Arsenal defense, youth inspire top-four hope for remainder of season

It wasn’t a pretty victory, but Arsenal came away with a clean sheet and all three points on the road against a Newcastle side that looked better than expected.

In the months ahead, Arsenal’s new attacking signings will inject no shortage of talent into a squad that tumbled out of Champions League contention in 2018-2019.

Dani Ceballos and Nicolas Pepe received some playing time at the tail end of the Gunners 1-0 win over Newcastle on Matchday 1, but it was the young duo of Reiss Nelson and Joe Willock who received the starts.

Nelson and Willock, given the circumstances, couldn’t have performed any better. Both players looked lively, with Nelson executing some difficult turns and had the foresight to nearly set up Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the early minutes with a cheeky backheel. Willock also provided excellent work rate in midfield and showed a willingness to run at Newcastle’s stout defense.

In Nelson and Willock, Arsenal have found two young players who can become stars in the squad one day. Though the team will entrust Ceballos and Pepe with plenty of minutes, especially given that Pepe is a record-breaking transfer and Ceballos is a loanee, Willock and Nelson have earned more looks this season. They will play key roles for Arsenal and certainly didn’t look out of place against Newcastle.

But what should give Arsenal supporters much more hope for the upcoming season is the defense. Unai Emery went with Nacho Monreal at left back, Ainsley Maitland-Niles on the right, and the center back partnership of Calum Chambers and Sokratis.

Facing an excellent Joelinton, hungry Miguel Almiron, and electric substitute in Allan Saint-Maximin, that back four managed to hold Newcastle to a clean sheet. Last season, Arsenal had just one clean sheet on the road, and while they will face tougher sides in 2019-2020, it was encouraging to see the Gunners begin the campaign with a road clean sheet in their first try.

There’s a worry that Arsenal’s defense will be the Achilles’ heel of this team in 2019-2020, especially since the Gunners made far more upgrades in attack this summer than they did to their leaky defense. But this was a strong display, and the defense could be even better if Kieran Tierney emerges as a starting left back over Monreal.

Arsenal also have David Luiz waiting to get involved at center back, though the duo of Chambers and Sokratis looked more than capable against a dangerous Joelinton. Chambers’s composure and awareness were particularly striking, as the loan spell at Fulham appears to have gone perfectly. The 24-year-old has returned to Arsenal looking sharper tactically and more comfortable with the ball at his feet, so he could prove to be a real X-Factor on defense if he holds down a starting job.

Similar praise can go to Bernd Leno, who was the glue holding last season’s woeful defense somewhat intact. Leno showed safe hands and solid distribution on this day, with his handling being key against a Newcastle side that enjoys sending the ball into the box. Joelinton is brilliant in the air, but Leno and his defense were able to keep him quiet.

As for Maitland-Niles, he may have been Arsenal’s Man of the Match for his solid defending, smart overlapping runs to provide width for Henrik Mkhitaryan on the right, and tremendous interception-and-assist for Aubameyang’s game-deciding goal.

The Gunners will have another light opponent next week in Burnley before facing title competitors Liverpool on Matchday 3 to finish August.

Fans will see just what this Gunners squad is made of at Anfield, but despite the 1-0 scoreline, this was a positive road display against Newcastle. Forced to go with a sub-optimal starting lineup, Arsenal’s youth stepped to the plate, and the defense showed that, perhaps, they won’t be a massive weakness in this side. It’s still too early to tell for sure – the Liverpool game will be a much better measuring stick – but Arsenal fans can walk away from Matchday 1 happy with the three points and the performances from their most questionable areas. Winning “ugly” 1-0 games is exactly what the Gunners most do more frequently this season than last.

If Arsenal’s defense continues to make strides and the likes of Nelson and Willock build off of their encouraging first games, a top-four finish in a wild Premier League seems more likely than not. Of course, Arsenal can’t guarantee success from Ceballos and Pepe, but their success truly hinges on the less heralded players like Chambers on defense.

Based on what happened at Newcastle, Arsenal have the ingredients for a much better 2019-2020 campaign, provided they build on this quietly encouraging, ugly win. Arsenal fans will wisely remain cynical, but there’s promise in this squad for Emery’s second season as manager.