After Thursday’s comfortable and smooth thrashing of Standard Liège came this edgy and narrow win over Bournemouth.
Arsenal being Arsenal we should have all probably seen it coming. Most of the first-team players returned and the hosts reverted somewhat to type – getting the job done but in a manner that filled this venue with anxiety and continues to cloud Unai Emery’s credibility as manager with uncertainty.
The men in red and white were holding on by the end, pushed back by opponents who smelt blood having stepped up their intensity after a sluggish first-half showing. There was muttering in the stands and a sense that Bournemouth could, and would, snatch an equaliser that on balance they arguably deserved. Joshua King came close on 90 minutes but ultimately Arsenal secured a victory that moves them to third place.