Gabriel Jesus impressed on the final day. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
#2 Positive: The swagger returns
The team have struggled in recent weeks – a combination of immense pressure and fatigue, both physically and mentally, ultimately proved too much for our young squad.
But today, they were back to their brilliant best and treated us all to an incredible watch. The entire front line was exceptional, Xhaka, as mentioned, was phenomenal and it resulted in a performance that was reminiscent of our early season form. This result was the perfect way to head into the new season.
Negative #2: Bukayo Saka injury
Another negative from the match was the injury Saka suffered in the second half. The severity of the injury is not yet known, and whilst it is unlikely to affect his preparation for next season, an injury to a player of Saka’s calibre is never a good thing.
If it were to be serious, that would be a massive blow for Mikel Arteta heading into the summer as the 21-year-old is not just of the most talented players in the squad, but also one of the most important.
Continued on the next slide…
pic.twitter.com/F8pfQmpAz0
<p>— Arsenal (@Arsenal) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/29/3-positives-and-negatives-from-arsenal-5-0-demolition-of-wolves/2/"https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/1662872489385504769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>May 28, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/29/3-positives-and-negatives-from-arsenal-5-0-demolition-of-wolves/2/"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></div>
<h2>Positive #1: The perfect farewell for Granit Xhaka</h2>
<p>Xhaka has, of course, divided opinion throughout his time at Arsenal, but the entire fanbase must respect his redemption from zero to hero. He has been fantastic for us this season and was one of the most integral players in the squad.</p>
<p>Two goals at home, in the sunshine, is the poetic ending that Xhaka deserved. If this is the end of his time at Arsenal, he said goodbye in style.</p>
<h2>Negative #1: Possibly the last game for some</h2>
<p>Along with Xhaka, several other players will have <a title="4 players who might be playing their last game for Arsenal vs Wolves" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/29/3-positives-and-negatives-from-arsenal-5-0-demolition-of-wolves/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/26/4-players-might-playing-last-game-arsenal-vs-wolves/" rel="">potentially played their last game</a> for the club today. Kieran Tierney, Emile Smith Rowe and possibly Eddie Nketiah are all possible departures this summer.</p>
<p>Those are three players who have served the club excellently during their time and many of us will be sad to see them go. In particular, a Smith Rowe departure will especially hurt as he was once considered to be on par with Saka, and perhaps still is.</p>
<p>Rob Holding is another who could leave in the summer, and whilst many accept he is no longer good enough for the side, he is another player who has always given his absolute best form the club.</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</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/2023/05/29/3-positives-and-negatives-from-arsenal-5-0-demolition-of-wolves/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> #2 positive and negative </a>
</div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_134772" class="wp-caption alignnone">
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-134772" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/29/3-positives-and-negatives-from-arsenal-5-0-demolition-of-wolves/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%2F1258257573-scaled.jpeg" alt="" width="2560" height="1706" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1258257573-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1258257573-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1258257573-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1258257573-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Gabriel Jesus impressed on the final day. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)</p>
</div>
<h2>#2 Positive: The swagger returns</h2>
<p>The team have struggled in recent weeks – a combination of immense pressure and fatigue, both physically and mentally, ultimately proved too much for our young squad.</p>
<p>But today, they were back to their brilliant best and treated us all to an incredible watch. The entire front line was exceptional, Xhaka, as mentioned, was phenomenal and it resulted in a performance that was reminiscent of our early season form. This result was the perfect way to head into the new season.</p>
<h2>Negative #2: Bukayo Saka injury</h2>
<p>Another negative from the match was the injury Saka suffered in the second half. The severity of the injury is not yet known, and whilst it is unlikely to affect his preparation for next season, an injury to a player of Saka’s calibre is never a good thing.</p>
<p>If it were to be serious, that would be a massive blow for Mikel Arteta heading into the summer as the 21-year-old is not just of the most talented players in the squad, but also one of the most important.</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</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/2023/05/29/3-positives-and-negatives-from-arsenal-5-0-demolition-of-wolves/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> #3 positive and negative </a>
</div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_134773" class="wp-caption alignnone">
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-134773" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/05/29/3-positives-and-negatives-from-arsenal-5-0-demolition-of-wolves/2/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1759,w_2560/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1494034045-scaled.jpeg" alt="" width="2560" height="1759" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1494034045-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1494034045-768x528.jpeg 768w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1494034045-1536x1056.jpeg 1536w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1494034045-2048x1407.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Aaron Ramsdale ended the season with a clean sheet. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)</p>
</div>
<h2>#3 Positive: A clean sheet</h2>
<p>The perfect supporting act to scoring five goals is not conceding any at the other end of the pitch. And today, we did just thIndeed, that Wolves are not the most potent team in attack, in fact, they haven’t been for many years now, but a clean sheet is a clean sheet nonetheless. Arteta deployed Thomas Partey and Jakub Kiwior in full-back positions again in this match, and perhaps this result suggests that it can work both offensively and, most importantly, defensively.</p>
<p>We were extremely effective in all phases of the game.</p>
<h2>#3 Negative: Bittersweet victory</h2>
<p>Given the events of the last few weeks, and the defeat suffered by Manchester City, there is an underlying feeling of what if?</p>
<p>What if we were able to show this kind of performance against Southampton and West Ham? Of course, it should be mentioned that had Pep Guardiola’s City needed a win against Brentford, they likely would have been successful – but we needed to be there just in case they didn’t.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, we were unable to do that, so ultimately this victory was in vain, but we enjoyed it nevertheless.</p>
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<p>Attention must now turn to rectifying our mistakes ahead of next season and improving in the transfer window.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
