Arsenal continued their progression in the League Cup on Tuesday night after a decent 2-0 victory over Leeds United, who have been a shadow of themselves from last season at the Emirates.
Calum Chambers opening the scoring with his first touch in the game just moments after coming on to replace the injured Ben White, before Eddie Nketiah confirmed the victory late on in the game.
It was a massively changed side for Mikel Arteta as he made nine changes to his team that defeated Aston Villa 3-1 last week Friday, with only Ben White and Emile Smith Rowe retaining their spots, while captain, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang didn't travel with the team.
Marcelo Bielsa made four changes to his team that drew 1-1 with Wolves over the weekend at Elland Roda. The most prominent being the return of Kavin Philips, who had been sidelined with a calf injury. The midfielder impressed and caught the eyes of many at the Euro championship with England in the summer.
The home side started the brighter side and put Ilan Meslier to work immediately as Gabriel Martinelli tried to beat the keeper from a tight angle, but the goalkeeper managed to thwart his effort.
Arsenal continued the better side, holding on to more of the possession. They, however, failed to give much work to the Leeds defence who grew into the game.
Almost midway into the first half, Bielsa's men got their own opportunity at goal, arguably the best scoring chance until then. Diego Llorente played Daniel James through on goal, but the latter's first touch was too heavy, allowing Bernd Leno gather easily.
The German stopper, who was returning to the starting lineup since the early weeks of the season, having been displaced by summer arrival, Aaron Ramsdale for the number one shirt was put to test again as he parried away Jack Harrison's effort in what was an end-to-end encounter, with the away side creating the better chances. Leno also made vital saves in the game to keep Arsenal in it.
A golden opportunity fell to Arteta's side in the closing stages of the first period when the ball fell kindly to Smith Rowe at the edge of the Leeds box and despite the goal wide at his mercy, he ended up booting the ball way off target.
The restart started better for the home side, however, there was great concern on the face of the Arsenal fans as Ben White seemed to have picked up an injury after being clipped by Rodrigo Moreno. Arteta confirmed post-match that the defender was struggling with illness and chances were not going to be taken. Hopefully, he is fit for their next game as he has formed a formidable partnership with Gabriel Maghalaes, who was given a rest in their recent run of form.
White's replacement, Calum Chambers made instant impact as he scored with his first touch of the game. A header back across the face of goal by Nicolas Pepe was well met with another header by Chambers in the 55th minute and although Meslier cleared the ball, it had already crossed the goal line as referee Andre Marriner awarded the goal with the help of the goal line technology after his watch buzzed.
Nketiah ensured victory in the 69th minute with a goal that would have almost contested for miss of the century.
A poorly judged backpass header from Liam Cooper was well-read by Nketiah, whose loan spell with Leeds United was cut short by Arsenal during the 2019/2020 season and he pounced onto it, lifting the ball high beyond Meslier to catch up in front. He was due to tap in from close range when it looked like he had scuffed his effort, but the ball wriggled its way into the far post.
Concluding Thoughts
It was a decent performance from Arsenal who extend their unbeaten run in all competitions to eight game, winning six and recording two draws and importantly, another clean sheet in the bag.
A good show of squad depth for Mikel Arteta to rest nine nine players and still put out a formidable team. This would prove vital as the season wears on. Whether they can go far in the competition will be based on their consistency.
Marcelo Bielsa would be disappointed by his team's outing not only on the night but throughout the season so far.
His side have recorded just one win in nine games so far this season, with the others being four losses and draws each. This is against their 11 points as at this stage last season.
They currently sit 17th on the log, three points above the relegation zone and would need to double their efforts if they dream of finishing anywhere near their 9th place finish from last season.
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