**Arsenal**did what any good title chasing outfit are meant to do against a promoted outfit. In the late Saturday kickoff, they put five goals past Leeds United to trump Tottenham Hotspur before the end of the day, taking another scalp at the eleventh hour after the highly craved return of a talismanic ten.
Here are four things we learned from a fantastic afternoon for Arsenal.
Arsenal play into the performatives
**Arsenal**have endured tough times in front of their fans at the Emirates Stadium in the last decade. But as the Gunners have improved, bonds have been built between the fans and the footballers again. This fixture would be the latest demonstration of this aspect of the project that Arteta has overseen.
The Spaniard spoke about "missing" the supporters in his pre-match press conference and the importance of giving the fanbase something to shout about from the rafters on day one.
Wins against Leicester City, Nottingham Forest, and **Wolves**have set the tone at home in the last three campaigns that produced second place finishes. This triumph would be the best of the bunch.
Apart from the five goals on the day, the decibels cranked up at the sight of Eberechi Eze. At the eleventh hour, Andrea Berta and the board beat North London rivals Tottenham to his signature, and the £68 million man is the type of creative, explosive presence who gets viewers off their seats.
Above all, Eze is a boyhood Gunner, having left the academy at the age of 13. This transfer fulfils a boyhood ambition, and the grin on his face lifted the mood as he immediately connected to the crowd.
**Arsenal**have been a little looser at home compared to their form on the road. They must do whatever is in their power to turn their ground into even more of a fortress, and this show was an excellent start.
Depth is a decisive factor
The discussions around Eze are also a reminder that the Premier League is a marathon, not a sprint.
**Arsenal**have leaned a little too much on their regulars and have paid the price in the last twelve months. **Martin Odegaard**rushed back from an ankle sprain in September last year, looked out of form for long stretches, and walked off the pitch in this meeting with an injury to his shoulder.
**Kai Havertz**has a stint on the sidelines to manage after a knee injury that followed his 'season-ending' hamstring tear from the trip to Dubai in February. On top of that, Bukayo Saka pulled up with discomfort in the back of his leg, eight months on from his hamstring tear against Crystal Palace.
Eze is ideally a central player but could also feature from the left flank. His arrival allows Arteta to distribute playing time more evenly across the camp, lessening the load on particular individuals.
**Gabriel Martinelli**watched from the bench as Noni Madueke got the green light to start as a left winger. Once Saka left the pitch, Madueke moved to his more typical position on the right flank, and Leandro Trossard, who recently received a wage bump, filled in on the left edge of the front three.
Ethan Nwaneri covered for Odegaard, and the 18-year-old has already shown his skill as a deputy for Saka at the start of 2025. Injuries for three of the top attackers are not ideal, not least with **Liverpool**next on the schedule. |However, the Gunners have more firepower to be resilient in such situations.
The absence of Havertz should matter much less if the marquee man rises to the expectations.
Whether it was the **FA Cup**exit to ten man Man United, the Champions League semi-final defeat against Paris Saint-Germain, or many of the 14 draws in the Premier League, a lack of cutting edge killed the Gunners last year. So, they will be glad that their new number nine has opened his account.
**Viktor Gyökeres**got no shots at **Old Trafford**in the hour he was on the field, and his fruitless scraping with **Matthijs de Ligt**left an underwhelming impression. But this is a player who has experienced a disruptive summer and needs the grace to get full fitness in his legs and mind.
What will please fans the most is that his first goal in the **Premier League**matched the image he had from his time at Sporting. He chased a punt down the left channel that flew beyond the high line of Leeds, cut into the penalty area with his right boot, and battered the ball into the back of the net.
Defences in England will not be as forgiving as the ones that the Swedish striker battled for two years in Portugal. But the best forwards can translate the top traits in their game to a more competitive level.
In injury time, he bagged his brace, burying a penalty beyond the goalkeeper. It would have been an act of humility to see him hand the ball to 15-year-old Max Dowman, who won the penalty. But Gyökeres gets his thrills from scoring shots, and he needs to be locked in for the trip to Anfield.
Set-pieces provide relief
The score shall make people look favourably at the Gunners in this match. But there is always room for improvement, and the hosts were grateful for a familiar threat to break the deadlock in this duel.
The showing last week would worry fans because of the lack of stable possession at Old Trafford. Martin Zubimendi struggled to get his foot on the ball, the game bypassed the midfield, and the failure to put the clash away with a series of botched transitions only allowed the pressure to increase.
There was less chaos in this encounter, but the Gunners were not back to their fluid best from the beginning. The midfield seemed more intent on trying to stay connected as a unit of three, but the pathways to the forwards were stilted, and the shot count stayed low during the first half hour.
In the end, a corner kick routine rewarded the efforts of Arteta's men. Declan Rice remains a massive threat with his expert service into the penalty area, and Leeds lapsed in concentration as Timber crept between two of the best aerial presences in the starting eleven to turn the ball into the back of the net.
At the start of the season, everyone is still trying to find full physical sharpness, and the managers are open to experimenting with new ideas. **Arsenal**are a work in progress, but the failsafe of set-pieces and defensive stability is giving them time to work out who they want to become this campaign.