Arsenal beat Ipswich 1-0 at The Emirates in a win that means they are now unbeaten in their last 11 games. Here’s five things we learned.
Arsenal were patient in breaking down Ipswich
The Gunners had 92% of the possession in the first 23 minutes, up to the point when Kai Havertz scored. They waited patiently and kept recycling the ball, until Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli would find themselves in dangerous 1-vs-1 situations, and their persistence eventually paid off.
Havertz continues to flourish
The German has 15 Premier League goals in his last 30 games, when he only had five in his previous 24. He has been in good form this season, and without his goal it could well have been a very long and frustrating night for the Gunners. He drifted in beautifully to attack Trossard’s cross for the finish.
Myles Lewis-Skelly looks very assured
The 18-year-old started the game at left-back but was constantly in the midfield facilitating the play. He always looked to make himself available and played forward and confidently. He is currently keeping Riccardo Calafiori and Oleksandr Zinchenko on the bench, which says everything about how highly he is rated by manager Mikel Arteta.
Ipswich didn’t have a chance to get forward
Ipswich defended deep all game. There were a few instances when they won the ball back from Arsenal but they had no options, as all 11 players were back in their own half. They were poor on the ball and struggled to put many passing moves together.
After a difficult patch of form through October into November, Arsenal are now unbeaten in their last 11 games and seem to have put that behind them. They now enter a run where they will face Brentford, Brighton, Newcastle, Manchester United, Tottenham and Aston Villa in their next six games so a return to form is more than welcome.
