Arsenal take big step towards Premier League title, Barcelona’s statement win over Real Madrid, more

It’s back! The first Marcotti Musings of 2023 is here, and the European soccer weekend offered up plenty to talk about, from Arsenal, Barcelona and Man United getting memorable, morale-boosting wins over their rivals Tottenham, Real Madrid and Man City respectively to more pain at Liverpool.

– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, more (U.S.)

Also, Newcastle are for real, Chelsea picked up precious points (while also signing Mykhailo Mudryk, an Arsenal target) and Atletico Madrid‘s top four hopes in LaLiga are fading fast.

It’s Monday, and Gab Marcotti reacts to the biggest moments in the world of football.

Arsenal take another big step towards the title, while Spurs have plenty to reflect on

Arsenal have been top of the Premier League table since day one, yet many of us expected them to falter at some point. Not least because, well, their pace doesn’t look sustainable: At this rate, they’ll collect 99 points, which would be the second-highest total in league history. And so you find yourself looking at the fixture list and trying to pick out games where they could drop points.

Tottenham away on Sunday was one of those games. It’s the North London derby, Spurs had beaten them the previous season, Arsenal had been held at home by Newcastle in their last league outing, Eddie Nketiah was still starting up front … except it didn’t happen. On the contrary, Arsenal turned in a masterful, comprehensive performance at both ends of the pitch, winning 2-0.

It’s true that the first goal was thanks to a howler by Hugo Lloris and the second was a long-range, low-xG shot by Martin Odegaard (and one that Lloris might have done better with, too). But the attacking display in the first half left Spurs fighting shadows and frankly, they could have scored more.

Mikel Arteta’s set-up — whether you call it a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 — becomes a tricky, asymmetrical unit when Oleksandr Zinchenko steps into midfield, combining with Granit Xhaka and Gabriel Martinelli down the left, while Bukayo Saka has the run of the right wing. It works because the players know their jobs and have fully bought into Arteta’s instructions and are committed to them. It also works because they’ve largely stayed fit: even Gabriel Jesus‘ absence has been successfully weathered thus far, not because Nketiah is anywhere near his level (he isn’t), but because he’s smart and can replicate much of what the Brazilian brought to the table in terms of movement, on and off the ball.

As I see it, that’s exactly what Rashford did simply by running after the through-ball and shaping up as if he was going to take a touch, even if he didn’t. His body language and movement directly impacted two opponents: Kyle Walker, who angled his run to stop Rashford, not Bruno Fernandes, and, especially, Ederson, who did not come out to clear the ball. They could not have known Rashford was offside at the time and his actions made them believe he was on.

This is pretty obvious, and hiding behind a different interpretation of the Laws of the Game seems petty and needless. Oh, and by the way, I don’t agree with those who yearn for a simpler time when the referee had more discretion to apply “common sense” and there was less detail in the laws. The law seems pretty darn clear to me: Rashford’s “obvious action” clearly impacted Walker and Ederson’s ability to play the ball.

– Varane: “Everything is possible” for Man United

That said, United played very well and deserved their three points. Erling Haaland was limited to just two shots and a handful of touches. The Casemiro–Fred partnership in Man United’s midfield worked. So did Christian Eriksen further up the pitch and Luke Shaw at center-back.

Off the ball, they played with purpose, discipline and organization. That’s on Erik ten Hag who, perhaps realising it’s going to take time to play the football he played at Ajax, is willing to be creative in how he approaches games.