Sports

Arsenal claims a comfortable victory over Sevilla

Published

1 year ago

November 9, 2023

Bukayo Saka

Arsenal claims a comfortable victory over Sevilla

LEANDRO Trossard and Bukayo Saka scored as Arsenal claimed a comfortable Champions League victory over lacklustre Sevilla.

Trossard, who started as number nine with Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah both injured, swept the Gunners in front in the 29th minute.

Saka clinched the three points in the 64th minute, racing away from the defence before slotting home.

Arsenal top Group B on nine points from four games, while Sevilla are bottom of the table.

The Spanish side, who won the Europa League last season, are still looking for their first win in this Champions League campaign.

They were comprehensively outplayed by the hosts, who took a deserved lead when Trossard finished Saka’s low cross after the England winger was set away by Jorginho’s fine through-ball.

Saka turned from provider to finisher with a composed second goal, having been played through by Gabriel Martinelli.

“I’m really happy with the performance from the team,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta told TNT Sports.

“They showed aggression and commitment. Even when we lost the ball we were incredibly good to get it back. It’s hard in Europe to control it how we did.”

The game ended on a concerning note for Arsenal as Saka limped off with five minutes left after twisting his ankle, however Arteta said it was only a “knock”.

PSV’s 1-0 victory over Lens denied Arsenal the chance to clinch a place in the last 16 with two matches to spare.

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But Arteta’s men will qualify with a point from either of their final two group matches against Lens or PSV.

Following a strong start to the season, the past week has been testing for Arsenal. Back-to-back losses included the controversial 1-0 defeat at Newcastle, after which Arteta said the refereeing decision to allow the winner was “embarrassing” and a “disgrace”.

The Gunners have also had to deal with mounting injuries – Nketiah missed out with an ankle knock to join Jesus on the sidelines, leaving Trossard to lead the line. Captain Martin Odegaard was also absent again.

Trossard, however, eased worries about Arsenal’s forward strength with his goal and performance, and is ready to play the role again if needed.

“When I saw Jorginho on the ball I knew he would put it in behind for Saka,” the Belgian said of his opener. “It’s a great team goal and it set us up for the rest of the game.

“My biggest quality is that I can go on both feet. It doesn’t really matter for me if I play wide or inside. I have played in multiple positions in my career and it has helped me a lot.”

Injuries left Arsenal without a full bench, and there were also questions about the form of some senior players who did feature.

Kai Havertz has been a target for supporter ire – and he spurned a simple chance to hand Arsenal the lead inside a minute, heading a corner wide when unmarked five yards out.

The German also lacked conviction shortly after half-time when fed by Saka on the edge of the area following a counter-attack, but his shot was blocked.

Havertz came closer on 55 minutes when curling a fierce 18-yard effort just wide.

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What Arteta needed was a straightforward night against out-of-form opposition – and against a pliant Sevilla side, he got it.

Sevilla, who are currently 15th in La Liga and just four points above the relegation zone, are top seeds in Group B in name only.

And with just two points from their first four Champions League games they are bottom of the group and facing a challenge to even drop into the Europa League.

Their tactic to sit deep and wait out Arsenal’s attacking threat fell apart within half an hour and they offered little else going forward – their only shot on target came in the seventh minute of second half stoppage time.

Sevilla’s evening was summed up by Boubakary Soumare coming on as a second-half substitute, getting booked for a foul, then injuring himself in a sliding tackle and going off after just eight minutes.

They have now failed to win any of their past nine away matches in the Champions League, and have not triumphed in England since beating Manchester United in the 2017-18 season.

The Gunners, meanwhile, have not lost at home in the group stage since September 2015 against Olympiakos, going unbeaten in their past seven fixtures.

More pertinently they have now won for the first time in three games, ending a mini-wobble.

“After the upset in the cup and on the weekend, a club like Arsenal can’t be losing three games in a row,” stand-in captain Declan Rice told TNT Sports. “The manager made that clear.

“We love it. You see how passionate Mikel Arteta is. He’s living the game through us. He’s so energetic. It really fires us up for the game.”

Arsenal claims a comfortable victory over Sevilla

Related Topics:Arsenal Bukayo Saka Sevilla

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Gabriel Jesus shines as Arsenal thrash Palace 5-1 in London derby

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23 minutes ago

December 22, 2024

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Gabriel Jesus shines as Arsenal thrash Palace 5-1 in London derby

Gabriel Jesus struck twice as Arsenal became the first side since Chelsea in 2005 to go a full calendar year unbeaten in Premier League London derbies, defeating Crystal Palace 5-1 to close the gap on league leaders Liverpool to three points for the time being.

