Well, after a thumping win away at the weekend, Arsenal returned to form with yet another draw last night.
The result against Crystal Palace was the North Londoners’ 13th tie of the Premier League season, and while it wasn’t a total disaster, it would not have been what Mikel Arteta would have wanted to see ahead of next week’s colossal Champions League game.
From practically the first minute to the last, it felt like a game played in slow motion, and aside from Jakub Kiwior and, perhaps to a lesser extent, Leandro Trossard – the Gunners’ goalscorers – the entire starting lineup was poor.
That said, there were at least a couple of players that stood out as being particularly disappointing, such as William Saliba.
Saliba's performance vs Crystal Palace
Now, it should be said that away to Real Madrid last week, Saliba was almost perfect right up until he lazily gave the ball away to Vinícius Jr mid-way through the second half.
Unfortunately, instead of putting together a solid performance ahead of next week, the Frenchman made another silly mistake when, entirely unforced, he passed the ball to Jean-Philippe Mateta close to the box, who then saw David Raya off his line and pulled off a brilliant finish.
It was the sort of mistake fans might have been worried about Kiwior making, but instead, the Polish international was once again assured at the back while the former Saint-Étienne gem struggled.
We weren’t the only ones disappointed by the Bondy-born monster either, as Arsenal writer Charles Watts gave him a paltry 5/10 match rating at full-time, describing him as a ‘bit off it,’ which may be rather kind.
With all that said, there can be no doubting Saliba’s immense ability and importance to the team, so he should still be starting the game on Tuesday.
However, the same cannot be said for one of his fellow starters last night.
Arsenal's biggest underperformer against Crystal Palace
Now, as we’ve already said, there were a number of players who let themselves down last night, from Raya to Gabriel Martinelli, but only one starter was so dismally poor that he should not start another game for the club: Raheem Sterling.
2
Goals
2
1.22
Expected Goals
1.75
4
Big Chances
4
12
Total Shots
15
6
Shots on Target
4
705
Passes
325
3
Corners
6
68%
Possession
32%
Yes, in what was just his 12th inclusion in a starting lineup for the Gunners this term, the Chelsea loanee might have managed to put in his most lacklustre showing yet.
Unlike Saliba, he wasn’t directly at fault for a goal, but he was also never likely to score or create one either, as when he wasn’t losing the ball, making the wrong run or fading out of the game entirely, he looked bereft of ideas.
It might sound hyperbolic, but once again, it’s an opinion shared by Watts, who slammed the Englishman for being a “passenger” when he came off and then gave him a damning 3/10 match rating at full-time.
Unsurprisingly, the Kingston-born ace’s statistics more than back up this appraisal, as in 60 minutes of action, he amassed a combined expected goal and assists figure of just 0.02, took no shots on or even off target, failed in 100% of his dribbles, took just 19 touches, made just ten passes, failed in 100% of his crosses, lost four of five duels and was dribbled past twice.
Minutes
60′
Expected Goals
0.00
Goals
0
Expected Assists
0.02
Assists
0
Shots
0
Dribbles (Successful)
1 (0)
Touches
19
Passes
10
Crosses (Accurate)
2 (0)
Duels (Won)
5 (1)
Dribbled Past
2
Ultimately, it was a real night to forget for Arsenal, and while Saliba will undoubtedly come back stronger and remain a crucial part of the team, Sterling should not start another game for the rest of his loan spell.
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