Leeds 1-4 Arsenal (Raphinha 75′ | Martinelli 16′, 28′, Saka 42′, Smith Rowe 84′)
At last, there was a football match to watch. Injury-hit Leeds will have wished that there wasn’t.
Arsenal built upon their recent promising run of form at the Emirates by demolishing a depleted and dishevelled Leeds side at Elland Road to pile the pressure on Marcelo Bielsa.
The excellent Gabriel Martinelli got the party started with a pair of emphatically taken finishes before Bukayo Saka’s deflected effort made it three before half-time. Raphinha’s penalty 15 minutes from time gave Leeds a flicker of hope but it was extinguished nine minutes later when Emile Smith Rowe scored for the second game running after coming off the bench.
It was clear that Illan Meslier was in for a busy evening within the opening five minutes. The Frenchman came out on top in a one-on-one duel with Alexandre Lacazette, with Saka somehow skewing the rebound wide as the goal gaped. Thomas Partey forced Meslier into a fine stop down to his left shortly after and by the time Martin Atkinson’s whistle sounded for half-time, the Leeds ‘keeper had made eight saves.
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There was a sense of inevitability when Martinelli opened the scoring. Lacazette dispossessed Adam Forshaw inside his own penalty area with Martinelli bending a confident first-time finish into the top corner via Meslier’s finger-tips. Raphinha went close to equalising, sliding a low shot just wide of the past after slaloming his way into his Arsenal’s penalty area.
Martinelli doubled his and Arsenal’s lead just before the half-hour mark, dinking a delightful finish over Meslier following Granit Xhaka’s pinpoint through ball behind Leeds’ disorganised defence and Saka made it three after 42 minutes. A 3-0 half-time scoreline flattered the hosts far more than it did the visitors.
The second half began with a couple of poor challenges that could both have been met with a red card. Xhaka, no stranger to such punishment, was the first culprit, sinking his studs firmly into Raphinha’s ankle to leave the Brazilian in agony and then Joe Gelhardt lunged wildly into Takehiro Tomiyasu with a foul that eventually forced the right-back off. Oddly, only Gelhardt was shown a yellow.
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Leeds improved after the restart – frankly, it could not have been any worse – and were offered a route back into the game when former loanee Ben White conceded a penalty for a rash tackle on Gelhardt. Raphinha confidently sent Aaron Ramsdale the wrong way to score his third penalty in five games and his eighth goal in the Premier League this season.
But Smith Rowe wrapped up the win with a half-volley after being expertly picked out by Martin Odegaard’s dinked pass to consolidate Arsenal’s position in fourth place.
Leeds (4-2-3-1)
- Illan Meslier 7
- Cody Drameh 5
- Luke Ayling 4
- Robin Koch 4
- Stuart Dallas 5
- Mateusz Klich 5
- Adam Forshaw 4
- Raphinha 7
- Tyler Roberts 4
- Jack Harrison 5
- Joe Gelhardt 6
Subs:
- Crysencio Summerville 4
- Sam Greenwood 5
- Liam McCarron 5
Arsenal (4-2-3-1)
- Aaron Ramsdale 6
- Takehiro Tomiyasu 8
- Ben White 5
- Gabriel Magalhaes 6
- Kieran Tierney 6
- Thomas Partey 7
- Granit Xhaka 7
- Bukayo Saka 8
- Martin Odegaard 8
- Gabriel Martinelli 9
- Alexandre Lacazette 6
Subs:
- Cedric Soares 6
- Emile Smith Rowe 7
- Nuno Tavares 6
Allegation of racist abuse
During the first half, play was interrupted briefly when referee Martin Atkinson went over to the touchline to have a discussion with Arsenal substitute Rob Holding. At half-time, Sky Sports presenter Kelly Cates stated that there had been an allegation of racist abuse from a Leeds fan or fans towards the Arsenal dugout.
More to follow…
Gabriel Martinelli: It was a very good result | Graeme Souness: Leeds are a shambles
“It was a very good result. It was away and it’s so important for the team, of course,” Martinelli said after the match. “The team played well and we are so happy.”
He added: “This is what Mikel asks of us, every time that we are in the final third we need to be more dangerous.”
Sky Sports pundit Graeme Souness offered a withering assessment of Leeds’ players and Marcelo Bielsa’s tactics at half-time, likening the performance to a group of children.
“Leeds play like they’re in the school playground. Leeds are an absolute shambles,” he said. “The way they’ve been asked to play ain’t going to win you games in the Premier League.”
He added after the match: “They’ll never have an easier away game this year. That first half they scored six or seven goals. Leeds were so disjointed and making defensive decisions which takes some understanding. They took their foot off the accelerator in the second half and won easily.
“I enjoy watching them but if I was a Leeds supporter I’d be concerned about the type of football we’re playing because we’re vulnerable.”
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