Arsenal 3-0 Newcastle
by Harry Corton

ARSENAL captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice yesterday (Tuesday) as he led his side to a convincing 3-0 win against Newcastle United.

Manager Mikel Arteta praised the striker for keeping his cool after missing several first-half chances, then notching as many goals inside half an hour as he’d netted in his previous 10 matches.
 
“That is what he has done through his career, and mentally you have to be really strong in order to do that,” the Spaniard said.

“To come out of a difficult period where we miss his goals a lot, and he’s come back and scored two and contributed to the team winning, which is exactly what we need.”

It was a positive night all round for the Gunners, who kept a fifth consecutive clean sheet, their best defensive sequence since 2009. At the heart of it was Rob Holding, as commanding in the air as in the tackle, and placing huge stock in the club’s decision to award him a new contract extension last week.

Thomas Partey, making his first start for over a month after being sidelined by injury, was solid in midfield and produced an eye-catching assist for Aubameyang to open the scoring.

The Ghanaian took possession just outside his own penalty area and released his fellow African down the left flank, allowing the Gabon man to dazzle a Magpies defender and thrash the ball beyond Karl Darlow.

Academy products Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka combined for the superb second goal on the hour to underline their own immense value and consistent contribution. It was the former who created the move, weaving with a robotic change of pace into the box before squaring for his teenage teammate to score his fourth of the campaign.

Despite lining up with two imposing, if a little deprived, strikers in Andy Carroll and Callum Wilson, Newcastle never looked like imposing themselves on this game.

With just one goal in their last seven games, United’s form is concerning. Boss Steve Bruce admitted his side now find themselves in a relegation scrap.

“There’s no denying confidence is a bit low,” he said. “We’ve been stuck on 19 points for a while. That’s why we’re in the bottom half of the table.”

The victory for Arsenal moved them back into the top half for the first time since November and to within just seven points of the top four. Arteta reflected on the positive feeling currently permeating the club.

“We always say that winning is the best thing for any collective team or any individual as well. For us to get in the momentum that we are with the clean sheets, the fact that we are scoring goals and everything is more fluent.

“The energy, the cohesion and the spirit is better. There are still a lot of things that we have to improve but overall, I’m really pleased with how we’re playing at the moment.”

Next, Arteta faces three tough fixtures in the league with trips to Southampton and Wolves bookending the visit of Manchester United. No doubt this will be a decisive period for the Gunners in assessing how their season will be coloured, come what may.