SHEFFIELD, England – There was a time when Arsenal struggled to justify favoritism on nights like this, but it is a measure of their transformation under Mikel Arteta that Sheffield United cowered before kick-off. Empty seats were dotted around Bramall Lane at kick-off and many home fans presumably feared the worst after a torrid campaign to date. They were not wrong.
Within 15 minutes, Martin Ødegaard, an own goal from Jayden Bogle and Gabriel Martinelli put the visitors 3-0 up and some home fans headed for the exits. There was more left in the 25th minute when Kai Havertz fired the fourth. Declan Rice's fifth goal in the 39th minute was the starting signal for more starts.
Blades boss Chris Wilder wrote in his program notes before this about how his team might have to “suffer without the ball” on Monday night and he was right, although not in the way he had planned.
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Sheffield United became the first top-flight team to concede five or more goals in three consecutive home games and any appreciation of Arsenal must come with the caveat that Wilder's side are on course to become the most porous team in Premier League history. It is no exaggeration to say that the first half was an abject humiliation for a team with an overwhelming chance of relegation.
“We didn't have an answer to anything they had,” Wilder said. So much so, in fact, that it was as if they didn't even understand the question.
No top-flight team has ever conceded five or more goals in three consecutive home games. And the thing didn't stop there. Ben White added a sixth with a clever left-footed shot just before the hour mark and Arsenal became the first team in the history of English football to win three consecutive away games by five or more goals. That streak includes thrashing bottom-place Burnley and extends ruthlessness against lesser opponents, which is a trait Arteta has instilled in this team.
“This is the Premier League, so you know the level of the opponent,” he said. “You can't be satisfied. When it comes internally from them and that level of demand, that's what I see every day in training. They push each other and try to make each other better. That chemistry is really important if we want to have the opportunity to achieve what we want.
“We were very aggressive and positive and showed real quality in the final third to take the game into a great position for us. Then we kept the pace, we kept the hunger and I love that about the team.”
Remember the days when a familiar topic was whether Arsenal (among other clubs) “could do it on a rainy night in Stoke?” The suggestion was that the Gunners could often demonstrate an unusually soft touch against inferior teams on paper.
It was an affliction that seriously undermined Arsene Wenger's final years in charge and Arsenal offered a more recent example of that fragility in this area four years ago, when Sheffield United won 1-0 in October 2019. The manager then The Gunners, Unai Emery, was sacked for a month. later.
Before Monday, Arsenal had a 14-0-1 record against newly promoted opponents in their last 15 games. Their record in the previous 15 games was 7-4-4. Arteta inherited a team capable of finding a banana peel on an arid road. They are now ruthless against weaker opposition: he has won 19 of his 25 games against newly promoted sides.
The widening gap between the quality of the Premier League and the EFL Championship may contribute to this change, but that is a debate for another day. In any case, Arsenal routinely struggled to translate that apparent superiority on the scoreboard in years past, not necessarily exclusively against newly promoted teams, but away from home against teams they were expected to defeat.
The end result here is another night in which the goal difference moves noticeably in their favor. With a goal difference of +45, they have the same number with which they finished last season. And significantly, they are six times better than leaders Liverpool and ten times ahead of Manchester City.
In what could prove to be a close race with fine margins, it is a notable advantage. “The fact that we score so many goals and don't concede them is a great sign,” Arteta said. “But now it's about winning every game and those are the demands that those two clubs [Liverpool and City] have put on top [other teams] in the last six or seven years. That is the task ahead of us.”
Arsenal were so comfortable that Bukayo Saka was taken off at half-time due to a minor illness, Fabio Vieira made his first appearance since November following groin surgery before Thomas Partey played for the first time since October after a persistent problem in the hamstring. And to complete a remarkable hat trick, Gabriel Jesus also entered his first start since January 30 following a knee problem.
There was a note of caution when Martinelli limped off with the help of two team physiotherapists attempting to take weight off his right foot due to a cut, but this was nevertheless an overwhelmingly positive night for Arteta, who has repeatedly expressed the importance of being as close as possible to a team in top form after missing William Saliba so much during filming last year.
“[We are trying to] “Improve each player and the mechanisms and the culture around the team,” Arteta said. “They're doing it, but it's still the most important part of the season ahead of us, that's for sure.”
