On the Whistle: Arsenal 2-0 PSG - "Efficient Arsenal see off Paris in 45 minutes"

Hello guys, full time at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal 2, Paris Saint-Germain 0. I can hear Waka Waka being played inside the stadium as the fans pour out. A good Champions League night for Arsenal, this was one of the glamour fixtures of the Champions League draw. You'd probably say this one and the away tie into Milan are the ones that really held the most appeal. Atalanta, a big game in its own right, but I think those two were the ones that really drew the eye. Arsenal have won this one, and a significant victory really. I think one that stands us in very good stead in that Champions League table, even in these early stages. It was a very good draw in Atalanta, but we needed to nail down that home win to really show that we meant business. I think it was a very efficient performance, particularly in that first half. We took the few chances that we had to get that 2-0 lead. In the second half, there were long periods where we didn't have a great deal of possession, where we had to be disciplined, where we had to hold our shape, but we largely did that and got the clean sheet as a reward for it. I thought the defending from Gabriel, Saliba, David Raya and others was excellent in the game. This is not the PSG of old, let's be clear. This is not the PSG of Mbappe, certainly not the PSG of Neymar. It's the PSG, Sean, of some of its stars, but there's still a lot of talent out there on that pitch. They did have their chances, a couple of efforts from the edge of the box. Mendes, I think, was particularly dangerous, had some good shots on goal. One clip in the outside of the post. Arsenal's goals in this game, one came from Kai Havertz, but a lot of it was about Leo Trossard. A brilliant assist from him. Arteta stuck with the same team that had won against Leicester, and I thought it was a brilliant assist from Trossard, kind of weaving through the midfield, clipping that across the back post. I suppose Donnarumma didn't have a great night, but I thought Kai Havertz was really brave to go into that challenge, to meet him with the header. Not sure how much he knew about the contact, but it was a perfect contact, and flew into the far corner, in off the post. I mean, a classic centre-forward's goal. You couldn't really hope for a more typical number nine goal, and maybe Kai Havertz is showing that he can be that number nine for Arsenal. Second goal, direct from a free-kick. We know we're good on set-pieces. We're not normally good in that way. Pacquiao-Sacca's delivery, just bending right all the way into the pass Donnarumma. I think he expected Martinelli or one of the others to get a contact on it. It didn't, and lo and behold, it ends up in the net. 2-0. I actually thought Sacca had been struggling to get the better of his man until that point, so I was really pleased for him to see that fly into the back of the net. He's had a good season so far, with plenty of assists, but he'd want to be on the score sheet a bit more often. It's probably not by design that he got that goal tonight, but I think he'll be very happy with it. Yeah, and as I say, from that point on, I think we controlled it relatively well. A lot of concern tonight, probably for Jürgen Timber. Those watching the TV coverage might know a bit more than me. He came off at half-time. Calafiore went over to right-back. I think that shows you the level of flexibility that he's got as a player, by the way, that a left-footer can go in at right-back and look relatively comfortable. I'm not saying he looked anywhere near as good there as he does in his normal position, but I think it's an impressive demonstration of his versatility. Let's hope nothing serious for Timber, just a precaution. You'd like to think so. At 2-0 up and with Southampton on the weekend, Ben White not on the bench today. They were just looking after a player who's had a long-term injury and he'll be back before too long. We saw Mikel Mourinho get his debut tonight. Listen, he's big. What a big Arsenal side had out there tonight, and it got even bigger when he came on. One really nicely executed sliding tackle. I imagine it will take him a little bit of time to get up to speed, but fantastic news that he's back in the squad. I'm sure we'll see more of him in some capacity against Southampton at the weekend. Gabriel Jesus got himself on the pitch. Miles Lewis-Skelly got a late cameo as well. We made use of the full squad. I thought Jacob Kivioor, after a decent show in the Carabao Cup, had another good cameo for second half as a left-back. We had to use our depth. I'm slightly surprised we didn't see Raheem Sterling, a player with a vast amount of experience in this competition. Maybe he is being saved for a starting role at the weekend. You have to think that Mikel Arteta will be planning some rotation there after a big week really. A game against Leicester that was harder work than it needed to be. A big game against PSG. Maybe a chance to mix things up at the weekend. Could we see Raheem Sterling start that game? Could we see Ethan Ranieri start that game? Another guy who didn't get off the bench today, but must be close to a start in the Premier League at this point in time. I'll leave it there for now, guys. I'm going to go and get myself a drink, but I will catch you all soon. Take care. Speak to you Saturday. Bye-bye.