Arsenal 5-1 Sunderland
Arsenal are through to the EFL Cup semi-finals after demolishing League One side Sunderland with a 5-1 scoreline yesterday at the Emirates Stadium.
Mikel Arteta’s side were fueled by the energy infused by their youngsters, making a case as to why they should be given more minutes moving forward.
Eddie Nketiah paced the Gunners with his first professional hat-trick for the club and he was accompanied by Nicolas Pepe and Charlie Patino.
Nathan Broadhead was the only one who scored for the Black Cats, but the Gunners were pretty much in cruise control all throughout the contest.
The Gunners were tipped as the huge favourites by the SBOTOP EFL Cup 2021 odds to win in this contest especially since they’re in great form over at the Premier League.
So with this latest victory, Mikel Arteta’s men have won four straight games in all competitions since their defeat against Everton earlier this December, outscoring their opponents with a whopping aggregate tally of 14-2.
Without further ado, let’s recap yesterday’s goal-laden affair by looking at the EFL Cup 2021 highlights reel.
Highlights of the game
Sunderland boss Lee Johnson may be feeling remorseful with this result especially after drawing the ire of several Arsenal diehards.
After knocking out Queens Park Rangers via penalties in the previous round, the 40-year-old joked that he wanted Arsenal as their next opponent before taking on the “really big guns” later on in the competition.
It’s funny how football works sometimes, so it seemed inevitable when Sunderland really drew Arsenal away in the next round. For Johnson, it was a case of be careful what you wish for.
Perhaps he was feeling confident because his Black Cats entered this game unbeaten in seven straight League One games. However, facing a Premier League side proved to be too much for them to handle.
As for Arsenal, Mikel Arteta made notable changes in his lineup as he omitted Alexandre Lacazzette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who was in horrible form and was stripped of his captaincy due to disciplinary reasons.
By fielding in their exuberant youngsters, Arsenal controlled the game from the get-go, which resulted to Eddie Nketiah drawing first blood inside 20 minutes.
The 22-year-old showed off his poaching skills when he tipped the ball home following a corner, after Sunderland goalkeeper Lee Burge parried away Rob Holding’s header into his path.
10 minutes later, Nicolas Pepe doubled the hosts’ lead after linking up with Cedric down the right flank and his effort was deflected off of Sunderland centre-back Callum Doyle and past the hands of Lee Burge.
Sunderland wouldn’t go down without trying to fight, though, as after 31 minutes they scored a goal through Nathan Broadhead’s effort following a feed by Elliot Embleton.
But just as it felt that the Black Cats were on their way to a possible comeback, things took a turn for the worse when Broadhead was forced off before the break due to an injury.
Shortly after half-time, Arsenal went right back to work as Eddie Nketiah scored his second goal in the 49th minute following a clever cross from Nuno Tavares. Nine minutes later, he completed his hat-trick after a brilliant Nicolas Pepe backheel pass.
With the game out of reach, Mikel Arteta decided to put in Charlie Patino for his Arsenal debut, and the teenager made his presence felt right away when he slotted into the corner from Nicolas Pepe’s ball in just his first 11 minutes of action.
Sunderland never threatened from there and Arsenal fans slept well at night knowing that the future of their beloved club is bright.
Key statistics
Mikel Arteta celebrated his two-year anniversary as Arsenal manager last Monday and he is one step closer to possibly winning another trophy.
Arsenal came into this game missing four men due to COVID-19, but they still got the job done.
With his hat-trick, Eddie Nketiah has now scored five in three games on Arsenal’s EFL Cup campaign, and perhaps his 38 total minutes of playing time in the Premier League should be bumped up sooner.
The Gunners had 19 total shots with 10 of them on target and they controlled 69-per cent possession compared to Sunderland’s 12 total shots with six on target and 31-per cent possession.
What’s next?
Arsenal will now wait for their next opponents in the EFL Cup semi-finals and they’ll face either one of the winners of the Brentford-Chelsea, Liverpool-Leicester City, and Tottenham-West Ham United games. The semis will take place early in January 2022 while the final is going to be on February 27.
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