46/49 passes, 5/6 duels, 4/4 tackles: 58-touch star was Arsenal's standout player vs Athletic Club - opinion
Arsenal picked up a 3-0 victory over Athletic Club at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
The Gunners lost their last two friendlies versus Villarreal and Tottenham Hotspur.
There was a perfect response with a resounding win over Athletic in front of the fans.
Viktor Gyokeres announced himself to the faithful with a fabulous headed goal to open the scoring. The Swede almost scored another with a diving header, but was denied by a fantastic save by Unai Simon.
Bukayo Saka scored the second goal for the Gunners while Kai Havertz put the gloss on the performance with the third. The German surprised many fans with his sublime sprint before finding the back of the net.
There were several good performances yesterday, but midfielder Martin Zubimendi was undoubtedly the standout player as he stole the show with his overall showing over 90 minutes.
The Spaniard completed 94 percent of his passes (46/49) and 83 percent of his long balls (5/6). He also won five out of six duels contested with four tackles and a couple of recoveries. He had 58 touches overall.
However, his main contribution came in the final third. He delivered a peach of a cross for Gyokeres to break the deadlock. Zubimendi also put Saka through on goal in the second half, but the Englishman fumbled the big chance as he took too much time to decide where to shoot.
The summer signing has been a revelation right from the beginning of pre-season. His quality on the ball is quite evident. The 26-year-old has been progressive with his distribution, and his quick decision-making has caught defences off guard.
Yesterday, we saw another key attribute why he was signed by the club. Zubimendi created the opening goal with a fabulous cross and should have bagged another assist late on.
Zubimendi and Declan Rice were spotted constantly exchanging positions, with the former being the creative outlet at times. This is bound to be a fresh headache for opposition players.
In the past, Rice was constantly the central attacking midfielder alongside Martin Odegaard. The swapping of places means there is a bit of unpredictability for the opposition to handle.
Zubimendi will be aiming to replicate the performance on his Premier League debut. The Gunners will face off against Manchester United in their curtain-raiser at Old Trafford on August 17.
Stats from Fotmob.com
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