After setting new standards in the Champions League last season, Arsenal have started strongly once more. Travel disruption on Tuesday delayed the team and many of their supporters, while Napoli made Mikel Arteta’s players wait for a breakthrough. Martin Ødegaard eventually delivered it with the decisive goal 15 minutes before the final whistle. Arsenal were […]
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Raphinha responded to his Ballon d’Or shortlist exclusion on the pitch, scoring twice as Barcelona cruised past Feyenoord with a 5-1 Champions League victory. The Brazilian was unexpectedly left out of the 30-player list announced this week, but showed no sign of frustration as he maintained his excellent early-season form at a rain-drenched Camp Nou. […]
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When Christos Tzolis moved infield from the left and surged towards the box, Kai Havertz sensed that a familiar pattern was unfolding. Tzolis had produced an almost identical move on his competitive Arsenal debut against Manchester City in the Community Shield weeks earlier. He attacked the full-back, shifted inside and sent a dangerous ball towards […]
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Arsenal’s build-up to their opening Champions League fixture against Napoli was interrupted by widespread travel disruption at airports throughout the United Kingdom. An air-traffic control problem caused a lengthy delay to Arsenal’s flight, forcing Mikel Arteta to cancel Tuesday’s pre-match press conference at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. After completing their usual morning training session, […]
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David Raya believes Arsenal are performing with renewed self-assurance following the relief of finally securing the Premier League title. The reigning champions maintained their flawless start to the new campaign by defeating Chelsea 2-1 at home on Sunday, collecting nine points from their opening three matches. Arsenal delivered a commanding display filled with energy and […]
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It felt good to be back. Not completely, perhaps, but Arsenal and Chelsea briefly transported the Emirates Stadium to another era on a bright, powder-blue afternoon. Their frantic opening half-hour carried the intensity and unpredictability of Premier League clashes from the early 2000s. During that spell, the match resembled a fresh version of an old […]
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Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal can reach an even higher standard after the Premier League champions delivered a powerful message to their title competitors by recovering from a goal down to defeat Chelsea on Sunday. Arteta’s players found themselves under pressure at the Emirates Stadium after Morgan Rogers became the first opponent to score against them […]
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Control against chaos. One side represents structure, discipline and carefully rehearsed patterns; the other embraces something more instinctive, accepting football’s flaws and unpredictability. From that perspective, it is wiser to move with the storm than to imagine it can ever be fully contained. That was how the rivalry between Pep Guardiola and Jürgen Klopp seemed […]
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Chelsea believed they had almost no hope of recruiting Morgan Rogers when the summer began. Xabi Alonso and the recruitment department had identified the England international as a leading target, but completing a transfer appeared unrealistic. After a poor campaign in which Chelsea finished 10th and failed to qualify for Europe, the club expected Rogers […]
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Arsenal have urged the Premier League to permit larger matchday squads, with Mikel Arteta arguing that the existing limit can harm players’ welfare. Clubs in the top division are currently allowed to select 20 players for each fixture, including at least three homegrown players. By comparison, teams in Spain’s La Liga may choose 23 players, […]
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