David Raya sets target for Arsenal stars as glaring Mikel Arteta issue remains
It's official – sunshine makes you happy.
Arsenal returned from their winter break refreshed, rejuvenated and as walking billboards for the adage that if you face the sun, the shadows will fall behind you. It remains to be seen whether a bunch of fives against Crystal Palace's version of slip, slap, slop – slipping towards trouble, slapped in the chops by their own fans' protests and sloppy at set pieces – will paper over the cracks and chronic shortage of a prolific goalscorer.
But after three consecutive defeats, the Gunners needed to stop the haemorrhage and they found a tourniquet on their mid-season sunshine camp in Dubai. Goalkeeper David Raya said: “We needed a win like this. Obviously it was a good break, we trained really hard and focused on the things we had to improve.
“We played a lot of games last month and it was a nice way for the players and the staff to reconnect, and we showed we are capable of performing at the highest level. It was a moment where we could say, 'We are here and we're ready to fight for everything.'
“Every team goes through bad periods in a season and we went through a tricky period, but we got our feeling back and this was our response.
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“When you are playing two games every week, you don't get much time on the training ground. We used the camp to train in the way we always train, but with a little more time. It was massive for us to win, to get back on track and to get back to scoring goals at home.”
Gabriel was pivotal to Arsenal's win vs Crystal Palace (Getty Images)Who was Arsenal's man-of-the-match for Arsenal vs Crystal Palace? Share your thoughts in the comments below
In the absence of a 25 goals-a-season striker, Arsenal shared the burden around, with defender Gabriel, Dean Henderson's own goal, winger Leandro Trossard and sub Gabriel Martinelli's identical pair of stoppage-time finishes providing the gloss.
By the end, Palace looked as lost as church wardens at a swingers' party. They knew what they were going to get, but they weren't sure where it was coming from.
Raya, whose javelin-throw launched the lightning break which led to Trossard's goal, said: “We have quality players all over the pitch and anybody can score, as we saw against Palace. Everybody can contribute to goals, from me to the strikers, and that's a good way of thinking.”
Crystal Palace fans held a protest banner aloft at the Emirates Stadium (Getty Images)But in truth, if there is such a thing as a dreary thrashing, this was it. Arsenal's first two goals were straight from the Big Sam manual of simplicity: Corner, header, goal – hardly genius.
Manager Mikel Arteta was up in arms at Newcastle's winner in November, when Joelinton climbed over Gabriel to set up Anthony Gordon's goal. He had fewer complaints about Gabriel hitching a lift off Chris Richards for the Gunners' opener here.
And Martinelli's slick pair of finishes gave the score a lop-sided look. Palace were poor, but they weren't that bad – unlike a naff banner unfurled by their black-clad 'ultras'. Adapting a line from gangster movie Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels - “Guns for show, knives for a pro” - it read: “Scarves for show, Pyro for a pro.”
You know your season is heading down the gurgler when the look-at-us hard core resorts to quoting Guy Ritchie to get noticed. Another production from the home-made banner corps was nearer the mark: "Wasted potential on and off the pitch, weak decisions taking us backwards."
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