boys.”
As the campaign progressed though, such problems from set-pieces began to subside. This would have been thanks to the influence of set-piece specialist Nicolas Jover who was poached from Man City ahead of last season.
While it took time for Jover to make his mark during those initial weeks, it’s no coincidence that Arsenal finished the campaign with only five sides having conceded fewer set-piece goals and they now look well-equipped to deal with these kinds of threats.
Blunt attack
Frailties at the back end of the pitch were enhanced in those initial weeks by a bluntness in the Arsenal attack. A Covid-19 outbreak in the Gunners' squad meant Arteta was without captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette for their opening game at Brentford, yet even when they returned, neither were in the scintillating form that many expect new recruit Gabriel Jesus to be in this season.
The former City man has started like a house on fire during pre-season, scoring seven goals in five games. Supported by players like Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka, Arsenal's attack suddenly looks transformed and goals look almost guaranteed.
