Arsenal 5-2 Benfica: Gunners Take Charge Of Emirates Cup On Day One

By The Editor
on 29th July 2017

Arsenal 5-2 Benfica…

Arsenal made a big step towards retaining the Emirates Cup following our win in 2015 after we came back from behind to thrash Benfica in a 5-2 win.

Arsene Wenger used his squad for this game, with a number of regular first-teamers on the bench with the competition for places rife in certain areas.

One thing is for certain, the boss is intent on sticking with this 3-4-3 system, and it certainly worked to our advantage with Reiss Nelson and Sead Kolasinac causing havoc on both flanks.

This system certainly requires the wing-backs to push on, and it also helps if they’re playing on the flank which compliments their stronger foot, something we definitely saw here.

Kolasinac had a major hand in both of Theo Walcott’s goals in the first-half, which was sandwiched between to Benfica goals by way of massive deflections.

The pace of our game certainly shifted after the break, with the team intent on using the wet surface to our advantage as we moved the ball quicker.

Lisandro Lopez returned the favour of an own goal as he attempted a certain Olivier Giroud tap-in, and it was a downward spiral for the Portuguese side from there.

Nelson produced a stunning assist to put the icing on such an outstanding display, twisting the defender inside out before floating a left-footed cross for Giroud to volley home.

The Frenchman then turned provider for Alex Iwobi, a goal which would’ve unquestionably gone down as Wenger’s favourite considering the fluid team-play involved.

Wenger subsequently rung the changes, bringing on most of the players who’re set to start against Sevilla on day two.

It’s hard to make any definitive assessments from these pre-season fixtures, but the performances of Reiss Nelson and Sead Kolasinac were huge positives.

Also, we’re starting to learn how to dominate possession in this system and use our wing-backs well, something we’ll have to excel at to shift the narrative that this formation is a defensive one.