Pundit says ‘important’ Arsenal star did something that helped two players play at their best against Man Utd

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Arsenal were disappointing in their victory over Manchester United on Sunday, although there were some major positives for Mikel Arteta to take from the clash.

Arteta’s side narrowly saw off United thanks to a 13th-minute header from Riccardo Calafiori, who pounced on an Altay Bayindir mistake to score the game’s only goal.

The Gunners looked laboured and lacked the ability to control possession and territory, while they allowed a poor United team to look somewhat threatening.

Mikel Arteta will demand more from his players when they take on Leeds United at the Emirates next weekend, with this level of performance certainly not resembling a title-winning side.

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Robbie Earle says Martin Zubimendi’s performance helped Arsenal’s full-backs

Martin Zubimendi made his competitive Arsenal debut against United and ultimately produced an indifferent performance.

The Spaniard was somewhat culpable for the Gunners’ inability to control the game, although certain aspects of his display would have pleased Arteta.

Most notably, the midfield metronome was willing to drop deep, which allowed full-backs Ben White and Calafiori to push higher up the pitch.

Pundit Robbie Earle picked up on this positional theme, praising Zubimendi for this aspect of his game and describing him as ‘important’.

“Ace, ace,” Earle said on the 2 Robbies podcast.

“[Zubimendi] dropped in between the two centre-backs very often. Very deep, so it allowed Calafiori, if he wanted, to go outside, to come infield, and it allowed Ben White to get higher up the pitch.

“I just think he’s going to be a really important player for them.”

While Zubimendi will be pleased about how he was able to platform the Gunners’ full-backs and allow them to express themselves, he’ll also be disappointed with what he produced in possession, knowing his passing can be slicker and more accurate.

Martin Zubimendi’s statistics vs Man Utd

Zubimendi struggled to acclimatise to the pace of the Premier League early on.

However, the 26-year-old did settle as the first half developed, becoming more accomplished on the ball.

While his passing was not as progressive as he’d have liked, he did start retaining possession after that tricky opening period.

Declan Rice was out of sorts defensively, often leaving Zubimendi on an island by himself in central areas.

The Spain international did his best in these difficult positions, although it wasn’t the immaculate defensive performance fans had come to expect from him based on his pre-season showings.