STILL A BLOODY MILE AWAY
Invincibles to Unwatchables
ON THE first anniversary of the sacking of Unai Emery, classy Wolves showed Arsenal are still light years away from being Premier League contenders.
And the harsh reality for the North London club is that Nuno Espirito Santo’s outfit, who are up to sixth in the table, are simply a better side with better players.
This match will be remembered for an early clash of heads which saw Raul Jimenez stretchered off and rushed to hospital and David Luiz soldier on until half- time with a blood- stained head bandage.
But the sickening incident should not take credit away from Wolves, who were superb even without their star striker, or deflect criticism from an Arsenal side who still languish in 14th place after losing three home league games in a row
And after scoring only 10 goals in their first 10 games, their tally of 13 points is the worst ever in the Premier League era and they are as close to the drop zone as the top of the table.
Boss Mikel Arteta, who took over before last Christmas, said he needed more time to rebuild before this latest humiliation.
But last night there was little sign of progress despite Gabriel scoring a goal from open play after a short corner.
They have won the Community Shield and all four Europa League matches this season, as well as triumphing at Old Trafford.
But the club of the Invincibles has been the Unwatchables in the Premier League against Leicester, Aston Villa and now Wolves.
And captain Pierre- Emerick Aubameyang appeared to spend the match looking for any get- out clause in his new three- year contract. Nuno’s club are vibrant proof of the strength of the Premier League – and the effectiveness of spending money well.
The return of captain Conor Cody after his enforced absence against Southampton did not end the experiment with a flat- back four.
And on this solid base, Adama Traore ran riot and Pedro Neto justified his starting place with a goal and an assist. They know exactly what they are doing. Arsenal do not.
The match kicked off at 7.15pm and was then stopped for 10 minutes following the horror clash of heads between the Brazilian and the Mexican which echoed around the empty Emirates Stadium.
The players seemed initially stunned before the opening goal re- energised the encounter in the 28th minute. Traore crossed from the right to see Leander Dendoncker head against the bar from four yards.
The rebound fell to Neto who scored his third goal in three games for club and country despite his shot deflecting in off Hector Bellerin and Gabriel.
The lead lasted only two minutes with an equaliser made in Brazil. Willian played a short corner to Bellerin and his cross was headed home by Gabriel.
Wolves again took the lead through a deadly counter- attack with Traore again the catalyst with a powerful run before feeding Neto.
His deflected shot was saved by Bernd Leno’s legs but Daniel Podence was first to react and skipped past Gabriel before slotting home.