Despite Leandro Trossard scoring his first goal for Arsenal, it wasn’t enough for Arsenal to take all three points which would’ve seen us go eight points clear at the top of the table. It was definitely a frustrating match, so many chances were created but the clinical last ball was just never there. Arteta’s team were unchanged from their shock loss away to Everton last weekend, which was a bit of a shock as personally, I expected Tomiyasu to start for Ben White and Trossard to start for Martinelli.
We started well, with Eddie trying to play into Martinelli but he couldn’t quite pull the move off. From then on, the first half of the match was full of let offs. Brentford easily could’ve been 2 – 0 up by halftime as they were incredibly threatening on the counter attack. A cross landed for Rico Henry, who made poor contact with the ball and sent it wide. The first let off of many, and it just proved why they were unbeaten in their last nine Premier League games. The first half was scrappy and uncomfortable to watch, definitely not the arsenal side we have grown used to watching this season.
We looked different after the break. Saka and Ødegaard both had shots saved by goalkeeper David Raya. Arteta then looked to the bench and brought Trossard on for Martinelli, and within five minutes he had bagged us a goal; Saka sent in a low cross to the far post where Trossard tapped it into the net, and the stadium erupted.
Unfortunately this didn’t last long, as within ten minutes Ivan Toney had scored a frankly unmissable goal. The goal was given despite a long VAR check, which has since been confirmed was the WRONG decision as Lee Mason ‘forgot to draw on the lines’ as Norgaard was offside in the buildup to goal. In the Premier League, supposedly the biggest domestic league in the world, this is simply unacceptable as this could have a huge impact on our title prospects going forward.
Following the equaliser, both Zinchenko and Partey had attempts at goal but neither were successful and we couldn’t find a way through. The game ended all square at 1 – 1, a frustrating result but better to come away with one point than none. This is only the second time all season that we have dropped points at home, and we are currently unbeaten at the fortress.
Next up is our title rivals and current champions Manchester City. After the frustrating 1 – 0 loss in the FA Cup, this game has a lot of importance as we need to win to prove we are serious about winning the league. This is the first time we will have faced City in the Premier League this season.
Written by: Abby Goodson (@_abbygoodson)
The Arsenal Therapy Podcast 