Home Football Ødegaard and Gyökeres on centre stage as Arteta’s Arsenal plan takes shape...

Ødegaard and Gyökeres on centre stage as Arteta’s Arsenal plan takes shape | Barney Ronay

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With an enticing run of fixtures coming up and the captain back to his best, an enjoyable autumn seems on the cards

And … breathe. As Bukayo Saka shot low, hard and ultimately through Kostas Tzolakis in the Olympiakos goal to complete an occasionally uncomfortable 2-0 win, the noise from the home crowd was more a weary, sofa-flopping sigh than a roar of triumph, with the sense, finally, of a midweek putting-to-bed.

This was a game Arsenal always looked like they were winning, despite seeming to realise this a little too early in the piece against eager and purposeful opponents. Nobody attracts the stern and unforgiving eye quite like this Arsenal team, for whom squad depth, the unforgivable act of acquiring a potentially title‑winning team, is the latest crime on the rap sheet.

Continue reading…With an enticing run of fixtures coming up and the captain back to his best, an enjoyable autumn seems on the cardsAnd … breathe. As Bukayo Saka shot low, hard and ultimately through Kostas Tzolakis in the Olympiakos goal to complete an occasionally uncomfortable 2-0 win, the noise from the home crowd was more a weary, sofa-flopping sigh than a roar of triumph, with the sense, finally, of a midweek putting-to-bed.This was a game Arsenal always looked like they were winning, despite seeming to realise this a little too early in the piece against eager and purposeful opponents. Nobody attracts the stern and unforgiving eye quite like this Arsenal team, for whom squad depth, the unforgivable act of acquiring a potentially title‑winning team, is the latest crime on the rap sheet. Continue reading…