TACTICAL BREAKDOWN: Dominic Calvert-Lewin may not have found any scoring joy but put his body on the line for the team
Dominic Calvert-Lewin held sway in the game, if not directly in front of goal
Dominic Calvert-Lewin held sway in the game, if not directly in front of goal(Image: Opta / Getty Images)
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No shots, just three touches in the penalty box and dispossessed 21 times, yet anyone who watched Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s display against Arsenal will agree he had a good game.
The Leeds United attacker had more touches (35) than Noah Okafor, Ao Tanaka and Nico Elvedi - he was fully involved in the action. A striker is always measured by goals but Calvert-Lewin offers much more than just that for Daniel Farke.
His current goal-every-other-game ratio is tidy, of course, but his chances of finding the net against Arsenal were always going slim when playing on his own centrally against Ezri Konsa, Gabriel Magalhaes and midfield combo Declan Rice and Miles Lewis-Skelly.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin is pressurised by Ezri Konsa
Dominic Calvert-Lewin is pressurised by Ezri Konsa(Image: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
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Leeds, knowing the strength of the midfield berth, often tried to go around it or over the top. It is no coincidence that the goal and chances for Anton Stach, Gabriel Gudmundsson and Noah Okafor - who couldn’t quite get to Jayden Bogle’s cross shortly after James Justin’s strike - came from the flank.
Perhaps this should come as no surprise given the wing-back system in operation. And the long-ball has also been a feature of Farke’s play since the arrival of Calvert-Lewin and his terrific hold-up play last year.
On Saturday, only Okafor produced more final-third passes than James Trafford’s seven, five of which were aimed at his number nine.
Notably, all but one of them were off-centre amid the tack of keeping it away from centre-backs and towards areas where Calvert-Lewin - in theory - would have more support from Leeds bodies.
James Trafford's passes to Dominic Calvert-Lewin vs Arsenal
James Trafford's passes to Dominic Calvert-Lewin vs Arsenal(Image: Opta)
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Ultimately, this did not come to much fruition given the forward completed just seven of his 20 passes, albeit that can be the nature of a line striker’s game.
Calvert-Lewin did his bit, winning a Leeds-high four aerial duels as well as eight overall duels, the best in the team alongside Anton Stach.
Calvert-Lewin was shoved about by the Arsenal centre-backs and was at times clattered to the ground without any retribution from the referee, which led to Farke’s ‘inconsistency’ protestations amidst his yellow card and again post-match. His forward was awarded no fouls after the 29th minute.
Otherwise, Calvert-Lewin's heatmap shows the tale of his game. The 29-year-old was not sat as deep as he was against Crystal Palace but was still not close enough to goal.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin heatmap vs Arsenal
Dominic Calvert-Lewin heatmap vs Arsenal(Image: Opta)
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His attacking frustrations can be seen in his touch-map below, which in essence shows where Arsenal did allow him to have the ball - nowhere near the danger zone. All of Calvert-Lewin’s goals for Leeds have come inside the box. Arsenal clearly knew this.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin touchmap vs Arsenal
Dominic Calvert-Lewin touchmap vs Arsenal(Image: Opta)
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Only two Leeds players completed dribbles all game - Bogle and Calvert-Lewin. The latter was the only one to do so in the opposition half and the other one from within his own box.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin's successful dribbles (two - the most in the team)
Dominic Calvert-Lewin's successful dribbles (two - the most in the team)(Image: Opta)
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So this game was a case study in what Calvert-Lewin can do besides his goal-threat, which was not present at the Emirates Stadium - less of a criticism and more of a mere reality statement.
Of course, he will be measured by goals - which striker isn’t? But Saturday showed his will to sacrifice himself.
It also underscored his character, on the back of a disappointing international break containing little action with England. And even in Leeds’ goal, he played an inadvertent role…
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Ultimately, Justin's goal would not be enough and United went home pointless, yet with a lot of positives to take and - much like Calvert-Lewin himself - bullish confidence for the rest of the season.
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