Arsenal suffered a shock setback in their pursuit of the Premier League title. First, a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Sunday. The result keeps Arsenal in second place – now on 67 points – and puts them 12 behind current league leaders Liverpool, who are on 79 points. On the flip side, Crystal Palace is still 12th in the table but showed heart and quality from a late substitute showing from Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Arsenal had two goals scored by Jakub Kiwior and Leandro Trossard. On the other hand, Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze handled himself well in scoring a superb equalizer. Though Mateta did not start the match and was subbed on in the 80th minute, he had an enormous impact as a substitute. His was such a dominant performance that Sky Sports named him man-of-the-match.
Match Overview
Kiwior had a cathartic return to form, Arsenal started brightly and went up with Kiwior scoring in the first half. It was a pretty clear play in which they executed their set piece perfectly and caught the Crystal Palace defense completely flat-footed. Trossard added a third with a superb individual goal to close proceedings. He chested down Jurrien Timber’s long pass, turned on a dime, and hit a right-footed shot inside the post.
Crystal Palace responded valiantly. Eze scored an outstanding goal, connecting perfectly with Adam Wharton’s corner to send a volley off the post and past Arsenal’s goalkeeper David Raya. Mateta’s late introduction proved crucial as he added urgency to Palace’s attack.
“When I started on the bench I could see he (David Raya) was very high up the pitch,” – Jean-Philippe Mateta
Impact of Substitutions
Mateta’s introduction in the dying minutes turned the tide of the match. His energy, tactical awareness, and nose for goal let him exploit spaces left by a fatigued Arsenal defense. Well, just seconds after coming on, he snatched up a loose ball and fired home a jaw dropping shot that tied the game.
“So I knew if I won the ball I could try, so I did and scored. It is one of the best goals of my career. I thought it hit the crossbar but thankfully it was in!” – Jean-Philippe Mateta
Manager Oliver Glasner couldn’t be happier with his team’s tenacity. He encouraged the boys to continue this momentum as they head into their next semi-final/final match.
“It’s important to keep this energy and confidence for the semi-final on Saturday,” – Oliver Glasner
Managers’ Reactions
Arsenal’s manager, Mikel Arteta, was incredulous in his disappointment post match. Prior to the half, he admitted that his squad failed to find an attacking rhythm throughout the match. He noted how important it is for them to get better as they head into the end stretch of the season’s climax.
“We are disappointed with the result and performance. We didn’t find enough consistency in actions to dominate the game. It’s part of football and cost us two points,” – Mikel Arteta
Arteta placed greater emphasis on the need for his players to recover fast. They have to stay focused on their next opponents while dealing with the pressure of fighting for the championship itself.
“In many aspects of the game we should have done better today. We have the most important game of the season in six days. We need to get our energy back,” – Mikel Arteta
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