Did we mask a bad performance or was it a good result?

Having picked up four wins on the bounce, Arsenal had the chance to make it five. A win over Bayer Leverkusen would’ve set up the second leg perfectly. Wins are becoming more common place in the Premier League which has felt like the most difficult competition at times. However, the knockout stages are an entirely different challenge. You can’t take anyone for granted and Leverkusen will look to prove just that.

First Half

The Gunners actually begun the game pretty well. Viktor Gyokeres would’ve been through on goal if he wasn’t cynically dragged down by Robert Andrich, drawing a yellow card within two minutes. Bukayo Saka sent the resulting free kick through a sea of bodies, but no Arsenal player was able to benefit. Leverkusen attempted to hit back, but Christian Kofane could only give David Raya an easy save to make. It took a little while for another chance to be created, but Arsenal were the ones who almost broke the deadlock. Raya started a rare counter attack and the ball filtered through the right hand side of the pitch. Jurrien Timber managed to send a direct pass into the box which Eberechi Eze dummied. Gyokeres picked the ball up and spotted Gabriel Martinelli in a better position to get a shot off, so slipped it into the Brazilian. Martinelli hit the ball hard, but it cracked the crossbar. Saka couldn’t reign in the rebound. The North London side used the left channel to spring a chance on Leverkusen. This time Piero Hincapie stung the gloves of Janis Blaswich. That would be the last meaningful chance of the first half.

Second Half

The home side were immediately on the front foot as the second half began. Arsenal had barely got their legs moving as Martin Terrier forced Raya into an incredible save. Thinking that Mikel Arteta’s side had only received a warning, the German side dished out their punishment. The resulting corner was swung in deep towards the back post where Andrich had ghosted in. He was afforded a free header and he made no mistake from inside the six yard box. Arteta’s men couldn’t really lay a glove on Bayer for a majority of the second half. Kasper Hjulmand’s men were comfortable resisting everything the Gunners threw at them. It would take until the 84th minute for Arsenal to create something. Martinelli delivered a cross that was met by Timber, however, his header flew off target. Then, out of nowhere, Arsenal were given a lifeline. Noni Madueke was deemed to have been fouled in the box, resulting in Kai Havertz coolly slotting in the penalty. 1-1. The Gunners did have a chance to steal a win at the end, but Gabriel Jesus was denied by Blaswich. However, the referee blew up for a foul during the chaos.

Statistics

I don’t think either side particularly deserved to win, but Leverkusen perhaps edged the statistical charts. Arsenal had a grand total of 6 shots with just 2 on target. This generated 1.65 xG with 2 big chances created. Leverkusen had 10 shots with 3 on target. This created an xG of 0.88 with 1 big chance created.

Player Ratings

Starting XI

Raya – 6 – Didn’t really have a lot to do outside of the incredible save early in the second half. They did score from the corner it created, but Raya was let down by the marking for the goal.

Timber – 5 – He just kind of seems like his legs are giving up on him whenever he has to use his pace. Played a good ball into Eze which resulted in Martinelli’s chance. But, nothing on top of that.

Saliba – 6 – He was okay, but did struggle to deal with Kofiane. Largely dealt with the danger, but there was moments where the Leverkusen striker profited from Saliba’s mistakes.

Gabriel – 5 – Very much the same as Saliba, but did make one big mistake that could’ve resulted in a goal. He has Rice and Hincapie to thank for bailing him out.

Hincapie – 6 – No real complaints with his performance to be honest. A couple of loose passes here and there, but overall he did his job well.

Zubimendi – 4 – I think he was a little more brave in possession than against Brighton, but still lacks a desire to really open up passing lanes. He needs to be more impactful, especially if we go deeper in the Champions League.

Rice – 7 – Can’t really complain with his game. He worked hard and tried to get things going at the other end, wasn’t really helped by his colleagues.

Eze – 6 – One of his better ‘quiet’ games. Once again he was let down by the movement ahead of him. His dummy to create Martinelli’s chance was excellent.

Saka – 3 – Just wasn’t at it at all. He was predictable, slow and lacked any urgency to take the game to Leverkusen.

Gyokeres – 4 – Another game passes him by without a shot, let alone a shot on target. He did force an early yellow card, but the team couldn’t expose that. His overall play was better than against Brighton, but still not the required standard.

Martinelli – 5 – Probably the best out of the starting front three, but that’s not saying much. Perhaps could’ve done better with his chance, but the opportunity arrived very quickly at his feet. Couldn’t create an awful lot outside of that, guilty of too many touches.

Substitutes

Madueke – 8 (MOTM) – He just immediately added a sense of danger that Saka couldn’t provide. He was direct and it troubled Leverkusen way more. He eventually earned the penalty that resulted in the equaliser.

Havertz – 7 – He scored the penalty and that could be huge for the second leg.

Jesus – N/A –

Summary

If I take a step back and look at what the English teams have done in the first leg of their Champions League ties, a draw isn’t terrible. Manchester City and Chelsea were both well beaten, but by elite European sides. Liverpool lost to Galatasaray, who are a difficult away day. Newcastle drew with Barcelona, which is a very respectable result. Then, of course, Tottenham Hotspur got battered by Atletico Madrid. So of the six English sides to feature, only two avoided defeat and we were one of them. But, when you look below the surface, that’s three disappointing performances in a row now. Chelsea at home was difficult to watch. We squeaked by against Mansfield, but wasn’t necessarily a bad performance. Against Brighton, we were second best for almost the entirety of the match. But, we still won all those games. Clearly there’s a struggle in this side right now, I don’t think there’s one player that’s ‘in form’. There’s not one of our attackers that’s even carrying it on his back, they all look timid. It’s worrying, but we still managed to avoid a loss here. Something isn’t working, but at the same time, something is working. Let’s take it one game at a time and see where the season takes us. Still unbeaten since January 25th.

Arsenal Predicted Lineup

Everton at home will not be a walk in the park, especially with how we’ve played recently. Everton are strong away from home and will likely be extremely hard to break down. There needs to be a little bit of smart rotation here. Ben White made the bench against Leverkusen so can at least start against Everton. Riccardo Calafiori also made the bench, again, he should start here to give Hincapie a rest. Martin Zubimendi looks defeated right now and we still haven’t yet started with Christian Norgaard in the league. We need to trust him for this run in, he can’t be any worse than what we’ve seen. I do think Saka will come back into the side, hoping that the Leverkusen game was just a one off. I do also think Havertz will start as Arteta tends to lean on him when he’s back fit. If Leandro Trossard is a doubt for the match, then I’d start Eze over Martinelli. Eze adds a bit more final ball quality. If we’re serious about winning the title then we go out there and beat Everton. They’re clearly a good side, but we’re ‘better’. If we win then it’s another one closer to the title, let’s not give City a chance to close the gap. Let’s get it!