Kieran Tierney’s first-half strike proved enough for Arsenal to secure the top spot in Group A despite a nervy finish against FC Zurich.
A win in Eindhoven last week would have let Mikel Arteta experiment with his squad and even bring a few young, untested players to the fore. Instead, he was forced to rely on his experienced stars, some of who are Premier League regulars, to get Arsenal over the line.
Takehiro Tomiyasu got injured late in the game with a suspected hamstring injury. Such a scenario is what Arsenal did not want, significantly ahead of a big game against Chelsea at the weekend. On the positive side, the Gunners secured the top spot in Group A courtesy of their narrow win over FC Zurich.
Kieran Tierney’s fierce strike in the first half proved enough to secure three points. The left-back struck the ball with venom after it came invitingly to his feet after a scramble in the box. The Scotsman put in an accomplished performance when Arsenal needed inspiration from somewhere.
Arteta would have undoubtedly wanted a second goal to broaden the daylight between Zurich, but he will be relieved at the outcome. There were many chances for the home side to score more, but Zurich defended well, and some of Arsenal’s forward players proved sloppy.
15 wins in all competitions 🙌
38 goals scored ⚽️
Top of the Premier League 🏆#UEL group winners 💪What a season @Arsenal are having! 👏 pic.twitter.com/Ekw4Mrjdes
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) November 3, 2022
As Zurich never tested the Arsenal defence properly until late, a flurry of substitutions changed the game’s complexion. The Swiss side were applying tremendous pressure on the Gunners’ backline and even came close to scoring on a few occasions.
In the end, Arsenal kept their composure and saw through the finish line, albeit with some nervy late display. The result ensured the Gunners would go straight into the round of 16 and avoid extra games. As for Zurich, they crashed out of Europe altogether as Bodo/Glimt clinched the third spot and an entry into the Europa Conference League.
Aaron Ramsdale: 7/10
Ramsdale only needed to make something concrete in the last ten minutes, plus stoppages. The keeper was tested inside the box and should consider himself lucky, as a few reasonable Zurich attempts went off the mark. He did collect a few hopeful balls with composure and kept his side in the game.
Aaron Ramsdale LOVED Kieran Tierney’s goal against Zürich. 😍 #afc pic.twitter.com/vp5zGIu1iv
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) November 3, 2022
Ben White: 7/10
Ben White was immense again at right-back and made some inch-perfect overlapping runs on the flank. He was staunch with defending the ball and never let a Zurich attacker go past him until he was there on the pitch.
Rob Holding: 5/10
Holding had a sub-par performance in Eindhoven and somewhat repeated it at the Emirates with a sloppy display. While he was good in the air, the centre-back struggled for relevance and sometimes showed too much aggressiveness. Arteta would expect his senior-most centre-back to show composure, especially when the team had its nervy moments late on.
Gabriel Magalhaes: 6/10
Arteta may have asked Gabriel to lower the intensity of the play. Fortunately, the Zurich attackers did not work the defender too much, barring the last moments.
Kieran Tierney: 8/10
Tierney showed an intensity to make up for a recent loss in form. He was constantly bombing up and down the pitch and defensively solid at the back. Add the match-winning first-half goal to the equation, and the left-back was the best player on the pitch.
Our matchwinner 🤩 pic.twitter.com/JD2hRpYziW
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) November 3, 2022
Mohamed Elneny: 7/10
Elneny made his first start since the injury and showed no signs of rustiness. He held the midfield together and was there to mop up a few attacking threats in the middle.
Albert Sambi Lokonga: 6/10
A mixed showing from Lokonga, who was officially playing his first game in the advanced midfield role. While there were signs he was still learning the trade, he should have done better in several moments.
Fabio Vieira: 6/10
Vieira continues to struggle, and the trend has continued in recent games. The attacking midfielder could not find his rhythm in the match and failed to make the most of a few good situations.
Reiss Nelson: 6/10
Nelson, the player to watch in our preview, put in a decent display but unfortunately could not replicate his performance from the weekend. He was still a handful for the Zurich defence, as there were opportunities to be taken inside the box.
Gabriel Jesus: 7.5/10
A cause for concern? 🤔
You can't fault Gabriel Jesus' commitment!#BBCFootball #UEL pic.twitter.com/MEXBCBmYbM
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) November 3, 2022
While the scoring duck continues for Jesus, the Brazilian forward again performed excellently. He was relentless inside the box and proved a physical presence for Zurich defenders. He had a great chance to score, but the Zurich goalkeeper somehow got a body touch to the ball.
Eddie Nketiah: 4/10
Another difficult evening for Nketiah, who continues to struggle for relevance in this Arsenal side. Despite getting into promising positions, the striker looked hesitant in the final third.
SUBSTITUTES
Bukayo Saka: 5/10
Arsenal fans will be happy to see Saka on the pitch and finish around 30 minutes.
Thomas Partey: 5/10
An excellent decision to bring Partey on the pitch for Elneny, as the midfielder proved a handful in the last moments when Zurich turned on the heat.
Takehiro Tomiyasu: 5/10
Tomiyasu replaced Ben White and was taken off after a few minutes with a suspected hamstring injury. He will be a big miss for Arsenal, especially against Chelsea.
Martin Odegaard: 5.5/10
Odegaard came on for Vieira and had some decent moments before Zurich started piling in the pressure at the other end.
Cedric Soares: N/A
Cedric was barely involved after replacing the injured Tomiyasu very late in the game.
