3 positives & negatives from impressive victory over Newcastle

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<p>&mdash; Arsenal (@Arsenal) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/1655327898725912576?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>May 7, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></div> <h2>Positive #1: Aaron Ramsdale&#8217;s heroics</h2> <p>Every team that wants to seriously challenge for league titles must possess an incredible goalkeeper that consistently produces big saves when it matters most. In recent weeks, and again against Newcastle, Ramsdale has proven he can be that keeper for Arsenal.</p> <p>He made a <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://www.sofascore.com/player/aaron-ramsdale/839410">total of five saves</a> against the Magpies, with his excellent reaction save from a Schar header being the pick of the bunch. The 24-year-old has long been lauded for his distribution, and it is now time for us to truly appreciate his shot-stopping capabilities too.</p> <h2>Negative #1: Oleksandr Zinchenko&#8217;s defensive errors</h2> <p>First of all, I would like to say that I am a massive fan of Zinchenko&#8217;s. His composure on the ball is a huge reason why we have improved so drastically as a team this season. However, in recent weeks, he has made far too many defensive errors that have been costly, and he was fortunate to avoid the same fate against Newcastle.</p> <p>One moment in particular, in which the Ukrainian missed the ball, allowing Jacob Murphy to race onto it and drive towards the box, so easily could have resulted in a goal were it not for Gabriel Martinelli&#8217;s defensive work rate. We should avoid being too harsh on Zinchenko as he does offer plenty going forward, but he certainly needs to work on the defensive aspect of his game.</p> <p><em>continued on the next slide&#8230;</em></p> <div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span>&nbsp;#2 positive and negative </a> </div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_134240" class="wp-caption alignnone"> <img decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-134240" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1067,w_1600/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2018%2F08%2F1252941809.jpeg" alt="" width="1600" height="1067" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1252941809.jpeg 1600w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1252941809-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1252941809-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Arsenal’s midfield dominated on Tyneside. (Photo by LINDSEY PARNABY/AFP via Getty Images)</p> </div> <h2>Positive #2: Midfield masterclass</h2> <p>Every one of our starting midfielders were excellent in this game. Jorginho allowed us to retain control of the match with his ability to dictate a game with his passing, Odegaard was at his silky best and Granit Xhaka added the physicality to supplement.</p> <p>In fact, Jorginho was so impressive that Sky Sports pundit, <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://metro.co.uk/2023/05/08/gary-neville-compares-arsenal-star-jorginho-to-manchester-united-legend-paul-scholes-18747540/#:~:text=Gary%20Neville%20heaped%20praise%20on,Manchester%20United%20legend%20Paul%20Scholes.&amp;text=Arsenal%20got%20their%20title%20bid,James'%20Park%20on%20Sunday%20afternoon.">Gary Neville, compared his performance</a> to that of Manchester United legend Paul Scholes.</p> <blockquote><p>“The reason why Manchester United players and Pep Guardiola have said Paul Scholes is their favourite player was because in moments in the hardest atmosphere in a difficult away game those players are unique.</p> <p>“They have the composure, the balance to get the team playing. That’s what Jorginho reminded me of – he was fantastic.”</p></blockquote> <p>That is very high praise, and in my opinion, it was more than deserved.</p> <h2>Negative #2: Forwards struggled to make an impact</h2> <p>None of Arsenal’s front three were poor, however, they all struggled to have the same impact we have become accustomed to. Gabriel Martinelli was arguably the brightest of the three, providing the cross that lead to Newcastle’s own goal and coming incredibly close to getting on the scoresheet himself, but, for the most part, the front line struggled as a collective.</p> <p>Newcastle are an excellent defensive team and had it not been for the sheer brilliance of our midfield, we would have found goals hard to come by.</p> <p><em>Continued on the next slide…</em></p> <div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> #3 positive and negative </a> </div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_134286" class="wp-caption alignnone"> <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-134286" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1706,w_2560/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1488182223-scaled.jpeg" alt="" width="2560" height="1706" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1488182223-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1488182223-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1488182223-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1488182223-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Arsenal’s title dream is still alive. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)</p> </div> <h2>Positive #3: Statement victory</h2> <p>This victory will send a massive statement to Manchester City and they will now know that while the league title remains in their hands, we are ready and waiting to pounce on any potential slip-ups. Arsenal were perhaps expected to drop points in this fixture given the quality of Newcastle and the Sky Blues would have been hoping to face Everton with a greater points cushion.</p> <p>Now, though, Pep Guardiola’s side must travel to Goodison Park, a stadium in which they have previously struggled, and get the three points – and they must do that in between two huge matches against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League.</p> <h2>Negative #3: A slow start</h2> <p>Despite the impressive nature of the win, it is also true that we started the game slowly and could have been a goal down inside the first ten minutes after the home side smashed the ball onto the post. Against a team of Newcastle’s calibre, that would have been a disaster.</p> <div class="embed "> <blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="Xf50U3w3A4"><p><a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/jorginho-newcastle/">3 things we learnt about Jorginho against Newcastle</a></p></blockquote> <p><iframe class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" style="position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);" title="“3 things we learnt about Jorginho against Newcastle” — Pain in the Arsenal" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/3-positives-negatives-impressive-victory-newcastle/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/08/jorginho-newcastle/embed/#?secret=Lh10C3ajsb#?secret=Xf50U3w3A4" data-secret="Xf50U3w3A4" width="500" height="282" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></p></div> <p>With tough fixtures still to come, namely against Brighton &amp; Hove Albion at home and an away trip to Nottingham Forest, we will need to improve in that area if we are to come through those encounters unscathed.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">