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Arsenal 1-1 Slavia Prague: 3 things learned as Arsenal concede late equaliser going into second leg

By Megan Garbutt

Arsenal's French striker Alexandre Lacazette reacts after missing a chance during the UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg football match between Arsenal and Slavia Prague at the Emirates Stadium in London on April 8, 2021. (Photo by Ian KINGTON / AFP) (Photo by IAN KINGTON/AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal's French striker Alexandre Lacazette reacts after missing a chance during the UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg football match between Arsenal and Slavia Prague at the Emirates Stadium in London on April 8, 2021. (Photo by Ian KINGTON / AFP) (Photo by IAN KINGTON/AFP via Getty Images) /
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2. ESR and Saka look threatening

Arsenal’s English striker Bukayo Saka (L) challenges Slavia Prague’s Senegalese striker Abdallah Sima (R) during the UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg football match between Arsenal and Slavia Prague at the Emirates Stadium in London on April 8, 2021. (Photo by Ian KINGTON / AFP) (Photo by IAN KINGTON/AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal’s English striker Bukayo Saka (L) challenges Slavia Prague’s Senegalese striker Abdallah Sima (R) during the UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg football match between Arsenal and Slavia Prague at the Emirates Stadium in London on April 8, 2021. (Photo by Ian KINGTON / AFP) (Photo by IAN KINGTON/AFP via Getty Images) /

As Saka and Smith-Rowe watched Arsenal fall to a miserable defeat at the Emirates on Saturday due to not being fully fit, having them available for this match was very important to Arteta and was certainly a relief for fans who know how important the youngsters have been in the squad this season.

Saka and Smith-Rowe used their tremendous pace to get past defenders down the flanks and make the crosses into the boxes and create chances.

Their absence is always felt when they’re not in the starting line up, but when they’re on that pitch, the energy and passion they show is incredible and they really push the team forward into the final third at every opportunity they get.

Between the two of them, they managed nine crosses, five of which were accurate and 2 accurate longballs.

Arsenal thrive a lot off their wingers as well as fullbacks, using their pace to get the ball forward into little pockets of space and get crosses into the box. Unfortunately, the crosses aren’t always met, whether that’s due to the positioning of the players or the lack of players in the box, but it’s an ongoing threat that they strongly possess.

going forward towards the end of the season and looking into next season, while Arteta hopefully uses the summer transfer window to focus on singing more depleted areas on the pitch such as central midfield and the fullback positions, he should also focus on rotating the attacking players more and giving players like Pepe and Martinelli more minutes like they deserve, giving Smith-Rowe and Saka the rest they deserve.

Six out of Arsenal’s eight remaining fixtures this season are against the five lowest teams in the league as well as a team who currently sit in 12th and so this is a perfect opportunity for Arteta to rotate the attacking options he has, so as well as giving more players more minutes, he will have a better idea of what he will be working with at the start of next season.

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