A win is a win. Arsenal will no doubt take it. It wasn’t all guns blazing but the Gunners walked away from Old Trafford, a fixture they notoriously find difficult, with a 1-0 win on the opening weekend of the season.
It wasn’t pretty against Manchester United but Mikel Arteta’s side, who simply drew too many games last term, found a way to get over the line.
They did so with resilience, they did so with a few nerves, and they did so with set-pieces. Yep, Set Piece FC are back.
Since Nicolas Jover came to the club, Arsenal have been brilliant from corners in particular and it was a shock to absolutely no one that the game’s only goal came from a Declan Rice set play.
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However, fast forward a week and that same flow, that same sharpness was lacking. In truth, Arsenal’s attack was bettered by the United forward line in every department but goals.
While Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, signed from Wolves and Brentford respectively, looked a constant threat, the same cannot be said for those leading the line for the visitors.
Still, Arsenal found a way and it came through yet another corner. In all honesty, though, United did not cover themselves in glory.
From the boot of Rice, the midfielder swung the ball in from the left corner flag and it was not dealt with properly, chiefly by goalkeeper Altay Bayindir.
United have had a number of problems in their goalkeeping department in recent years and it was no different to start the 2025/26 campaign. Bayindir flapped at the ball and almost put it into his own net where Riccardo Calafiori headed home from a yard out.
That was the only chance of note that the Gunners had, as they had the likes of David Raya, William Saliba and Gabriel to thank defensively. Raya, in particular, stood out for the away side, notably making a wonderful stop to prevent Matheus Cunha in the first half.
It left Gary Neville in awe but it’s unlikely many supporters would be in awe. While Arsenal found a way to leave Manchester with all three points, the same issues from last season were evident.
One of the biggest problems was the attack, and Arteta must find a way to get marquee signing, Gyokeres, firing.
Gyokeres' nightmare debut in numbers
Last weekend gave supporters huge hope that Gyokeres was going to be the man to fire Arsenal to the title.
His opening goal in the famous red and white was brilliantly taken, darting across the defender and heading home a Martin Zubimendi cross.
Yet, that same movement and speed of thought was not apparent at Old Trafford this weekend. In fact, Gyokeres endured a debut to forget, a matter outlined by Football.London’s Tom Canton who handed the Swede a 5/10 match rating and wrote: ‘Struggled to get into the game in the first half and was limited in terms of service and touches.’
It’s true that Gyokeres severely underwhelmed in Manchester. He left the field on 60 minutes to a chorus of jeers from United supporters and he trudged off having failed to have a single effort on goal.
That speaks of a disconnected frontline in general. While the summer signing could have done better, Gabriel Martinelli and Saka did very little to help the big striker thrive.
Saka is usually the creative hub of this team. No player created more goalscoring chances per 90 minutes in the Premier League last term.
Yet, on Sunday, he only completed one of his six dribble attempts and completed just one key pass. Martinelli, on the other hand, didn’t complete any dribbles. He also registered one key pass too. Combined, they lost the ball on 20 occasions.
Minutes played
60
Touches
21
Accurate passes
4/9 (44%)
Shots
0
Successful dribbles
0/1
Key passes
0
Ground duels won
2/7
Aerial duels won
1/6
Offsides
1
Fouls
3
Times fouled
2
On that evidence, Gyokeres was starved and was likely cursing his teammates at points. He did make the runs, but was often ignored, just as he was in pre-season.
The fact of the matter is that Arsenal will need to change the way they play in attack to accommodate the former Sporting man. What’s also true is that Gyokeres need to improve himself.
For such a strong, imposing player, the 27-year-old was bullied throughout, posting just four passes and winning only three of his 13 duels and only one of six in the air.
Gyokeres will likely score a lot of goals this season. After all, he did net 54 times in 2024/25, but he and the team will need to improve quickly for him to hit the ground running.
Arsenal took the points but their forward line will no doubt be a concern for Arteta.
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