Arsenal 4, Leicester 2, positives and negatives, player ratings and match report, Premier League fixture
Today at 12:40 PM
Had no hope for a good result this afternoon at The Emirates. From start Leicester looked like a Titanic in full sprint to the bottom of the sea, as Arsenal pushed on for their first goal.
Leicester had a line-up in balance with a structure that looked ok, but as we all knew it would be a very difficult task to solve, even with an Arsenal team far from full strength, missing their captain Martin Odegaard.
Leicester defenders struggled heavily, being played deep as they just kept themselves inside their own penalty box, not able to make one single pass, and no surprise to see Gabriel Martinelli scoring after 20 minutes, pushing the ball over the line.
The same picture continued for the rest of the first half, Leicester not able to pass the ball at all, as Arsenal came on attack after attack, scoring their second goal in stoppage time of first half, Leandro Trossard the goalscorer with a smart finish on the floor.
No special hope at all, just waiting for Arsenal to continue their pressure, but early in the second half Leicester managed to get up the field and was rewarded with a free kick. Facundo Bounanotte curled the ball in, finding James Justin and his header, with a deflection, ended in the net. Leicester were suddenly out of nowhere closing in on Arsenal, 1-2.
This gave Leicester some sort of momentum, as they continued to get a bit more passing on board, and a perfect volley shot from James Justin found the net after 63 minutes, Leicester were even, 2-2.
Leicester kept on fighting as the team looked well balanced and in place to get that one point on board, also having Jamie Vardy as a treath up front, holding Arsenal on their toes as he cannot be forgotten, always on allert and ready to find that little space giving him a goal chance.
Mads Hermansen had a busy day at the office and some of his savings was phenomenal as Arsenal pressured Leicester to their limits. At this time in a game, making changes and putting on offensive players looks a terrible act, but that was what Steve Cooper did. Oliver Skipp and Stephy Mavididi, made space for De Cordova-Reid and El Khannouss, Andrew Ayew had at this point been on for a few minutes, taking off Bounanotte.
The change of Mavididi was ok, but to see Skipp leaving for a player who has no defensive approach at all, makes no sense and all points were lost after Skipp left the field. Steve Cooper must be heavilly blamed for that mistake, but still credit to him for what the team did in the start of second half, so a positive but in the end another game lost in changes made from the bench.
Arsenal also scored another as we heard the final whistle, 4-2 to Arsenal, a well deserved win, as Leicester today had a couple of star moments, the rest of the game was a nightmare, game management must be said to be close to a disaster as Steve Cooper showed lack of judgement, all ending in defeat.
- Positives
- James Justin scoring two fantastic goals, the volley was a finish of briliance
- Mads Hermansen showing his best, 13 saves, in a game that could have been one to remember, with fantastic shot stopping
- Second half was very positive, but falling flat in the end, makes it all just another day to forget
- Negatives
- First half was far from expectations, showing the gap between the two teams
- Victor Kristiansen defending was not at Premier League level
- Steve Cooper making fatal mistakes in his substitutions in the end, Skipp should never have left the field
Player Ratings: Hermansen 8, Justin 8, Kristiansen 4, Okoli 5, Faes 6, Skipp 6, Winks 6, Ndidi 5, Vardy 6, Mavididi 6, Bounanotte 5, Subs: El Khannouss, Ayew, De Cordova-Reid, Fatawu, Edouard
- Leicester City, Man of the Match
- James Justin
Match Stats (H/A)
- Possession: 75 / 25
- Shots on Target: 16 / 3
- Corners: 17 / 0
- Fouls: 11 / 6
