Arsenal 1-2 Bournemouth (Rice 34′ | Huijsen 67′, Evanilson 75′)
EMIRATES STADIUM — Well, that didn’t go to plan.
Mikel Arteta picked pretty much a full-strength team to face Bournemouth, with nine starters against PSG on Tuesday retaining their spots, ostensibly to try and maintain a grip on second place but also to keep a semblance of continuity and sharpness ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Paris.
Instead, a muddled performance followed with a renewed vulnerability from defensive set-pieces, an overlooked Achilles heel all season, rearing its head.
Bournemouth recovered from one-nil down to complete a historic first league double over the Gunners with goals from a long throw and a corner, like they were a noughties Stoke City tribute act.
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There were smatterings of discontent at full-time after a below-par second half and even a few boos, making for a surly send off.
Arsenal are in danger of finishing third in a two-horse race, a once commanding lead over Manchester City whittled down to three points.
Upcoming fixtures against Liverpool (away) and Newcastle (home) could see them cede further ground, before facing Southampton on the final day.
“We certainly wanted to create a really good vibe, a positive result would really help us to build what we wanted towards Wednesday,” Arteta admitted.
“So, what we have created now is a lot of rage, anger, frustration and a bad feeling in the tummy.
“So, we have to make sure that we use that for Wednesday to have a massive performance in Paris, win the game and be in the final.”
Arsenal’s domestic form, like that of other league rivals, has suffered as their prospects of European glory have increased.
They have won three of their last nine Premier League matches, only one of their last five, and taken just two points from nine at the Emirates against Brentford (11th), Crystal Palace (12th) and Bournemouth (8th).
More disconcertingly, they have dropped 21 points from winning positions this season, a longstanding issue that can’t be explained away by their recent distractions in the Champions League.
There were two ways for Arteta to play this: start the big hitters and sub them off, or rotate heavily and bring some on during the second half.
Perhaps he will regret choosing option one, considering his team lost anyway, and Luis Enrique went with option two. The PSG boss made 10 changes in Strasbourg, and his heavily rotated team lost by the same scoreline as Arsenal’s A-listers.
He will presumably be delighted about how Arsenal’s Saturday panned out.
“They won the league, so they have the luxury to do that,” Arteta said. “We haven’t because we still have a lot to do in the Premier League.”
Arsenal’s defeat left a ‘bad feeling in the tummy’ (Photo: Reuters)He had a point, but Raheem Sterling, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ethan Nwaneri could have started to freshen things up. Even Andoni Iraola rested Antoine Semenyo, and Bournemouth don’t play again until next Saturday.
It wasn’t a complete disaster. Avoiding injuries to key players was paramount, even more so than the result, and it seems like Arsenal came through unscathed, bar a late worry over Martin Odegaard.
Jurrien Timber, though, is a major doubt after being left out of the squad, which is concerning given his replacement Ben White was given the runaround by Dango Ouattara, a fine player but not in Kvicha Kvaratskhelia’s class.
Declan Rice’s goal was nicely worked too. Odegaard wandered into space between Bournemouth’s midfield screen, Tyler Adams and left-sided centre-back Dean Huijsen, and took two purposeful touches before sliding a reverse pass through for Rice to gallop onto and score after rounding Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Thomas Partey’s return from suspension for the second leg is vital, giving Arsenal an extra layer of solidity while also freeing Rice up. There can no longer be a debate about his best position: he is a world-class No 8.
Arsenal’s lead was flimsy, and they couldn’t reinforce it. Huijsen equalised after 67 minutes, nodding in from Antoine Semenyo’s catapult that travelled 37 yards.
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A second set-piece goal followed just seven minutes later. Marcus Tavernier met Alex Scott’s inswinging header with Evanilson bundling the flick-on in at the back post. Belatedly, Bournemouth were allowed to celebrate after VAR failed to detect a brush off his arm.
Of the 31 league goals Arsenal have let in, almost half (48 per cent) have been from set plays or penalties, the highest ratio in the top-flight. A problem for Nicolas Jover to ruminate over in the summer.
Arteta didn’t make his first substitution until the 73rd minute, with Rice replaced by Mikel Merino, a player in need of minutes after a recent lay-off.
It wasn’t until the 86th minute that Bukayo Saka, a surprise starter to most inside the Emirates, made his exit, joined by Gabriel Martinelli, another with a key role to play in Paris.
Had Arsenal won, Arteta’s decision might have been vindicated. Instead, there is a danger that weary legs got even wearier for no material benefit, while PSG’s stars had their feet up. The French champions already have a lead; now they have the added bonus of being fresher than their opponents to defend it.
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