Arsenal went into last night’s game with a whole lot of momentum behind them after putting together four straight wins, but they came out of it wondering how they could possibly hope to finish in the top six – or even top four – given the creative spark that they’re lacking. Today, we’re going to note down a few things that we’ve come to learn in the wake of what can only be described as a very disappointing 0-0 result against Crystal Palace.
Auba’s struggles continue
For whatever reason, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang just hasn’t looked like himself in the last few months – and that trend continued last night. He was once considered to be the best striker in the Premier League, and when we say once, it wasn’t all too long ago. The lingering fear seems to be that he has permanently lost his mojo but the only way we’re going to know for sure is by waiting to see whether or not he can break this poor run of form.
Masking over Palace’s problems
They may have hit the bar and Eze may have stood out as a real high quality talent, but that doesn’t mean Crystal Palace fans should be happy with this result. The Gunners were there for the taking but instead of taking the game by the scruff of the neck, they were pretty content to sit back and occasionally push forward on the counter. It seems likely that Roy Hodgson is going to leave sooner rather than later and that may be exactly what this club needs.
Top four hopes dwindling
While you can blame the absence of Kieran Tierney on a game like this, that doesn’t take away from the fact that this wasn’t the sort of performance you’d expect from a team hoping to make a top four push. Arsenal are currently priced at 14/1 with 888sport to finish in the top four and that makes them ninth in the list behind the likes of Everton, Aston Villa and Leicester City. That simply isn’t good enough, but it’s certainly the reality they have to face as we look ahead to the final few months of the season.
Match Report
Arsenal: Leno (7), Maitland-Niles (7), Luiz (6.5), Holding (7), Bellerin (6.5), Xhaka (8), Ceballos (7), Aubameyang (6.5), Smith Rowe (6.5), Saka (7), Lacazette (6.5), Pepe (6.5), Nketiah (6), Partey (7)
Crystal Palace: Guaita (7.5), Ward (6.5), Tomkins (7.5), Kouyate (6.5), Mitchell (7), Townsend (7), McArthur (7), Milivojevic (7), Eze (8), Benteke (7), Zaha (6.5), McCarthy (6), Ayew (6)
Referee: Andre Marriner
Goals: N/A
Yellow Cards: Luiz, Tomkins
Red Cards: N/A
- Soccer News Like
- Be the first of your friends!
