Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno says his side can outscore anyone in the Premier League but must also strike a balance with the defensive duties. The Gunners soared back from 2-0 against arch-rivals Tottenham to draw the game 2-2 in what was a pulsating north London derby at Emirates Stadium.
Christian Eriksen punished some very poor handling from Leno to tap into an empty net after the German faced a shot from Erik Lamela. Granit Xhaka’s poor challenge in the box on Son Heung-min saw Harry Kane step up and net his 10th goal in a north London derby as he confidently smashed in a penalty.
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However, the turning point came just moments before the break when Alexandre Lacazette found space on the left edge of the box and beat Hugo Lloris at his near post. Then, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang continued his good start to the season to prod home an equaliser in the box, after Matteo Guendouzi’s perfect pass.
It was a further showcase of Lacazette, Aubameyang, and record signing Nicolas Pepe all playing up front together and Arsenal did look very dangerous, particularly in the second half.
Leno says the Tottenham game, as well as the performance against Liverpool last, highlights their strength going forward. “We can score against everybody, but I think the key is always the balance with the defence because at the end that is the most important thing,’ he said.
“The three players up top, with Pepe also there now, we have unbelievable quality and they can score the big chances, but also score from nothing and so the other teams always know and have to be aware that we have a lot of dangerous players and that gives us big confidence.”
The Gunners have so far grabbed seven points from four games this season as they seek to get back into the Champions League. They started the year off with a hard-fought win at Newcastle thanks to Aubameyang’s instinctive finish. They then overcame a tough Burnley side at the Emirates thanks to their strike duo before going down 3-1 to Liverpool.
However, there were positives to take from the game at Anfield as they showed a lot of threat on the counter-attack and were only undone by the brilliance of Mo Salah and a mistake by David Luiz. They are sat fifth in he Premier League behind Manchester City and Liverpool – the two teams expected to win the title this year – and Leicester and Crystal Palace, who have enjoyed good starts to the season.
