EPL 2016/17, Arsenal 1-0 Leicester City: 5 Talking Points

An unlucky own goal from Leicester’s Robert Huth settled the game at the Emirates

Considering it was one of the week’s more widely anticipated matches, Arsenal’s game against Leicester City at the Emirates Stadium essentially turned out to be a damp squib. Thankfully, a late winner for the Gunners at least managed to break the deadlock.

Not that it was truly a worthy winning goal; Nacho Monreal took a snapshot that was clearly heading wide before the ball cruelly took a deflection off the chest of Robert Huth and flew into the goal past a despairing Kasper Schmeichel. Prior to that, both teams had struggled to create clear-cut chances although Jamie Vardy and Alexis Sanchez came close.

For the most part though, Leicester were content to soak up pressure and counter-attack, and while Arsenal bossed the possession, they seemed rather toothless when it came to making it count.

The win for Arsenal will go some way towards their goal of securing Champions League football, but it leaves champions Leicester worryingly close to the drop zone, although relegation doesn’t look likely at this stage. 

#1 Can Arsenal really secure fourth or even third?

Arsenal have made their traditional late season surge, but can they make the top four?

We should be used to the late-season surge by Arsenal at this point given it seems to happen every single season, but they’ve left it especially late this time. Even with this win over Leicester, the Gunners remain adrift of the top four, sitting in sixth place with 60 points. They’re only three behind Manchester United and four behind Manchester City, though, and the two Manchester clubs face off tonight.

With six games to go, Champions League qualification is still a possibility for Arsenal, but their run-in isn’t the easiest by any means. Sunday sees them face their bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur – who need to win to keep their title hopes alive – and after that, it’s fellow Champions League hopefuls Manchester United, led by Arsene Wenger’s old enemy Jose Mourinho.

Their final four games – against mid-tablers Southampton and Stoke, strugglers Sunderland and then a tough one against Everton – look a little easier but by that point, it could all be for nought.

The victory against Leicester gave them three crucial points, but the performance left a lot to be desired – Arsenal laboured despite having the lion’s share of possession, didn’t create many clear-cut chances, and Wenger’s vaunted 3-5-2 formation was unable to truly break down the Foxes’ defence.

They’ll need to play much better than this to get anything from the Spurs and United games and if they don’t, then there’s no way they’ll be in the Champions League next season.