da 888casino： Arsenal emerged from the rubble of a tough result in the Premier League last time out in perfect fashion.
da gbg bet： A week ago, Mikel Arteta defended his players profusely, but one thing he did not defend was VAR and the officials.
His rant at full-time after being defeated by Newcastle 1-0 was extraordinary. The club even released a statement pleading for better officials. Both instances were peculiar given the vast majority of calls at St James' Park were subjective.
Nonetheless, Arsenal have been keen to move on from that saga. A comfortable win over Sevilla in the Champions League in midweek was backed up by a 3-1 victory over newly promoted Burnley on Saturday. Prior to Sunday's games, it was a result that lifted them to second in the table following Tottenham's late loss versus Wolves.
Arsenal's best player vs Burnley
A number of candidates could have taken this award home. Leandro Trossard, who now has six goals in all competitions this term, showed incredible bravery to score in the dying embers of the first half. He clattered into both goalkeeper and post but came away with the ultimate reward; a goal.
Further plaudits should go to Oleksandr Zinchenko who in the words of Arsenal reporter Connor Humm on Saturday, was "absolutely everywhere".
The Ukrainian has looked out of sorts at times this season, notably from a defensive point of view. His ability to switch off has seen him hooked early in games on more than one occasion by Arteta, with Takehiro Tomiyasu preferred in his stead. Such an eventuality means Zinchenko has been in and out of the team but he showed why he was such an impressive capture from City this weekend.
Indeed, he took up his usual inverted role and did so phenomenally. No player on the pitch managed more than his 117 touches of the ball.
Arsenal's worst player vs Burnley
This wasn't really an afternoon for criticism. Despite a scare courtesy of Josh Brownhill in the second half it was ultimately a comfortable outing for the Gunners.
That said, Kai Havertz was hauled off again after a questionable performance. There are slight signs of life that the German is now adapting and improving. If it wasn't for a tremendous block in the opening 45 minutes he may have scored.
That said, the former Chelsea man left the field having completed just 77% of his passes. Of those to start the game in an Arsenal shirt, only goalkeeper David Raya registered a worse success rate.
The true villain of the party, however, was Havertz's substitute. Fabio Vieira was given some time to prove himself ahead of a busy schedule after the international break but did not pass the test.
With Martin Odegaard still injured, this was the perfect time for the Portuguese talent to show he can step up when required. Step up he did not.
It was a largely nothing cameo from the 23-year-old who would be sent for an early bath after a stupid challenge that referee Michael Oliver saw fit to show a red card for. There were no complaints about the officials this time; Oliver got it spot on.
The moment was aptly summed up by the Standard's Simon Collings who gave Vieira a 3/10 match rating post-game, while writing: 'Shown a straight red card after catching Brownhill on his knee. The ball was bouncing, but it was dangerous.'
Former Gunners Perry Groves lamented the challenge as "silly" before suggesting on talkSPORT: "I think he’s having an identity crisis, he thinks he’s Patrick Vieira. Because it was a ridiculously shocking challenge."
Red Card
1
Touches
5
Pass Success
3/4 (75%)
Key Passes
0
Crosses
0
Shots
0
Duels Won
1/2
Stats via Sofascore.
Comedic words but the truth. Vieira was not on the pitch to influence games like this. Instead, he should have been in attacking areas trying to extend Arsenal's lead.
The former Porto man lasted only 24 minutes on the field, in which time he had just five touches of the ball and completed only three passes. It was a dismal afternoon and ahead of games such as Brentford, Wolves and Luton, Vieira will be kicking himself that he'll now miss three matches through suspension.
He will need to use this moment as a chance to reflect. So should Arteta, who must consider whether the attacking midfielder is someone he can trust from the bench. For now, he should forget about it.