Hudson-Odoi to break loan cycle? Five things learned as Chelsea lose to Arsenal

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A late Arsenal goal secured a 1-1 draw with Premier League rivals Chelsea tonight, allowing the Gunners to go on to win on penalties in the International Champions Cup match at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. 

It didn’t take long for the game to spring into life. A floated corner from former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas found its way to an unmarked Antonio Rudiger who placed a header past former Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, into the bottom corner to put the Blues 1-0 up.

Arsenal started the second half with a little more urgency. A self-created chance from Alexandre Lacazette narrowly went wide of the Chelsea post for the Gunners as they sought after an equaliser.

However, a last-minute cross drilled across the box from Arsenal substitute Reiss Nelson found Lacazette at the back post who poked the ball home to draw the Gunners level. Arsenal had the vast majority of possession and ultimately, the late equaliser was well deserved and it took the match to penalties.

A miss from England international Ruben Loftus-Cheek left Alex Iwobi to score his penalty and secure the win for Unai Emery’s side.

In regards to the International Champions Cup, this result doesn’t mean too much. However, tonight was a good indicator of how the two sides will set up heading into the 2018/19 season.

Here are five things we learnt from Chelsea’s win over the Gunners.

Barkley & Hudson-Odoi look awesome

Calum Hudson-Odoi simply wowed this evening and was by far the best player on the pitch. His fearless ability regularly scared Arsenal’s backline and with better finishing from the Chelsea attack, the Blues could have had a lot more goals.

Hudson-Odoi’s direct play won Chelsea their first-half penalty after Hector Bellerin fouled the youngster in the box, following some amazing footwork and a dummy shot that enticed the Arsenal full-back into bringing down the winger.

He also provided some neat crosses, an abundance of speed and endless chances for his teammates (mainly Alvero Morata) only for them to fluff their lines.

As for Barkley, he provided a tidy shift which consisted of some neat touches and turns as Chelsea simply used the ball better than their opponants.

After struggling with injuries, the talented Englishman certainly provided Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri with further options heading into the new campaign.

Emery’s yet to taste defeat

The new Arsenal boss just escaped defeat as he enters his first Premier League campaign unbeaten. After smashing French Champions Paris Saint-Germain 5-1 last weekend, this result will pull the Gunners back to a more realistic expectation but yet, still impressive.

Emery fielded a side mixed of youth and experience but it took his side far too long to get into the match as Chelsea looked secure from the get-go.

Although they had the lions share of possession, they failed to create too many clear chances which was down to a mixture of strong Chelsea defending and lack of attacking intent from the Gunners.

Poor defending from a corner allowed Chelsea to take an early lead, something Emery will want to sort out on the training pitch as soon as possible.

However, Arsenal had control of the ball and after a second half which consisted of the majority of play being produced near the Chelsea box, plaudits will praise Emery’s side for not giving up and for finally getting the goal to keep their unbeaten run going.

The first Premier League match of the season for Arsenal is at home to current Premier League champions Manchester City. Emery’s side will have more first-teamers back in time for that fixture but the former PSG coach will need to ensure that the creativity and movement that Arsenal are renowned for are there in abundance against the champs next week.

Morata is struggling

There are already reports linking Chelsea with some of Europe’s biggest and best strikers but also suggesting that Morata simply isn’t up for producing the goods in a Chelsea shirt.

Tonight was a chance for Morata to prove his critics wrong against a top Premier League side.

He failed.

After Hudson-Odio expertly won a penalty, Morata stepped up and weakly placed the ball to Petr Cech’s right, allowing the Arsenal goalkeeper to block the shoot and put further embarrassment on the shoulders of the Spaniard.

He also missed two one-on-one chances – one was well-saved down low from Cech yet again and the other was a fluffed header on the six-yard box – and also misplaced several passes, slowing down the Chelsea attack on several occasions.

If Morata leads the line for Chelsea this season, he will need to do much, much more to keep to the standards expected from a Stamford Bridge-based centre-forward.

Cech leading Leno in No.1 tussle

The battle continues between Cech and new signing Bernd Leno to start in goal for Arsenal against Manchester City next weekend.

It seems – at least at the moment – that the experienced Czech shot-stopper is winning the fight as he started the match this evening.

Cech’s class was clear to see as he kept Arsenal in the match. A penalty save to deny Morata – it was well-read and he did well to get his body behind the shot – will do his confidence a world-of-good and will give new Arsenal boss Emery a lot to think about.

The Arsenal number one also made a great save down low one-on-one to deny Morata a much-needed goal and generally looked fit, alert and ready to keep Leno at bay for as long as possible.

He also saved Loftus-Cheek’s penalty in the penalty shootout, pushing the Gunners towards a well-fought victory.

Arsenal fans are very excited about Guendouzi

New Arsenal boy Mattéo Guendouzi is showing some early signs that – if given the opportunity – he could be one of the most effective players for Emery this season.

The former FC Lorient midfielder looked extremely comfortable on the ball when put under pressure from the Chelsea front-line and always offered himself to teammates when they needed someone to pass the ball to.

Guendouzi passing ability was clear to see tonight – spraying neat passes regularly left, right and centre – as was his nack for pushing forward with the Arsenal attack. He expertly tucked away his penalty in the shootout too.

Gunners fans were certainly impressed with what they saw.

The post Hudson-Odoi to break loan cycle? Five things learned as Chelsea lose to Arsenal appeared first on Squawka News.



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