Arsenal returned to winning ways in the Premier League by beating Ipswich Town at Portman Road.
After two consecutive draws in the Premier League, Mikel Arteta watched his side collect a much-deserved three points.
Arsenal dismantled Ipswich to win 4-0 away from home, with a Leandro Trossard brace and goals from Ethan Nwaneri and Gabriel Martinelli winning the game.
The afternoon in Suffolk was made even sweeter as Arteta was able to rotate his squad with the Champions League semi-final in mind, seeing three changes made to the starting XI.
Micah Richards issues Ben White competition warning
Oleksandr Zinchenko impressed Arsenal fans as he came into the starting lineup to replace Myles Lewis-Skelly as Ben White replaced Jurrien Timber on the right.
Trossard was the third change, coming into the side to score a brace; however, it was White who was spoken about after the game.
When analysing Arsenal’s win on The Rest Is Football podcast, pundit Micah Richards made a claim about the ‘difficult’ situation White faces due to competition in the squad.
“Ben White, who has come into the side, where you look at it with Timber playing so well, it’s going to be difficult for him to play at right back.”
After White spent a lengthy period out with injury, Timber became Arteta’s primary option at right-back, a role that the Dutchman has made his own.
At present, it seems unlikely that the Englishman, or any player, will replace Timber in the starting XI, which, after last season, is a surprise given how impressive White was throughout the campaign.
Timber is irreplaceable in the Arsenal squad, which is something White will have to digest for the remainder of the season.
White impressed against Ipswich to bolster Arsenal’s depth
Though the situation is a frustrating one for White, it’s good news for Arteta, who has two top-class options at right-back to rotate his back four.
Against Ipswich, White put in a shift in support of Bukayo Saka, being a consistent contributor in the final third, recording three key passes.
| Ben White vs Ipswich Town |
| 3 defensive actions |
| 111 touches |
| 3 key passes |
| 2 duel wins |
| 1 shot |
| 89% pass completion |
| 17x possession lost |
As the focus of Arsenal’s season is now the Champions League, Arteta has the ability to rotate his defence to ensure that the Gunners can efficiently juggle the remainder of the Premier League fixtures and their European journey.
Having players like Timber and White to rotate between is a gift for the boss, who has two quality right-backs at his disposal.
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