Arsenal 1-1 (5-4p) AS Monaco – 3 talking points as Gunners claim Emirates Cup

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<p>&mdash; AFCnewsroom (@TheAFCnewsroom) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-as-monaco-3-talking-points-emirates-cup/2/"https://twitter.com/TheAFCnewsroom/status/1686792331108773888?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>August 2, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p><script async src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-as-monaco-3-talking-points-emirates-cup/2/"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></div> <h2>1. Defensively, Arsenal look off</h2> <p>While yes it&#8217;s pre-season and some players are still getting up to speed, the ease with which teams have scored against Arsenal has been alarming, in particular Monaco.</p> <p>The French side got through the Gunners at will and had the final ball or finishing been better, more goals would have followed.</p> <p>Given how stout the defence was last season, the drop-off this pre-season has to be a little bit concerning for Mikel Arteta.</p> <p>But, it is preseason, so we can&#8217;t exactly draw too many conclusions, but defensively, Arsenal don&#8217;t seem to be the unit they were last season.</p> <p>Watch this space.</p> <p><em>Continued on the next slide&#8230;</em></p> <div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-as-monaco-3-talking-points-emirates-cup/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span>&nbsp;Talking Point #2 </a> </div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><p>https://twitter.com/TheAFCnewsroom/status/1686789598054150158?s=20</p> <h2>2. Rice in the Xhaka role</h2> <p>Declan Rice had his first appearance at the Emirates and Mikel Arteta deployed him in the Granit Xhaka role alongside Thomas Partey.</p> <p>Often popping up on the left, Rice&#8217;s link-up play with Martinelli in the first half was sublime and he was a constant outlet down the left.</p> <p>Rice got himself forward at every opportunity, making runs in behind the Monaco defence, and was unlucky not to bring Arsenal level after taking a delightful first touch in the box, but his shot was blocked.</p> <p>Promising signs from our summer signing.</p> <p><em>Continued on the next slide&#8230;</em></p> <div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-as-monaco-3-talking-points-emirates-cup/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span>&nbsp;Talking Point #3 </a> </div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_135616" class="wp-caption alignnone"> <img decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-135616" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-as-monaco-3-talking-points-emirates-cup/2/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1706,w_2560/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1572360027-scaled.jpeg" alt="" width="2560" height="1706" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1572360027-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1572360027-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1572360027-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1572360027-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Partey was excellent with the ball. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)</p> </div> <h2>3. Thomas Partey a Rolls Royce</h2> <p>When there were rumours that Arsenal was open to listening to offers for Partey, the collective eyebrow was raised from fans. The midfield dynamo was thought to be an integral cog in the Arsenal midfield machine.</p> <p>https://twitter.com/afcstuff/status/1686796957694521346?s=20</p> <p>Against Monaco, Partey again showed why he is so important to the Arsenal setup. His touches, progressive passing, ability to turn in and out of trouble with ease, and consistently find his teammates and put them in promising positions were outstanding.</p> <div class="embed "> <blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="NTq03bxtEZ"><p><a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-as-monaco-3-talking-points-emirates-cup/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-monaco-player-ratings/">Arsenal 1-1 AS Monaco: Player ratings as Gunners held in Emirates Cup</a></p></blockquote> <p><iframe class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" style="position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);" title="“Arsenal 1-1 AS Monaco: Player ratings as Gunners held in Emirates Cup” — Pain in the Arsenal" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-as-monaco-3-talking-points-emirates-cup/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/02/arsenal-monaco-player-ratings/embed/#?secret=70T0ShayBJ#?secret=NTq03bxtEZ" data-secret="NTq03bxtEZ" width="500" height="282" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></p></div> <p>His partnership with Rice, while in its infancy, looks good already.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">