Kiwior has really answered the call when Big Gabby went out. He's solid, reliable, and has made some crucial interventions, including at least one today. p.s. And he's even playing as RCB for the last 45 mins today, not exactly his comfort zone FWIK
81' Arteta gets a yellow for an errant pass, or perhaps time wasting? Not smart perhaps, because he'll now be banned for our final match at Soton.
Trossard down... and out.. And the boss is going to give KT3 one last run out at the Grove. Nice touch. For a consumate pro.
FT ARS 1-0 NEW With that we clinch a UCL spot for next season. And wen Mikel was asked the other day about the "Wenger trophy" he wisely declined to comment. And for the second match running, we stink up 1T and then turn things around in 2T. Better that way than the reverse I suppose. Two players made the difference for us today: Raya (crucial saves but TBH those were some of his own doing), and Rice (clinicality that we've been pining for) We'll miss Arteta at Soton, but results against Citeh aside, we should win that and clinch 2nd place. It's in our hands.
a brief shot of Saliba post-match and he didn't look exactly joyous. not wanting to read too many tea leaves but his removal at HT does beg a few questions
Happy as hell for the win but we were damn lucky. 9 times out of 10, they would have had a goal from that Raya super double save. They were missing key players and still manage to dominate us on our own pitch in most of the first half. late 90s, early 2000s Chelsea had a very decent record against Man Utd for whatever reason. We had a very good 2nd half but needed massive changes in both players and style. We'll see after the summer signings if we can change things. Just glad for the win. Is it me or does Rice seem tired as hell. He looks over worked and needs a rest. Great to see Havertz back. Not sure what Nwaneri has done to piss off Arteta. Maybe parked in his reserved spot or something. Hopefully he'll get minutes at Soton.
Here's my speculation that I think is reasonable. He's 17 and has played more minutes than anyone would have expected. He's hit a bit of a physical wall (not surprising given his age) which has coincided with Saka returning and taking the minutes in the spot he was getting his most minutes. And today, we're holding on to a 1-goal, looking gassed, so Arteta subs on a tall player in Kai and two veterans in probably their last appearances at the Emirates.
I think there is a good chance Nwaneri starts or at least plays the entire second half at Southampton. The fan base has been very weird about Nwaneri not realizing he is 17-18 and it’s hard for young attackers to step up.