This isn’t even a bad Florian Wirtz performance. It’s worse. An off-form Wirtz miscues that pass. He doesn’t take that horrible shot. The decision making with the ball is getting more scrambled every time I see him.

At the end of last season it was legitimate to worry that Noni Madueke was a good stats, bad player type. Here was a healthy sign that good stats very often come from good footballing actions.

At the end of last season it was legitimate to worry that Noni Madueke was a good stats, bad player type. Here was a healthy sign that good stats very often come from good footballing actions.

FT Arsenal 2, Leeds 1 - A strange, strange game. Arsenal rallied well from their sloppy start and could have run up the score late on. Maybe the abiding takeaway from this is that Leeds are going to be a tough nut to crack this season. Arsenal? Harder to read today.

2-1, Guimaraes

Looks like Guimaraes as the pivot with Rice pushed upfield. Rice had been unusually loose with the ball in deep areas and quite leggy too.

1-1, Calafiori

0-1, Justin

It doesn't feel like it but in that first half Arsenal were completing their attacking third passes with greater accuracy (90.5%) than any full PL game since they beat Sheffield United 6-0 in March 2024. Too slow and too cautious. Certainly should have resulted in more shots.

This game is so 12:30 you half expect England to declare war on France

Chant coming from the Leeds away end that Arsenal are "just a shit Crystal Palace". I'm going to need that one explaining to me.

The chairs are where they want to be and perhaps that's better than them being in a defined structure

I believe the correct term is/was Carlo Ancelotti of soccer deck chair management

The only way is up, I guess

Mikel Arteta didn’t say much about Manchester City. In fact there was perhaps only one question he answered directly. Asked if his conscience was clear, he said yes emphatically.

Arteta press conference news - City questions get the "it's an ongoing process... no comment" replies - Havertz and Konsa will have late fitness tests before Leeds - Rice "has been with a few issues" since World Cup - Tzolis out for weeks

Speaking at the Leaders in Sport conference, Richard Garlick describes having Mikel Arteta in the dugout as "a competitive advantage over the other teams in the Premier League".

"This is only the beginning of what we can achieve together."

Instinctively it feels like hyperbole but then you realise Elliott might just be correct

Mikel Arteta and his staff have extended their contracts at Arsenal through to 2030. If Arteta sees it out he will be the third longest serving manager in Arsenal's history, fourth in Premier League.