Preston aren’t 2008 Barcelona, everybody knows that, but that doesn’t mean we can’t all enjoy a comfortable win.
The dreaded giant-killing is never far from the mind when you are a Premier League fan but, thankfully, there wasn’t even a sniff of it for Preston on the night and full credit for that goes to Mikel Arteta. He fielded a strong side when he didn’t have to and ensured any hopes of a famous win for the hosts were snuffed out.
As a result, we got the chance to enjoy a stress-free evening as Arsenal fans watching our boys doing what big favourites do: squash dreams.
More than that, though, we also had the chance to see some of those who have struggled in recent times seize the chance to find a bit of form – or at least relieve a bit of pressure on themselves. Gabriel Jesus and Jakub Kiwior, in particular, were in desperate need of some luck and some minutes and both had excellent games.
Jesus came away with a goal (at last) and an assist, while Kiwior managed two assists on the night from left centre-back. No-one is pretending they had the hardest games of their lives but the job still needing doing and they did so extremely well. I suspect both went into the training ground today in a much better mood than they did earlier in the week. As I have said before, a good performance never did anybody any harm.
The headlines on the night belonged to Ethan Nwaneri, however. The 17-year-old is already knocking at the first team door and that knocking only gets louder as the weeks roll by. His goal was just superb and he might even have had a second were it not for the crossbar.
The manager is right to be cautious with Ethan, to manage everybody’s expectations, but we can all see how talented he is and how destined for a starting berth he is too. If he is managed in the right way, he could quickly become a mainstay.
For now, we can enjoy the moments he is giving us and the minutes that allow him to shine. It seems a lifetime ago that he was thrown into the fray in a league match as a 15-year-old. It felt like madness at the time but it’s starting to look like just the beginning of the story two years on.
Thankfully, there’s not really too much else to say. The team played well, nobody was injured and we managed to shared a few minutes around the squad too. We have booked passage through to the next round of the competition; a home tie against Crystal Palace in December. Something to look forward to.
Now, however, all attentions will turn to Saturday lunchtime and a tricky trip to Newcastle. Their form has been indifferent in recent weeks but we know it will be a physical affair in the north east and there remain lingering tensions between the two squads after some testy recent encounters. Expect it to be full-blooded.
Blog on You Gunners 