Bayer - on the bus. Playtime is over

Arsenal turns a worrying defeat into a respectable draw, courtesy of a controversial penalty decision.

Arteta rolled out the same XI that faced Brighton, and we certainly looked calm and composed from the off. However, it was all a bit too calm for my liking. There was a distinct lack of pace across the pitch, a lack of desire from half the side, and, frankly, a lack of quality at times.

Leverkusen didn’t exactly set the world on fire either, so at least our defensive shape held firm. As we’ve seen since the Spurs game, we’ve been building through Eze in a hybrid role. In the build-up, Eze drops deep into the center circle—not necessarily as an orchestrator, but as a release valve to bypass the opponent’s mid-block. His ability to glide past players makes him unpredictable; he can shift the attack in any direction or simply carry the ball himself.

Eze’s second job is to ghost into the box as a second striker once the move progresses. This forces opponents to track him all the way to the edge of the area, usually by passing the marking down to the defensive line, which can cause chaos in the backline. It’s a high-coordination approach that can really catch an unprepared defense cold.

When Arteta hinted in his presser that he’s figured out how to get the best out of him, I reckon this is what he meant. It’s exactly how we carved out our best opening in the first half. Eze burst into the box, dragged his man away, and slipped a lovely ball between his legs to Gyökeres. Viktor found himself 2-on-1 with Martinelli for company. The pass was guessed by a Leverkusen defender, but Martinelli still managed to rattle the bar with a rocket. Gabi was agonizingly close there.

The first half was a bit of a snoozefest, truth be told. One thing did strike me, though—the Leverkusen manager’s face. I knew they’d had a bit of a “Ten Hag phase” early this season, but I hadn’t realized who’d taken the reins afterwards. A quick check at the break confirmed it’s the former Denmark boss, the man who nearly led the Danes to the Euro 2020 final in London. I knew then and there the second half wouldn’t be a walk in the park. Even if their attack isn’t quite firing yet, he knows exactly how to analyzie and subsequently nullify an opponent.

Post-match, Mr Hjulmand mentioned that when the Danish squad trained at Brentford (no doubt thanks to the Danish link with true Arsenal fan former Bees coach Frank), he’d asked to borrow Nicolas Jover for a session. Whether that’s 100% true or not, the proof was in the pudding on the pitch.

Right after the restart, Raya was forced into a big save from a goal-bound header. The resulting corner led to the opener. Bayer executed a set-piece straight out of our own playbook: a deep delivery to the back post, player who was originally there dragged his marker— Zubimendi—out of position, the second player ran into the opened spaces, the third player made a block on Eze (who went down looking for a foul that never came). It left a free header for the opener. Fair play to them, but you have to wonder why Eze (and not Gyokeres, for example) was tasked with marking Andrich—the man looks like a German lumberjack!

That left us chasing the game, needing a spark in an attack that had been incohesive and frankly anonymous until then. Arteta’s first move was to haul off an invisible Saka for Madueke. Saka was arguably the worst player on the park yesterday—one of the poorest shifts I’ve seen from him in 5 years. The usual brilliance—the dribbling, the finishing, the decision-making—was nowhere to be seen. The CannonStats graphics tell the story: he offered virtually nothing going forward.

Arsenal attacking leaders - CannonStats

He didn’t look leggy or rusty; he just didn’t turn up. It felt like our top earner simply didn’t want to be on the pitch yesterday. I don’t know what the issue is, but it’s gutting for the fans. It must be equally frustrating for the gaffer, who is entitled to expect more from his star man. At this rate, I’d rather see Madueke start with a late cameo for Dowman on the right.

Arteta brought on Kai Havertz for Gyökeres, which was expected and also helped knit the attack together slightly better. The final sub—Jesus for Eze—was a real disappointment. Max Dowman, who looked lively against Mansfield, was left on the bench while Jesus got a run-out despite absolutely stinking the place on Sunday. It feels a bit unfair when poor performances don’t seem to have consequences.

I’m not buying the “managing minutes” argument ahead of the Everton game. Arteta didn’t bring on more attacking full-backs like White or Calafiori; Jesus was his big roll of the dice to change the game. Predictably, he didn’t lay a glove on them.

