Arsenal further strengthened their status as favorites to win this season’s Premier League with a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday. Although their offensive performance was disappointing, they secured the three points thanks to acrobatic volleys and solid defense from their former club opponent Eberechi Eze.
Mikel Arteta’s side won 11 of their 13 games in all competitions, conceding just three goals and extending their lead at the top of the table to four points. In these matches, they have recorded 10 clean sheets, proving that they are currently the best defensive team in Europe. This feat is even more remarkable considering they played against some teams that dropped points last season. Now, as Arteta’s side shift their focus to Wednesday’s Carabao Cup match against Brighton, we bring you the latest news surrounding Arsenal.
Arsenal’s injury troubles
A narrow victory against a formidable side at Palace came at a price, as four players suffered varying degrees of injuries during the match. After the game, Arteta admitted that injuries meant he would have to replace William Saliba, Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafioli.
Saliba replaced Cristian Mosquera at half-time, but Rice was injured in the closing stages.
The Arsenal midfielder received treatment from the team’s physiotherapist before being replaced by Mikel Merino, with Calafioli also leaving at the same time, with Piero Hincapie making his Premier League debut off the bench.
“William Saliba felt some pain and so did Declan (Rice),” Arteta told Sky Sports. He told the media: “Willie was the first one to get hit. He went down with a bruise. And so was Rich.”
“In Declan’s case, I don’t know if it was his calf or his Achilles tendon because it was a bruise.”
Gabriel Martinelli finished the game, but the Arsenal manager said he “felt something”. “Yeah, I think (Martinelli) is OK. He said he felt something, but I don’t know if it’s a muscle issue or not.”
About status
The Gunners will hope history doesn’t repeat itself after worrying statistics were revealed after Palace’s win. Arsenal currently have 22 points in the league, making this the seventh time the north Londoner has reached this point after nine games.
However, despite their frequent great starts, surprisingly only one season, the 2003/04 Invincibles season, won the title. As a result, Arsenal have been given the unwanted label of mostly boys in recent years, although in several seasons they came tantalizingly close to winning the Premier League, only to fall back down the table in the second half of the season.
Such seasons include the 2002/03, 2004/05, 2007/08, 2013/14 and 2022/23 campaigns. However, Arteta’s current squad is much stronger and better prepared to deal with injuries than in the 22/23 season, when they lost the title due to Saliba’s absence. Given this, and the fact that their rivals have not been at their best, this could be the season that ends Arsenal’s 21-year drought.
