Arsenal 5-0 Nottingham Forest: 3 talking points | Carabao Cup 2019/20

Arsenal kicked off their Carabao Cup campaign emphatically by hitting the back of the net 5 times. Unai Emery decided to make wholesale changes to the starting XI, as he handed starts to the likes of Reiss Nelson, Mesut Ozil, Kieran Tierney, Gabriel Martinelli, and Rob Holding.

It was a somewhat uneventful first half, however, Arsenal managed to break the deadlock after a beautiful flowing move. Reiss Nelson picked up Calum Chambers on the right with a crossfield pass, the Englishman volleyed the ball into the box, and Martinelli headed the ball home for the lead.

The Gunners continued prodding the Forest defence after the break, and in the 71st minute their persistence paid off as the returning Holding rose to head the ball past the Forest keeper from a Nelson corner kick.

A few minutes later, Hector Bellerin found Willock in the box with a cutback, and the youngster finished from close range. In the 84th minute, Arsenal got another via Nelson, and in the dying embers of the game, Martinelli completed his brace with a long-range stunner.

In this article, we discuss some talking points from the game.

#3 Dominant performance from Arsenal

Unai Emery decided to heavily rotate his squad, giving starting berths to the likes of Rob Holding, Mesut Ozil, and Gabriel Martinelli. Despite these important changes, the Gunners had a stranglehold on proceedings.

The Reds were largely toothless in the contest with a total of 5 shots and 1 on target. That's in stark contrast to the Gunners' 24 shots.

The possession statistics also told a grim tale for Forest, as Arsenal's fledgelings, returnees, and fringe players dominated play in that regard. The Gunners had a firm 68 per cent of the possession, with the Reds only managing to hold onto the ball for 32 per cent of the game.

The tale is aptly told by the scoreline, as the Gunners deservedly put 5 goals past Sabri Lamouchi's men.