The Arsenal Player Everyone Was WRONG About! | W&L

Hello Team FD and welcome back to Winners and Losers, the show where we break down the latest and greatest Premier League action. Joining me today to cover a Manchester United loss is Joseph Tomlinson. How are you? I've been better, mate. I've been better. I was at the pub yesterday to watch the game. Very, very close affair that I'm sure we're going to talk about just now, aren't we? We are, but we're going to start with Arsenal first, aren't we? Our winners in this tie. We've sounded out some players who we think deserve special praise. Let's start with the match winner, Eddie Nketiah, who was fantastic in this 90. Seven goals in his last seven games across all competitions. Four goals in the English Premier League now, that's the fifth best all in the Arsenal squad. Having a goal in the league every 150 minutes, that's the best in the Arsenal squad and superior to the likes of Marcus Rashford, who's on every 180 minutes, although we're flagging Nketiah has only played 600 minutes of league action. Joe, do you want to break down his in-game stats and give us your opinion on his performance? Yeah, I thought he was good. I thought he was really good. It's kind of put to bed the notion that Arsenal needed to sign a striker in January, because he has just been sensational covering for Gabriel Jesus. I think people have almost forgotten now that Arsenal have Gabriel Jesus at the club and how good he was across the first half of the season prior to his injury. Six shots in this game, a joint game high. I think he put up close to two XG by himself, didn't he? 1.85, definitely more than Manchester United put up yesterday. 17 out of 19 passes completed. I just think that what he's started to do really well, and something he wasn't doing earlier in his career, is getting involved in build-up play, holding the ball up. His back-to-goal game has improved massively, spins players really nicely, but what he's always had in Nketiah is a knack of popping up at the right time in the right place. He's always been an excellent poacher and as we saw for the third goal yesterday, the match winner, right place, right time, really cute finish. That's classic Eddie Nketiah. All six of his shots coming from inside the box, so spot on in terms of highlighting his predatory instincts. He did have the second fewest touches of starting outfield players, but like you said, was efficient when he did get the ball. 17 out of 19 passes completed, like Joe highlighted. That was more than Veghorst, with a better pass completion rate. I found that quite surprising because Veghorst was dropping in, wasn't he, trying his best to link midfield to attack. Nketiah, very good in this game and very good at making a nuisance of himself, which is something I enjoy about his playing style. One tackle, one dribble, one foul won, two fouls committed, three ground rules won in this game. He puts himself about, and as you can see from his heat map on screen right now, he occupied those half spaces when he needed to in order to support wide players like Saka, like Martinelli, in order to progress that ball up the pitch. He helped continue that onslaught, that relentless pressure that Arsenal built in the second half on Manchester United's back line. Pegged them right up the pitch, didn't he? Also worth noting that his supply lines were on call. They are quite good. Saka was scary. Saka and Martinelli creating four chances apiece in this game. And on that note, let's talk about some other standout players. I think Nketiah is the one proving everybody wrong. Saka perhaps the one entering a different stratosphere right now. Yeah, I mean, if we're being honest, he is the best right winger in world football at the moment. Let's have it. He is the best right winger in world football at the moment. Obviously not including Lionel Messi as a right winger now because he just floats across the line in that sort of creative hub at PSG, doesn't he? But I just think there's nobody close. I really don't. I think there's a lot of outstanding left wingers in world football at the moment. You look at Mbappe, Vinicius, Raphael. But on the right, there's a little bit of a dearth given Mo Salah's drop off this season. And I think Bakaya Saka has more than filled that. He just looks unplayable at times. I actually thought Luke Shaw did okay up against him, but you just can't stop goals like his yesterday. 30 yards out, smash it bottom corner, wheels away, does the Ashford celebration. Well, he gets two of them as well if Eriksen doesn't get that little touch on the attempt from the second half. He's just so dangerous. But the man I want to point to, who I think was my man of the match, Oleg Zinchenko, just what a player. What a stunning player. And it's not being made enough of that Manchester City sold Zinchenko and Jesus to Arsenal and asked how clear of them in the league. Not enough is being made of that. If that was any other club, they would be getting slaughtered for selling Zinchenko to Arsenal, who is now Arsenal's potentially best player, most influential leader on the pitch. Unbelievable again yesterday. And City are having problems at left back. It's comical. That is easy to say in hindsight, but I didn't anticipate this level of impact from Zinchenko. But we're not paid a million pound a year as part of a City recruitment staff and backroom staff to analyse data and look at what will or will not work for Arsenal. We were saying when he was struggling to rack up, what, 15 plus stars in league play for Manchester City that well worth going in for a player like him if you're a progressive mid-table club like Leicester, like Wolves were at the time, like Everton were at the time. But here he is having a huge impact for title chasers Arsenal. 85 touches in this game. That was the most on the pitch. Seven passes into the opposition box. Again, the most on the pitch. Four tackles interceptions. Thought he dropped in and dealt with Anthony with consummate ease chance created as well. So again, maybe another player that fans were wrong about. I don't think, again, I certainly didn't anticipate him being a prominent figure in a title winning side outside of Manchester City. It's unbelievable though. I just can't get over this. That City were so willing and open to deal with Arsenal rather than saying we'll take a 10 million hit on Zinchenko and send him abroad. Just keep him out of the Premier League. They must have known the calibre of player they had at the club. Even if mere mortals like us were like, can he cut it at another club or is he getting carried a little bit by Pep's system? What a load of rubbish we were talking and what a load of rubbish Manchester City were thinking. Joe wants someone at Manchester City held accountable for that transport. Transport for that sale. Right. Have we touched upon Saka enough? I mean, I do want to flag that he's now one of four players to score seven plus goals and provide seven plus league assists in Europe's top five. Right now, the others being Messi, Neymar and Kovac Skelia. And we should include him as another left winger, but in this right wing position where there isn't that high calibre of player, Saka, for me, is the best in the world right now. There we have it. What do you guys think to that argument? Let us know in the comments below. Just some sign off stats then before we roll into our losers on the next clip. Arsenal, now on 50 points. This time last season, sorry, they only had 35. In fact, when you look back at the 2021 campaign, it took them 35 match weeks to amass this many points. Scary stuff. Are they winning the league? Are you going to say it now? Well, it's all down to that doubleheader against Manchester City. I think if Manchester City don't get six points, it's league title over. I think they beat City home in a way. I think Arsenal are going to win the league. I don't think Man City are even close to the calibre Arsenal are playing at right now. Honestly, even though Man City rolled over Wolves at the weekend, Jose Sarr, have a look at yourself, but I just think that Arsenal are far and away the best team in the Premier League right now. I disagree to an extent, but that's for another video. What do you lot think? Let us know in the comments below. Like I said, stick around for the next video, which will be live very, very soon. 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