Arsenal began their Premier League campaign on a winning note after recording a 2-0 victory over Wolves at the Emirates Stadium, with Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz making the headlines for different reasons.
The Gunners pair combined for both goals in either half, with Saka crossing for Havertz to head home and the German repaying the favour with an assist as Saka struck a second.
But the German was left incredulous by the failure of VAR officials to intervene following a heated moment with Yerson Mosquera in the second half. However, the Wolves player avoided a red card and the Gunners cruised to victory.
Express Sport assesses the talking points from the opening day victory and what we learned from Mikel Arteta‘s side.
Saka stars as Arteta hatches new attacking plan
How do you improve on a season where you finished two points behind Manchester City? Marginal improvements. And Arteta may have the answer to his side’s problems in front of goal after trialling a new tactic against Wolves.
While the Gunners have become accustomed to playing free-flowing football through short passing, they offered a different perspective to their play at the Emirates by bombarding the Wolves penalty area with a flurry of deliveries.
In the first half especially, wingers Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli peppered the Wolves backline with dangerous in-swinging deliveries. It looked planned, rather than desperate, and the Gunners reaped their reward when Saka found Havertz for the opener.
Then the same two players combined for the second goal as Havertz carried the ball forward and laid it off to Saka, who turned inside Rayan Ait-Nouri and smashed home at the near post.
VAR rethink required after Havertz strangle farce
Football remains a contact sport, even if that argument holds less water than it did 10 or 15 years ago. But at what point did it become permissible for players to choke another and escape a red card?
In a bizarre spat, Havertz found himself on the ground after tangling with Yerson Mosquera. But the latter didn’t leave the matter there, appearing to grasp Havertz’s neck in a stranglehold and held it for a matter of seconds.
Havertz was left in some pain on the floor while his team-mates remonstrated with referee Jarred Gillett. But despite a brief check from VAR official Paul Tierney, play continued without Mosquera picking up any sort of punishment.
It was the kind of incident that, if the referee had viewed it again, he surely would’ve reached for his pocket and brandished a red card. The reluctance to do so undermines VAR’s purpose: to spot incidents missed by the referee, including serious foul play, and this incident certainly qualified under that threshold.
Partey key to new Rice role
Arteta named an unchanged lineup from the team that beat Lyon 2-0 in their final pre-season game, meaning that Thomas Partey got the nod ahead of Jorginho in midfield.
The Ghanaian took up a deep role in central midfield and looked comfortable in helping William Saliba and Gabriel build out from the back.
With Partey deployed as a holding midfielder, it allowed Declan Rice to stretch his legs and dart between both boxes. The England international looked happy enough after being released from the shackles as he was used in the box-to-box that Granit Xhaka enjoyed a few seasons ago.
Quite what the setup means for Jorginho’s future is anyone’s guess. But it appears if Partey can stay fit, he will be Arteta’s midfield general – at least until Mikel Merino arrives from Real Sociedad as he is expected to.
Saliba a true winner
No player has embodied Arteta’s winning mentality quite like William Saliba. The Frenchman, once on the verge of leaving on a permanent deal, has worked his way into the reckoning over the past two seasons and found himself on the winning side in 49 of his 65 Premier League games for Arsenal before facing Wolves.
If he were to win, he would become the fastest player to 50 leagues in an Arsenal shirt – a record previously held by Nacho Monreal, who achieved the feat in 70 games.
It’s no coincidence when you look at key players for other teams in the Premier League – Rodri and Virgil van Dijk have excellent win percentage records for Manchester City and Liverpool respectively.
They had the best defence in the Premier League last season and we all saw what happened when Saliba injured himself in the 2022-23 campaign. Arsenal conceded sloppy goals and watched their title challenge fall apart. But this year, they will be confident in the knowledge that their crucial leader at the back is ready to help them win the title at the third attempt.