England: The enthusiasm surrounding Arsenal’s six-year absence from the Champions League led to the printing of the song’s lyrics in their matchday program. There was a tremendous cheer, a cathartic release of pain accumulated over their protracted exile from Europe’s top club competition, when the rain-soaked Emirates Stadium began to vibrate with the first bars. The Gunners were keen to take advantage of their opportunity, and on Wednesday, they did so forcefully by thrashing PSV Eindhoven 4-0, a result that was hardly predicted given Arsenal’s inexperience in recent Champions League campaigns.
Arsenal’s determined strategy
Arsenal had a determined strategy, and they were successful. They defeated PSV Eindhoven, a team typically associated with seasoned Champions League competitors, 4-0 on Wednesday. Nobody from their previous game, a 5-1 loss to Bayern Munich at home in March 2017, was in the starting lineup.
Only one player from that night is still alive today, midfielder Mohamed Elneny, and manager Mikel Arteta, who is new to the Champions League, could have excused the home squad for displaying some nervousness on this momentous occasion. However, there were none. They made no errant passes or wobbly movements as a result of the adrenaline pumping through their veins.
“The atmosphere and the music of the Champions League were great to see,” Arteta said in the post-game press conference. Everyone had been a little emotional earlier. Yes, I was feeling that. I was very enthusiastic about it. I was quite excited, but I tried to keep it under control and not show it too much.
And the story starts when…
The journey commenced a year ago as we secured our place in this league, and we’re committed to persisting as a united team. In order to stay here, we must now generate at this level. We tackled that scenario with an impeccable fusion of a well-rounded response and an exhilarating dose of enthusiasm. It’s all about having fun. We must compete at this level, of course, but you must relish these occasions since, in my opinion, this is ultimately what matters.
It should be emphasized that PSV’s defense was obviously more focused on the Europa League, while Arsenal showed the same level of clinical effectiveness that Arteta has routinely exhibited throughout the Premier League season thus far.
Arsenal made it 3-0 after 38 minutes thanks to goals from Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard, and Gabriel Jesus. However, they were unable to increase the score as a result of their superiority. Arteta was able to make many adjustments while keeping an eye on the impending North London Derby on Sunday since PSV had no response for Arsenal’s offensive flair.
Martin Odegaard, who Arteta introduced to his team in the second half to further strengthen it, added a fourth goal in the 70th minute with a signature drilled shot from outside the box, demonstrating his growing freedom in dangerous situations.
The matchup with PSV served as a barometer for Arsenal’s recent development because the two teams last faced off in the Europa League group stage. The Eredivisie team lost 1-0 in North London in October of last year before prevailing 2-0 in the rematch.
Since then, Arsenal has made significant investments, bringing in Trossard in January, Rice, and Kai Havertz in the summer. The end result was a resounding victory that laid the groundwork for their Group B challenge.
Arsenal’s decision to start David Raya in goal begs more questions than it does answers. Despite Arteta’s indications that he will switch up his goalies this season, Aaron Ramsdale suffered because Raya started these games in back-to-back starts. If Raya starts against Tottenham Hotspur and Ramsdale is included for next Wednesday’s EFL Cup match against Brentford, the rumors that Ramsdale may be Arsenal’s cup competition keeper are unlikely to disappear because the pecking order is likely to be set in stone.
The major reason Arsenal took a chance on Raya was because of his skill with the ball in his feet. However, the presence of Brentford in the opening game nearly made that gamble unwise before any long-term alternatives were offered. Jesus claims that a few team members made the somewhat ironic decision to play the Champions League anthem at the start of the week in the gym.
Whether it was a joke or not, Arsenal seemed in place this time.