6 talking points as Arsenal cling on for Palace win despite contentious red card
Arsenal survived the dismissal of Takehiro Tomiyasu to claim a hard-earned victory away to Crystal Palace on Monday night.
After a quiet first half, Arsenal were given a golden chance to take the lead when Eddie Nketiah was felled in the box by Palace keeper Sam Johnstone. Martin Odegaard stepped up and made no mistake from the spot, giving Mikel Arteta's men the breakthrough.
They looked well on top after getting that breakthrough, but a red card for Tomiyasu - for what some considered a harsh second yellow - changed things. Last season's Premier League runners-up responded by attempting to hold on to what they had.
Arteta's side had a chance to take the lead inside two minutes when Kai Havertz found Gabriel Martinelli in acres of space on the left. The Brazilian opened the scoring in this fixture last season, but on this occasion he took too long to act and the chance was snuffed out.
Palace came into it eventually, though, with Ebere Eze testing Aaron Ramsdale from distance. Things remained quiet for much of the opening half-hour, but Eddie Nketiah brought the game to life, first with an unsuccessful penalty appeal and then with a burst into the box and shot against the foot of the post.
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It stayed all-square at the break, but a penalty early in the second period gave them an advantage. Tomiyasu's two quickfire bookings undid that momentum, though, with the defender earning his first card for time-wasting and a second - for a foul on Jordan Ayew - less than 10 minutes later.
1.. A change from the spot
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Martin Odegaard scores Arsenal's opener from the spot (Getty Images)After some high-profile misses from the penalty spot of late, Bukayo Saka put away his spot-kick in the Community Shield shoot-out. Against Palace, though, it was Martin Odegaard chosen to beat Sam Johnstone from 12 yards.
The question now is how this affects Saka. Will he play with greater freedom, relieved of the penalty pressure which proved painful against West Ham last term, or will he retreat into his shell a little.
Not that Arsenal will allow themselves to become bothered by that right now. For the time being, it's a big three points, and everything else can wait.
2. Tomiyasu made to pay
In the early stages of the season, referees will often hand out yellow cards following directives. Time-wasting can fall into this category, and so it proved with Takehiro Tomiyasu's first yellow against Palace.
The former Bologna man may feel hard done by over his second yellow, with the contact with Ayew minimal. However, without that needless first yellow, it would have been less damaging.
David Coote showed Takehiro Tomiyasu two yellow cards in quick succession (Getty Images)It was Arsenal's first Premier League dismissal since the end of the 2021-22 season, when Rob Holding saw red in the North London Derby. Now it's all about how they respond, but the return of Oleksandr Zinchenko from the bench ought to help with any lingering selection issues.
3. Olise's importance is clear
Before the game, Palace boss Roy Hodgson spoke of the importance of keeping Michael Olise at Selhurst Park. The young Frenchman was the subject of interest from Chelsea earlier in the transfer window, but opted instead to agree a new deal with Palace.
Ebere Eze saw a penalty appeal waved away (AP)With Olise still injured, there was a lot of emphasis on Eze to be the hosts' creator-in-chief. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realise that, with two creative outlets to distract opposition defenders, each ought to have instances when they have greater freedom to do their thing.
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Palace did begin to threaten more later on, and there were sparks of quality from youngster Jesurun Rak-Sakyi. The hosts had a man advantage for that period, though, something which won't happen every week.
4. Rice the creator
Before kick-off, the pundits in the Sky Sports studio questioned what Declan Rice can offer going forward. The England midfielder's goal and assist numbers were never huge at West Ham, but neither were Granit Xhaka's before his final season at Arsena.
Declan Rice had some impressive moments going forward (Getty Images)Last season, Xhaka got into more advanced areas with more regularity than before, and was rewarded with goals. Rice had similar moments against Palace, and used it to create from dangerous positions.
Rice's quality on the ball was clear before his move across London, and there was the question of what he could do as part of a stronger squad. Tonight, we began to see glimpses - at least while it stayed 11 v 11.
5. How much do Arsenal need Gabriel?
When the line-ups were announced, all eyes were on Arsenal's back four. Not just for the question of who would come in for Jurrien Timber, but also to see whether Gabriel might return at centre-back.
The Brazilian has been a regular since joining the Gunners in 2020, but started on the bench against Nottingham Forest. It was a similar story here, with William Saliba partnering Ben White in the middle.
There have been questions over Gabriel's future, with plenty of clubs likely to be prepared to parachute him straight into their back line. A perfectly-timed Saliba tackle in the first period showed Arsenal have the quality to cope without him in individual games, but over the course of a season you need depth at the back - something the Gunners were made well aware of when reduced to 10 men.
6. The best and worst of Nketiah
Eddie Nketiah's role in Arsenal's penalty was key (Simon Dael/REX/Shutterstock)Eddie Nketiah started the game slowly, but eventually began to show what he offers as a penalty box striker. The 24-year-old appears to have been working on his strength, too, as shown when he held off the attention of Marc Guehi and Joachim Andersen before hitting the woodwork.
He looked to be growing into the game, but then - after a lovely through-ball from Declan Rice - got his shot wrong and lifted the ball over the bar from close range. The striker didn't let that dent his confidence, though, and he showed important speed and awareness to draw a foul from Johnstone for the penalty.
When Gabriel Jesus was out injured last season, both Nketiah and Leandro Trossard had spells as Arsenal's stand-in number nine. The academy graduate can be frustrating at times, but what he lacks in consistency he has shown he can make up for in effort.
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