Manager Karl Robinson knew his side faced an uphill struggle to come up with an upset against Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal who are currently top of the Premier League table. The upset never happened as the Gunners beat Oxford 3- 0, scoring 3 goals in just 13 minutes.
One may think it was a rosy affair but it wasn’t. For the first 45 minutes of the encounter, neither team registered a shot on target. By the end of the first half, Mikel Arteta had gone back to the drawing board. New tactics had to be conjured up to avoid an upset after being tipped as overwhelming favorites to win the encounter.
It was not until the 63 minutes that the unlikeliest of the Arsenal players to score, Mohamed Elneny headed home from a beautifully taken Fabio Vieira cross. This goal made way for two more that were to come shortly after.
Gabriel Jesus’ stand-in, Eddie Nketiah scored a second goal 7 minutes later from another Vieira assist. The in-form Nketiah who has scored 4 goals in 5 matches, added a third 6 minutes later from a lovely pass by Brazilian international Gabriel Martinelli.
The win means that Arsenal will face Manchester City away in the Fourth round of the FA Cup later this month. The two teams are yet to meet this season in any competition.
Talking points from Arsenal’s Win
1. Eddie Nketiah has filled in Gabriel Jesus’ gap
When Arsenal Brazilian forward, Gabriel Jesus got injured while representing his country in the 2022 Qatar World Cup, he left a huge gap to be filled. However, the young Eddie Nketiah has taken up the challenge by scoring four times in his last five games. This has enabled the Gunners to maintain their unbeaten run as well as have an extra source of goals aside from Bukayo Saka and Captain Martin Odegard.
2. Emile Smith Rowe back from Injury
This is great news to the table toppers who have been short of attacking power, especially on their bench. With the return of their number 10 who last featured on September 4, things seem to be moving in the right direction for Arsenal. Smith Rowe came on as a substitute for the injured Bukayo Saka though the Manager said it was nothing serious. He managed to get some minutes and will be soon back and fully fit to give Arteta’s side a variety of choices to choose from for his attack.
3. Fabio Vieira is a Magician just like Martin Odegard
In recent Arsenal games, Captain Martin Odegard has been praised for his magical assists. Creating goal-scoring opportunities for his teammates when things are so tight. Well, the good news is that Fabio Vieira is replicating the same in games where the Captain is not playing. The 22-year-old Portuguese Attacking Midfielder created two assists that saw Oxford United beaten with 13 minutes. At his age and talent, one can only expect a lot more to come from the former Porto man.
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