Arsenal 4-1 Crystal Palace: 3 talking points as Saka destroys Palace

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<p>&mdash; Arsenal (@Arsenal) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/1637482481787052036?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>March 19, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></div> <p>Arsenal continued their dominant form, and they had their third just nine minutes into the half. A neat one-two between Leandro Trossard and Granit Xhaka found the Swiss in the box, and he poked home from close range to effectively end the game as a contest.</p> <p>Palace grabbed a goal back from a corner just minutes later after Jeffrey Schlupp bundled in from close range.</p> <p>Saka added his second with a little over 15 minutes to play. A neat cutback from Kieran Tierney found Saka alone in the box, he took his shot first time and lashed it into the net.</p> <p>The Gunners saw out the remaining minutes with minimal fuss as it was complete domination at the Emirates Stadium as they moved eight points clear of Manchester City.</p> <h2>Arsenal 4-1 Crystal Palace: 3 talking points as Saka destroys Palace</h2> <p>The game provided plenty of talking points, here they are.</p> <h2>1. Pressure now on City</h2> <p>Arsenal&#8217;s win over Palace was crucial in the context of the title race. With the win, the Gunners now move eight points clear of City, but Pep Guardiola&#8217;s side have a game in hand.</p> <p>But&#8230;</p> <p>There is now even more pressure on City to win their remaining games as the margin for error is now incredibly small. While City have the easier run in between the two sides, Arsenal racking up any wins from now until the end of the season is like gold.</p> <p>There&#8217;s still a long way to go, but Arsenal have a nice buffer now.</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/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span>&nbsp;Talking Point #2 </a> </div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_133066" class="wp-caption aligncenter"> <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-133066 size-full" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2134,w_3200/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1248602590.jpeg" alt="" width="3200" height="2134" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1248602590.jpeg 3200w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1248602590-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><div class="fs-center-img"> <p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:3200px;">Bukayo Saka was in inspired form on Sunday. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)</p> </div> </div> <h2>2. Sensational Saka</h2> <p>We’re running out of superlatives for Saka. In the first half against Palace, he was nearly unplayable. The England international grabbed an assist (tenth of the season) and two goals (11th &amp; 12th of the season) as he tore Palace apart.</p> <div class="embed "> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Bukayo Saka is the first player to score 10+ goals AND provide 10+ assists in the 2022/23 Premier League season.</p> <p>There’s a starboy running down the right… 🧨 <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://t.co/nM8pQLzHBr">pic.twitter.com/nM8pQLzHBr

<p>— Squawka (@Squawka) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://twitter.com/Squawka/status/1637461812194033665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>March 19, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></div> <p>An incredible display from the winger as we have become accustomed to, but he continues to reach new heights. His link-up with White down the right-hand side and constant movement created havoc for Palace. They had no answer for him.</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/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> Talking Point #3 </a> </div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_133068" class="wp-caption aligncenter"> <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-133068 size-full" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2133,w_3200/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1474598248.jpeg" alt="" width="3200" height="2133" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1474598248.jpeg 3200w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1474598248-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><div class="fs-center-img"> <p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:3200px;">Ben White impressed both with and without the ball. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)</p> </div> </div> <h2>3. White superb yet again</h2> <p>While Saka got most of the plaudits, White was equally impressive. The right-back was nothing short of sensational today.</p> <div class="embed "> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Ben White has now provided as many assists in the Premier League this season as Trent Alexander-Arnold (2 assists). 😏 [<a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://twitter.com/Squawka?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>@Squawka] <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://twitter.com/hashtag/afc?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>#afc</a> <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://t.co/By65XfxRfR">pic.twitter.com/By65XfxRfR

<p>— afcstuff (@afcstuff) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://twitter.com/afcstuff/status/1637469714237599745?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>March 19, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></div> <p>In the first half, his link-up play with Saka and his constant ability to provide run and overlap down the flank caused Palace all sorts of problems.</p> <div class="embed "> <blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="JFmLXB3Nht"><p><a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-player-ratings/">Arsenal 4-1 Crystal Palace: Player ratings as Gunners extend lead at top to eight points</a></p></blockquote> <p><iframe class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" style="position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-3-talking-points/3/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/19/arsenal-4-1-crystal-palace-player-ratings/embed/#?secret=JFmLXB3Nht" data-secret="JFmLXB3Nht" width="500" height="282" title="“Arsenal 4-1 Crystal Palace: Player ratings as Gunners extend lead at top to eight points” — Pain in the Arsenal" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></p></div> <p>Grabbed a neat assist for his fantastic work.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">