However, the Unai Emery story could easily have taken a very different track. In every game, there have been defensive giveaways that have led directly to goal scoring chances. Worse, they have occurred early. Fulham had two gilt-edged chances in the first ten minutes. Had they capitalized the way Newcastle did against Manchester United, could we have come back? The easiest way to answer that question is to never end up having to answer it.
The injection of Lucas Torreira into the starting lineup has Arsenal finally boasting a defensive midfielder for the first time since Alex Song departed. We have given up only one goal in the four games he has started. Who would have thought our enforcer would come in a pint-sized package? If only Emery would be bold enough to switch in Matteo Guendouzi for Granit Xhaka, the transformation would be complete.
Arsenal’s Achilles heel continues to be in central defense, where we seem to try to make up for our lack of height with a lack of speed. I sound like a broken record, but what the hell, we play defense like one. A long ball over the top is all it takes.
