5/10 star has cost Arsenal the chance of winning a trophy

Prior to the second leg of their League Cup semi-final last night, there was a real sense of optimism around what the end of the season could look like for Arsenal.

However, since the full-time whistle was blown at St James’ Park, any such positive feelings have all but dissipated, only to be replaced by the same frustration that has lingered for much of the campaign.

While they had some chances very early on, Mikel Arteta’s side put in what might have been one of their worst performances of the season against Newcastle United and were punished for it.

There were frankly dire displays across the pitch for the Gunners, but two players really stood out, and one of them was centre-back extraordinaire William Saliba.

Saliba’s poor performance against Newcastle

Now, it should be said that while some other players in this Arsenal team have been subpar for much of the campaign this year, Saliba really hasn’t.

Has he been at his exceptional best? No, but he has still been putting in quality showings on a regular basis for the Gunners, which is what makes his performance last night all the more shocking.

The usually unflappable Frenchman looked like he was lost at sea for much of the game, being toyed with by Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon, who seem to have his number this season.

It might sound harsh, but it’s not just us who thought the 23-year-old was poor, as football.london’s Tom Canton gave him a 4/10 match rating, while The Athletic’s Aaron Catterson-Reid justifiably described it as his “worst performance in an Arsenal shirt.”

On top of looking unable to stop the Toon’s attacking trio, the 6 foot 3 defender was also unable to keep hold of the ball for his team, losing possession 11 times, losing 100% of his ground duels and completing just 82% of his passes, which for him, is uncharacteristically low.

In short, it was a nightmare performance from Saliba, but he wasn’t the only Arsenal star to have a shocker, as club captain Martin Odegaard was just as poor.

Odegaard’s performance in numbers against Newcastle

Yes, unfortunately for Arteta, last night’s game was another in which his mercurial captain failed to step up this season.

It’s been a rough campaign for the former wonderkid, as since he returned from his ankle injury in November, he has been a shadow of the midfielder who scored 15 goals two years ago and was named the club’s Player of the Year for the second season running last year.

So far this season, the Drammen-born maestro has only racked up three goals and six assists in 25 appearances, and last night was yet another game in which he failed to add to his tally.

He had a golden opportunity to open the scoring and give the North Londoners a lifeline in the tie just 18 minutes in, but missed, and then less than a minute later, Jacob Murphy made sure he didn’t miss his chance at the other end.

However, it wasn’t just the 26-year-old’s lack of finishing that was the problem last night, as, like Saliba, he looked lost at sea, was unable to impact the game in any meaningful way and fully deserved the 5/10 match rating he received from Tom Canton.

In fact, his performance was such an unmitigated “train wreck,” per content creator Connor Humm, that Arteta decided to take him off in the 61st minute, and while that sounds harsh, it’s an opinion supported by his statistics.

For example, in his 61 minutes of action, the former Real Madrid prospect failed to take a single shot on target, misplaced 75% of his crosses, didn’t even attempt a dribble, lost 50% of his ground duels, lost the ball six times and played just one key pass, despite taking 44 touches.

Ultimately, Odegaard has shown over the last couple of seasons that he is an incredible footballer, but this year, and particularly in last night’s game, he’s been a shadow of his former self, and it’s a problem for Arsenal.