Alexander Isak has had plenty of centre-backs “on toast” this season. It’s why he’s scored 19 goals and has had a £150m price tag slapped on his head by Newcastle amid interest from The Bigger Boys, including Arsenal.
But we weren’t expecting William Saliba’s pants to be pulled down quite so roughly and regularly by the in-demand goalscorer on Wednesday, in a game to perfectly illustrate just how much Arsenal could do with a player of his enviable qualities but also suggested Isak may already be beyond their reach in the transfer market.
Arsenal had fair warning. Isak had already smashed his first chance into the roof of the net having dashed in behind the defence to latch onto an Anthony Gordon through ball, with the goal ruled out for a marginal offside, before the same pair combined to open the scoring.
It was a crucial minute in the game. Martin Odegaard was just starting to assert his dominance after a manic first 15 minutes in which Arsenal heads were spinning in an already fervent atmosphere further buoyed by the clear threat that Isak and Gordon were offering.
And the Gunners captain should have put his side in the lead, slicing a shot as the ball fell kindly to him in the box. Six touches after the resulting goal kick and Newcastle were ahead through a goal displaying their individual quality and outstanding efficiency.
Saliba made a mistake he didn’t recover from. So used to bullying strikers along with Gabriel, he got a taste of his own medicine, in what was his worst ever game for Arsenal. He was all over the place.
He got in front of Isak as Martin Dubravka went long but the striker stuck out a toe to nick it in front of him, spun in behind and got the ball back from Gordon before smashing a curling shot beyond David Raya and onto the post, with Jacob Murphy following in to finish.
Saliba was booked just before half-time as he was caught out by a simple ball over the top and pulled Gordon back, and he continued to deteriorate as the game wore on to the point where he could barely control the ball or make any decision that wasn’t to the detriment of his team.
Gordon should have doubled Newcastle’s lead shortly after the break as Saliba dallied inexplicably under pressure, but chose to shoot from distance with Raya out of his goal having pinched the ball from the Arsenal defender, rather than dribbling closer to the target. Three minutes later he did get his goal, instead preying on a Raya error.
The goalkeeper played that horrible short pass into midfield that he and all of his counterparts appear obsessed with but cause those of us watching to grimace in anticipation of the worst case scenario, which seems to happen enough to make that pass redundant despite their persistence, and the worst did indeed happen on this occasion.
We weren’t surprised to see Declan Rice beaten to the ball by a Newcastle presser in that position, but were surprised to note that it was centre-back Fabian Schar challenging him on the edge of the 18-yard box.
His brilliant tackle fell to Gordon, who passed the ball into the corner to secure a very, very comfortable victory for Newcastle. Arsenal finished the game with 68 per cent possession, but the home side were in complete control throughout.
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The talk from Gary Neville on commentary as the game drifted into a pattern of Newcastle absorbing nothing attacks from Arsenal inevitably led to the Gunners’ “toothless” forwards in comparison to Newcastle’s indomitable striker and his formidable stooge on the wing.
And you’ve got to wonder whether the Arsenal chiefs may have tried harder to bring in a more prolific forward before the transfer window closed if this game had been played on Sunday instead of the 5-1 hammering of Manchester City.
We’ll never know, but after such a huge high in which Arsenal’s title hopes were boosted, this game brought them crashing back down to earth in dramatic fashion, not just as they’ve been denied the chance of a very welcome trophy after four-and-a-half years without one, but also because of how fleeting the suggestion that they may be alright without a new centre-forward has proven to be.
Once again the narrative will be that they’ll never win anything while Kai Havertz leads the line, with this defeat the nightmare scenario for him, Arteta and the club bosses, who again rested on their laurels rather than making hay while the sun shines, or rather shone.
Isak would be perfect, but they will have to break the British transfer record and then some to land him, with his level now such that departure from Newcastle when it comes will be to a real European giant, rather than to a club that we can rely on to fluff chances both on and off the pitch to prove they’re worthy of that label.
