It might need been carnival week in Eindhoven, however Arsenal followers had been those left partying after seeing their facet demolish PSV 7-1 within the Champions League.
The Gunners’ journey to the centre of the Netherlands coincided with the town’s Lampegat celebrations, however what was a buoyant ambiance earlier than the sport each inside and outside the stadium rapidly disappeared because of a ruthless exhibiting from Mikel Arteta’s males.
Former Ajax star Jurrien Timber kicked issues off earlier than Ethan Nwaneri after which Mikel Merino added two extra for earlier than the half-time whistle went.
The house supporters not less than had one thing to rejoice when Noa Lang smashed dwelling a penalty earlier than the break, nevertheless it proved to have little affect on the sport after a flying begin to the second half for the guests which noticed Martin Odegaard and Leandro Trossard each discover the again of the online, earlier than Odegaard added his second and Calafiori transformed a seventh for his facet late on.
Whereas it was a snug evening for the Gunners, it was not fairly as relaxed because the scoreline suggests. Ismael Saibari spurned a golden likelihood at 0-0 when his effort smashed the bar after David Raya had parried Ivan Perisic’s cross proper into his path and Ryan Flamingo then fired narrowly extensive on the comply with up.
However PSV had been greater than made to pay for that massive miss. Arsenal continued to trigger issues for Peter Bosz’s workforce down the left by way of the mixture of , Myles Lewis-Skelley and Leandro Trossard which led to the primary aim, with Rice selecting out an excellent cross to the back-post for Timber to leap excessive and head in.
Timber , labelling Arsenal’s Champions League conflict a “stunning recreation to alter the narrative” of their season following a poor current run which has seen them lose 1-0 to West Ham after which fail to attain once more in a draw with Nottingham Forest, and he was actually doing his half to make it possible for appraisal got here to fruition.
Arsenal’s second was a aim which might have had their Hale Finish academy employees beaming with pleasure, with 18-year-old Lewis-Skelley getting in down the left and slicing the ball again for 17-year-old Nwaneri to smash previous Walter Benitez from a number of yards out. It was additionally the primary time two English youngsters have mixed for a aim within the historical past of the Champions League.
Lewis-Skelley would later get replaced earlier than the break, nonetheless, with Arteta eager to guard the teenager having been booked after which escaped a second yellow card moments later for a sliding problem on Richard Ledezma.
A lot of the questioning aimed toward PSV head coach Bosz heading into the sport had centred round his workforce’s current struggles following back-to-back defeats to Go Forward Eagles, a lot so {that a} reporter jokingly remarked on the finish of his press convention that that they had forgot to ask him about Arsenal.
However these current struggles which have dominated discussions within the Dutch media had been evident within the first half, maybe most clearly for Arsenal’s third when Flamingo by some means gave up possession only a few yards away from his personal goal-line which allowed Merino the simplest of finishes.
Regardless of their defensive woes, PSV did trigger Arsenal issues going the opposite approach and after Lang had pulled one again from the spot when Partey was penalised for pulling again Luuk de Jong at a corner-kick, they need to most likely have discovered a second when de Jong headed over from shut vary from one other harmful supply by former Tottenham man Perisic.
Bosz opted to alter the struggling Flamingo at half-time and produce on Adamo Nagalo in an effort to enhance issues nevertheless it in actual fact made the scenario worse with Arsenal scoring two quick-fire objectives proper after the restart.
Captain Odegaard was offered with the simplest of finishes when Benitez parried Nwaneri’s cross immediately into his path in what was a really comparable likelihood to the one Saibari had within the first half, the one distinction being the end.
And Trossard added a fifth on the evening when he mixed brilliantly with substitute Calafiori to get in down the left earlier than delicately dinking the ball over Benitez.
There was time for a sixth when the struggling Benitez did not preserve out Odegaard’s highly effective strike at aim, parrying it up after which into his personal web, and Calafiori bought in on the act with 5 minutes remaining with a well-taken end past the goalkeeper to cap off a much-needed goal-fest for the Gunners and their supporters, which has virtually actually seen them into the final eight of the Champions League to play both Actual Madrid or Atletico Madrid.