How can you bench a top player for someone who isn’t even supposed to be playing for Burnley? Arteta is ruining the team I’ve worked so hard to build. Arsene Wenger tells Arteta that if he really wants to earn the respect of the £70 million player, he should sit him against Newcastle. This is not the legacy I left behind.
How can you bench a top player for someone who isn't even supposed to be playing for Burnley? Arteta is ruining the team I've worked so hard to build. Arsene Wenger tells Arteta that if he really wants to earn the respect of the £70 million player, he should sit him against Newcastle. This is not the legacy I left behind.
Because of their truly amazing Premier League form, Arsenal entered their Champions League Round of 16 first leg match against Portuguese team Porto as the clear favorite.
It’s not that Mikel Arteta’s team was much weaker than the opposition; it’s just that they were unable to muster a single credible attack.
Wenderson Galeno’s wonder shot in the 94th minute made up for the home team’s lack of control, as evidenced by their 35% possession rate, even though they had the better opportunities and should have taken a 1-0 lead through him in the first half.
In the end, it has thrown a wrench in the Gunners’ plans for Europe, but it’s not fatal. Even though the team as a whole was terrible, two players stood out for their inefficiency.
Bukayo Saka’s numerical performance
The first player to play particularly poorly today was Bukayo Saka.
Although Arsenal has been playing well lately, his lackluster performance against the Dragões will hurt his case for “world-class” status.
The Hale final gem received a 5/10 from Simon Collings of The Standard for his performance, saying he “lacked final product” and “wasn’t really in the game very much.”
Although it’s a harsh evaluation of the usually excellent 22-year-old, his game statistics show that it’s not unfair.
Numbers-based performance by Gabriel Martinelli
Gabriel Martinelli struggled to make an impact on the game from the left as Saka did not succeed in doing so from the right.
Unlike his showing against Burnley last time out, the Brazilian was virtually invisible in Portugal, and when he did get the ball, he struggled to do anything with it.
Collings gave the former Ituano man a 5/10 for his performance, describing him as ‘silent for much of the game.’
Despite receiving the same match rating from the Standard journalist, his figures from the night are considerably more concerning than Saka’s.
