Damien Kayat looks back at this weekend’s football action as Arsenal edged Liverpool in a five-goal thriller, Dortmund staged a stunning comeback against Bayern and more!
Gunners dismantle hapless Reds
I think it’s time that all the Arteta deniers finally accept that there is a serious title push coming out of North London this year. Many had billed this as the first real test of the Gunners’ title credentials.
And they looked confident from the off, playing a high-octane brand of football that was weirdly reminiscent of a Klopp side. Martinelli cooked Alexander-Arnold while Jesus was virtually omnipresent on the field.
I don’t understand why Fabinho never started. I understand that Klopp was not best pleased with the Brazilian during their 3-3 draw with Brighton last week. But this was just an example of cutting off your nose to spite your face.
Fabinho is the one natural, ball-winning midfielder in this Liverpool side. How could Klopp exclude him whilst investigating this miracle 4-4-2 cure? It just really baffles me.
Thiago is a magician on the ball. And Henderson is a tireless little solider. But that combination was made to suffer by the relentless forward momentum of Xhaka and Odegaard.
And how is the Darwin Nunez experiment going? I think he possibly had his best game in a Liverpool shirt this weekend. He collected a poacher’s finish and made some penetrating runs that stretched the Arsenal backline.
But he was caught offside on countless occasions. I don’t really want to make this comparison because it seems unfair. But how many times do you see Haaland getting caught offside?
He is a genius at timing his runs and playing off the shoulder. Nunez looks frankly amateurish from a tactical perspective. This may be due to a communication issue and could just take some time to finesse.
But it must be a huge concern for Klopp that his 85-million-pound man looks befuddled by basic timing issues. And what is happening with Mo Salah? He seems to be experiencing a crisis of confidence, drifting further and further wide with little desire to take on defenders.
Tomiyasu effortlessly pocketed the man who a year ago was widely considered the best player in the world. Klopp needs a reset of intensity while Arteta will just want more of the same.
Of course there was controversy. Arsenal’s winner came courtesy of a very soft penalty as Thiago made minimal contact with Jesus. Take a look at some analysis of the incident below:
🗣 "It's not easy being a ref nowadays is it?"
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) October 9, 2022
The great debate in studio 👇 What are your thoughts on the awarding of the penalty that led to Arsenal's winner? | #PL
Allegri under pressure as Juve’s struggles continue
It would seem that Max Allegri is stuck with Juventus and Juve are stuck with Allegri. The Old Lady of Italian football just aren’t in the position to fire a man with a four-year contract at nine million pounds a year.
The long-term economic impact of the lockdown actually gives Italian managers a little more wiggle room than most (Italian clubs can’t afford to indiscriminately fire).
But he must be feeling the heat after a completely insipid performance at the San Siro. Things seemed to be turning a corner after back-to-back wins against Bologna and Maccabi Haifa.
But they looked inferior in all departments against an AC Milan side that were smarting after a humbling defeat at Stamford Bridge. Dusan Vlahovic looks like an utter dinosaur when the game isn’t played at his pace.
But you have to hand it to Stefano Pioli’s men. They were very poor against Chelsea and looked a different outfit at the weekend. Tomori went from villain to hero, scoring the first before Brahim Diaz secured all three points.
But all Italian sides are still chasing Luciano Spalletti’s free-scoring Napoli. They scored three goals in the last 14 minutes to soundly beat relegation-threatened Cremonese. So much for missing Victor Osimhen.
Nothing we can say can describe @Brahim's run and finish better so just watch it...😤#MilanJuve @acmilan pic.twitter.com/EPs7NQRy66
— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) October 9, 2022
Spanish giants earn tight victories
All three of Spain’s elite clubs scrapped by with narrow one-goal victories this weekend. Barcelona were particularly shaky, returning to the Nou Camp after two dismal away performances.
Xavi had to shuffle his pack with what could be a do-or-die fixture against Inter later this week. They limped home against Celta Vigo with a pretty dismal 1-0 victory.
In fact, Ter Stegen was largely responsible for protecting the three points. Pedri showed his class in midfield, proving that Barca aren’t solely reliant on the goal-scoring exploits of Robert Lewandowski.
Real Madrid kept pace with Barca with a far more convincing 1-0 away win at Getafe. Militao scored the only goal in the fourth minute and was a colossus throughout.
And Diego Simeone’s Atletico once again showed plenty of gumption with a solid 2-1 home win against Girona. Much like Barca, Atletico have struggled in Europe and probably need to pick up a result midweek against Club Brugge.
This forced Simeone to ring the changes and journeyman striker Correa came up trumps, scoring an excellent brace that helped Atletico keep in touching distance of the two giants of Spanish football.
Breakthrough at the Spotify Camp Nou as Pedri taps in to give Barcelona the lead 🆙
— SuperSport Football ⚽️ (@SSFootball) October 9, 2022
📺 Stream #LaLiga live: https://t.co/Tg69y0m5GD pic.twitter.com/glgxT8S4CC
Epic Dortmund comeback
That must have been one of the most exhilarating Klassikers in recent memory. It’s an interesting time for German football. This was actually the first Klassiker in 13 years where neither Bayern or Dortmund were topping the Bundesliga table.
And Julian Nagelsmann’s side seized the early initiative as they aimed to make it nine consecutive wins against Dortmund. The wonderfully silky Musiala slid in Goretzka to score the opener in the 33rd minute.
Die Roten doubled their lead just after half-time through the blisteringly in-form Leroy Sane. That was his ninth goal of the campaign and marked the first time that he has scored in three consecutive Bayern matches. Everything seemed to be going swimmingly for the Bavarian giants.
But the famed Yellow Wall were sent into delirium by a comeback for the ages. The tireless Moukoko scored a deserved goal before substitute Anthony Modeste brought the roof off the place with an injury-time equaliser.
It was a brilliant result that piles that little bit of pressure on Nagelsmann. He’s fortunate that his side are currently negotiating a tricky Champions League draw with relative ease.
DORTMUND EQUALIZE AT THE DEATH 😱😱😱 pic.twitter.com/nXPMdUxBAR
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) October 8, 2022
Player of the Week- Gabriel Martinelli
It’s hard to isolate one person in Arsenal’s statement win against Klopp’s bedraggled Liverpool side. But at a press I would have to go with Gabriel Martinelli. He absolutely rinsed Trent Alexander Arnold and was instrumental in much of what the Gunners did going forward. We all know that Gareth Southgate has been quite reticent in embracing the unique talents that Trent Alexander-Arnold has to offer. This performance may just be the final nail in Trent’s World Cup coffin.
This goal is just as much Saliba’s as it is Martinelli’s imo 🇫🇷
— Brad 🇻🇳 (@AFCBradd) October 9, 2022
Also, how about that from Odegaard 😍🇳🇴 pic.twitter.com/FAn8l1TwnO
