London — This is exactly what Arsenal desperately needed at the start of the season. Bukayo Saka’s absence has gone on too long.What managers crave more than anything at this stage of the season: extended workouts, extended sessions of at least 45 minutes to begin to alleviate the problems that have prevented them from running for more than two months.
That’s not meant to disparage Ipswich Town, who gave the home side at least a moment to think about in the second half. But what they didn’t do was capitalize on the moments when Arsenal chose to look confused and figure it out. At the death, Ipswich might have gained something (the third shot of the game saw their xG soar from 0.04 to 0.16). Kieran McKenna’s team organized themselves well, kept as much space between the lines as possible and approached every challenge with enthusiasm. In the second half, they even pushed into the Arsenal penalty area. They are not good enough to test the Premier League’s best.
In that sense, they are exactly as Arsenal want to test an attack that will undergo its second identity change of the season. No Saka means no leading shooter, no best chance creator, no best way to progress the ball. Simply put, this means a lot of adjustments on the fly.
From the start, Arteta took much the same approach he took when Martin Odegaard was sidelined for two months at the start of the season. With no one to play for, liquidity will be the name of the game. “Saka’s replacement will be the team,” Arteta said. “We spent time together and asked different questions. There were moments where the flow was really good, and there were moments where we could improve it and adapt to individual qualities. I am confident we will do that.”
The team sheet would have you believe that Gabriel Jesus will lead the line with Leandro Trossar on the left and Gabriel Martinelli on the right. For the most part, that was how Arsenal landed, but there wasn’t much of a static display from this team with Saka and Odegaard doing their jobs down the right flank. The opening offense of the game saw Trossard move infield. Kai Havertz pushes forward to form two attackers while Jesus also looks for a drift down the left.
Martinelli, who had launched a number of tempting crosses from the right before half-time, drifted infield aiming to chase a long ball over the top of the Ipswich line.
The common denominator was greater pressure in the penalty area, and Havertz’s presence in the left eight meant this was an XI with as much goal threat as Arteta could muster without Saka and Raheem Sterling. When that worked, Arsenal had had enough. Trossard’s low cross, Jesus hit the near post and Havertz hit the back. It came to Germany and Arsenal had their goal.
That was all they needed, but they could have had more. Havertz could have done better in the 75th minute. Odegaard’s uneven play still saw him beat three men and fire a shot that floated into the fingertips of Arijanet Muric. Substitute Mikel Merino curled it temptingly wide. The most shocking thing of all was that Gabriel, the king of set pieces, scored a header from 3 yards out.
It wasn’t particularly thrilling, and the second half was a bit too cumbersome at times. Clearly, Arteta needs more options to rely on on the bench, which has four left-backs and no real forwards. Nevertheless, Arsenal looked to win this game more cleanly without their most reliable shot creator and taker.
Meanwhile they block out the sun at the other end. A no-hitter game in which the opponent fails to make a shot remains tantalizingly out of reach. Kalvin Phillips, did you have to hit one there? But this is a backline that routinely gives David Raya nothing to do. Even when he and William Saliba decided to turn the second-half kick-off into a comical situation, they managed to turn what promised to be a straight shot on goal for Sammie Szmodics into a no-shot situation. Since the last international break they have given up less xG than Tottenham allowed to Liverpool on Sunday and the margin is not very close. If the offense is going to be a Saka-free zone, at least the defense is loaded with William Salibas, Gabriels and even Myles Lewis-Skellys. Myles Lewis-Skellys is cool enough to feel the pressure when someone threatens a team-mate.
“We should have scored more goals but consistency was the problem,” Arteta said. “The team did not concede anything. The defensive action was outstanding once again. That will always give us a chance to win the game.”
And perhaps he will be the man Arsenal need to be if they are to continue their quest for the title after two-plus months without Saka. There are two or three forwards in the Premier League this season. The offense may need time to figure out how to thrive without its star man on the right side. But fortunately for Arteta, the defense seems ready to give them just that.
