Leeds United 0-1 Arsenal
Arsenal will remain top of the Premier League for another week after ending Leeds’ unbeaten home record in a dramatic and bizarre clash at Elland Road.
Bukayo Saka blasted Arsenal into a 35th minute lead and that was enough to win the game, but Leeds will be wondering how on earth they didn’t get something after having a goal and a penalty denied by VAR and a penalty miss by Patrick Bamford; not to mention a fine performance from the Arsenal keeper and some poor finishing from the Whites.
And there was a crazy start to the game which lasted only for 69 seconds before being delayed for 40 minutes. Premier League: Leeds United vs Arsenal was billed as an all action match , but in a weird turn of events the game was delayed while the officials tried to get their communication lines moving.
At 12 minutes past the 2pm kick off time the players were taken off the pitch as the public address system announced that a power cut at Elland Road had caused the disruption and the referee had no access to VAR. Now you may think that’s a good thing but the Premier League doesn’t and the fans had to wait for the electricians to do their job.
They did and VAR helped to make it a miserable day for the Whites.
Highlights of the game
Despite Leeds failing to win in their last five games the SBOTOP football stats team picked out the point that the Whites were unbeaten at Elland Road, with two wins and two draws; and the home fans were right up for the game when the match restarted. And Leeds were almost ahead when Rodrigo found Luis Sinisterra in space and the Colombian midfielder’s shot was deflected inches wide.
But Rodrigo won’t want to look too closely at the Leeds United vs Arsenal highlights because he was at least partly at fault for the Gunners’ opener. The Spanish forward hit a dreadful cross field pass which gave Arsenal possession, and when Martin Odegaard fed Saka he smashed his shot into the roof of the net from a tight angle.
Jesse March reacted at half time by bringing Partick Bamford on and the striker thought he’d scored the leveller just 40 seconds after he entered the game, lashing home a volley but the ref blew for a foul on Gabriel and VAR confirmed that Bamford had impeded the Gunners defender.
On the hour Bamford had a glorious chance to be Supersub when the ball hit William Saliba’s hand. The referee waved away Leeds appeals but VAR awarded a spot kick. But Bamford stepped up and dragged his penalty wide.
Gabriel Martinelli has been in sensational form for Arsenal so far this season but he, as well as the in form Gabriel Jesus, had little to show in the second half as Leeds pushed hard for that equaliser. The Whites were playing a front six and Arsenal keeper Aaron Ramsdale made a great save to deny Brenden Aaronsen and Sinisterra blazed a good opportunity over the bar.
And then, on 90 minutes there was more drama. Bamford and Gabriel tussled in the penalty area, the referee pointed top the spot and waved a red card in the direction of the Arsenal defender.
Cue VAR…no penalty and no red card which all means… Arsenal stay at the top of the league and Leeds drop to 15th.
It can be a cruel game.
Key statistics
The Leeds United vs Arsenal betting odds backed a Gunners win at odds of 1.56 and while they had more possession and the teams had four shots on target each, Leeds had 16 efforts to Arsenal’s nine.
The victory for Arsenal made it their joint best start to any campaign since 1903.
What’s next?
It’s over to Manchester City now in the Sunday team time blockbuster against Liverpool, nut Arsenals’ winner means the Sky Blues can only narrow the gap to one point with a win.
Next up for the Gunners it’s the Europa League and a tie at home to PSV Eindhoven before, back in the Premier League Mikel Arteta’s team has another away game to a bottom half side when they visit Southampton on Sunday 23rd October. Leeds have two huge games over the next seven days when they visit struggling Leicester City on Thursday night before heading back to Elland Road to host Fulham. The Whites need points to pull away from the bottom three…and some luck!
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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