A hat-trick against Palace in a 3-2 EFL Cup victory on Wednesday earned Jesus a starting berth here, and it took just six minutes for him to reward Mikel Arteta’s selection.

A first Premier League goal since January arrived when Bukayo Saka’s cross bounced off Gabriel Magalhães, allowing Jesus to stride towards the ball and side-foot home. A nervy moment for David Raya went unpunished moments later, but just five minutes after going ahead, the Gunners were pegged back as the red-hot Ismaïla Sarr bent an effort around William Saliba and inside the far post.

A breathless start to the contest continued with a third goal in the opening 15 minutes, and perhaps predictably, it came from an Arsenal corner. This time, Gabriel Martinelli’s delivery was partially cleared, but only as far as Jesus, whose controlled finish flew into the corner.

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Another defensive lapse from the visitors almost saw the scores levelled once more, only for Raya to bail out Saliba with a one-on-one stop to deny Jean-Philippe Mateta. At the other end, Gabriel went close from yet another Arsenal corner before the away side extended their advantage through Kai Havertz, who reacted first after Jesus had nodded onto the far post.

Needing a response, the hosts were inches from reducing the deficit straight after the restart when Raya was equal to Sarr’s diving header. The Arsenal shot-stopper was then called into action again, getting behind Mateta’s rifled long-range shot and catching Sarr’s follow-up header.

Those saves kept the Eagles at bay, and with an hour played, the points were all but wrapped up. A well-worked move should have ended with Jesus’ second hat-trick of the week, yet Henderson saved well with his foot only to see Martinelli turn in substitute Declan Rice’s resultant low strike.

Determined to get on the scoresheet, Rice guided in Arsenal’s fifth goal late on, sealing three vital points in an evening where the only major blemish was Saka’s first-half injury.

Despite conceding in a seventh consecutive away league match – their longest travelling run without a PL clean sheet in over five years – Arsenal now find themselves within touching distance of the league summit, albeit having played more games than the sides above them.

Meanwhile, Palace had lost just one of their last eight PL fixtures (W3, D4), but defeat here means they’re yet to add to their solitary home league victory (D4, L4), leaving the Eagles 15th in the table.

Gabriel Jesus shines as Arsenal thrash Palace 5-1 in London derby

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Atletico grab late winner at Barcelona to go top of La Liga

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December 22, 2024

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Atletico grab late winner at Barcelona to go top of La Liga

Substitute Alexander Sorloth scored an injury-time winner as Atletico Madrid fought back against Barcelona to replace them at the top of La Liga.

Pedri opened the scoring for Barcelona in the 30th minute, linking up with fellow Spain midfielder Gavi before slotting a low strike past Jan Oblak.

Despite their dominance, the hosts couldn’t hold on and Rodrigo De Paul hammered home the equaliser on the hour mark after leaping on a mistake from Marc Casado.

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Barcelona were left to rue more missed chances when Sorloth slammed in Nahuel Molina’s cross in the sixth minute of injury time to give Atletico their 12th straight win in all competitions.

The victory means Atletico will end 2024 as the top team in Spain, three points above Barcelona, who have played a game more.

Hansi Flick’s Barca side could slip to third if Real Madrid beat Sevilla on Sunday.

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Oleksandr Usyk beats Tyson Fury to retain heavyweight titles

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Oleksandr Usyk beats Tyson Fury to retain heavyweight titles

Oleksandr Usyk defeated Tyson Fury to retain his unified heavyweight world titles and prove his status as a generational great with another close points win in their rematch in Saudi Arabia.

Having inflicted a first career defeat on Briton Fury by split decision in May, Usyk’s astuteness and will to win once again prevailed at Riyadh’s Kingdom Arena – and he retained his WBA (Super), WBC and WBO titles.

Fury, 36, found success in the first half of the fight. Some of the more eye-catching shots came from the Morecambe fighter, but the volume of punches and cleaner work were from Ukrainian Usyk.

All three judges scored it 116-112 to the 37-year-old champion.

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Usyk, an Olympic gold medallist and former undisputed cruiserweight champion, extended his undefeated record to 23 pro wins.

“He [Tyson Fury] is a great fighter, he is a great opponent. An unbelievable 24 rounds for my career. Thank you so much,” Usyk said.

Two-time world champion Fury has only ever lost to Usyk, his two defeats the major blemishes on a record also consisting of 34 wins and one draw.

Fury left the ring without conducting an interview, before IBF world champion Daniel Dubois climbed in and called for a rematch with Usyk.

A visibly frustrated figure in the moments after the scorecards were read out, Fury said backstage he was convinced he won the fight by “at least three rounds”.