Madueke, on the other hand, actually made an impact. The Leverkusen boss had clearly done his homework, parking nine men in the box at times.

That didn’t stop Noni, though. He was determined to make his mark, just as he did against Mansfield. In the dying embers of the game, he danced into the box and was clipped. It was a “soft” penalty by PL standards, and we’ve seen them waved away plenty of times. The defender didn’t get the ball and definitely caught Noni’s leg. The usual ref excuse would be that there “wasn’t enough in it” and he could have stayed on his feet, though he’d have been swarmed immediately if he had.

To be fair, the ref completely lost the plot. His officiating was all over the shop. He let Andrich escape a second yellow after two cynical challenges, yet booked Saliba for next to nothing and cautioned Havertz for simply existing in the box during a corner. It was a classic “not in control” performance.

Fortunately, he gave the most important one our way. Havertz stepped up, and while it wasn’t exactly a HarryKane of a finish, he found the corner to level things up. His muted celebration showed he’s got class— he has proper values, appreciate the ones who gave him the road into big football and his only real beef is with Chelsea. Honestly, looking at this squad, I’m not sure who I’d trust on a high-pressure penalty besides Gyökeres. Maybe Timber (or Rice as a second option) —lads who can just put their laces through it. Which also speaks volume about a lack of “big” attacking personalities, something we really need to look at in the summer.

A 1-1 draw isn’t exactly what we dreamed of, but it’s a decent result. In fact, it’s the best showing from an English side this round. Half the Premier League contingent got hammered by three goals and practically buried their chances of getting into the quarterfinal. Newcastle snatched a draw but faces a daunting trip to the Camp Nou, and Liverpool lost. We’re the only ones coming home with an away draw, making us the clear favorites to progress.

I won’t lean into the “Farmers League” memes. English teams are best prepared for the highly intense and physical matches, which is why they cruised the group stage. But at this time of the season, after a grueling winter schedule, the league intensity has clearly taken a toll on them. We forget that the likes of PSG, Bayern and Spanish duo can coast in their domestic leagues. Their Champions League games, however, are marked with a red circle in their calendar and they plan to peak for them. The Champions League final is the biggest football event of the year and every player, coach and club owner wants to have a seat at that fancy table.

Last night was a reminder that playtime is over—it’s serious business from here on out. All the passengers have come off the train already, and the rest are not going to leave it by free will and need to be taken out by force. The Champions League is ruthless. Chelsea thought they were sitting pretty for a favorable 2-2 or 3-3 draw, only to concede three goals after a couple of schoolboy errors. Now they need a miracle. Every mistake can be punished to the maximum when the individual quality is this high. That’s why from now on we need to be at it every single game (I’m looking at you, Bukayo), starting next Tuesday at the Emirates.

But first, we’ve got a massive game against Everton in the league. When people moan about Arsenal “not playing football” and “set-piecing” their way through the games, they forget that in the Premier League there are teams like Everton who have the Masters degree in that discipline.

We need to be on it from the first whistle. The earlier we get the breakthrough, the better our chances of taking all three points. Everton are like a hungry vampire who thrive on frustrating opponents; they grow in confidence with every blocked shot and heavy tackle. If it stays goalless, they’ll grow stronger by the minute.

That’s why we can’t afford any passengers starting on Saturday. I’d start with Eze on the left, Noni on the right, and Kai through the middle. To complement them I would go with Gyökeres as a second striker. He works well with Kai because Havertz occupies the defenders, leaving Gyokeres a bit of free space. Besides, Gyökeres is almost ineffective in the final 20 minutes if we’re chasing a goal—at that point, you need players who can navigate a “forest of legs” rather than just bumping into the first tree like a pick-up truck that went off the road.

Max Dowman would be my go-to off the bench if we need a late winner. The others—Trossard, Saka, etc.—haven’t really shown enough lately. I am just hoping it will not come to that on Saturday. And let’s be honest, Owen Goal has been quiet lately—he’s due a comeback!