Kluivert wraps up Bournemouth win from spot as Arsenal rue Saliba red

Arsenal's recent trend of receiving red cards was bound to affect them at some point. Mikel Arteta's team eventually lost their unbeaten run this season after William Saliba was shown a red card. This marked their third sending-off in just eight league games. Meanwhile, Bournemouth celebrated a remarkable win with goals from substitutes Ryan Christie and Justin Kluivert.

It was an evening to remember for their manager, Andoni Iraola, as his dynamic team celebrated their first victory against a top-half opponent since they defeated Manchester United back in December. The fact that this win came against Arteta, who he used to play alongside in the same youth team in San Sebastian, made it even more special. However, with Bukayo Saka not making the trip to the south coast, Arsenal appeared uninspired, particularly since they were looking to take the top spot while Liverpool and Manchester City weren’t playing until Sunday. The situation shifted dramatically when Saliba received a red card, leading to Arsenal's first away loss of 2024.

Before the match began, Arteta acknowledged that there was no reason to overexert Saka, especially with upcoming games against Shakhtar Donetsk and Liverpool this week, considering he had recently returned early from international duty because of a hamstring issue. However, the Arsenal manager likely worries about how his team performed in the absence of their key player and captain, Martin Ødegaard.

Iraola admitted this week that although their expected goals statistics suggested they should be in fourth place, it is up to his players to “improve their efficiency as a team.” They showed their determination right from the beginning as Alex Scott and Marcus Tavernier were positioned in offensive roles to back up centre forward Evanilson, taking the initiative against the opponents. In comparison, Arsenal seemed lacking in creativity and nearly found themselves in trouble when David Raya got lucky after his misplaced pass to Scott didn’t lead to a goal, as Antoine Semenyo shot over from long range.

Iraola and Arteta spent most of the first thirty minutes chatting near their coaching areas. However, the match took an unexpected turn when Leandro Trossard unintentionally passed the ball back towards his own defense, leading to Saliba fouling Evanilson as the Brazilian sprinted toward the goal. It seemed likely that a red card would be shown, but the referee, Robert Jones, initially only issued a yellow to the French defender. With PGMOL chief Howard Webb observing from the stands, VAR intervened and ultimately decided to send Saliba off, meaning he will be unavailable for the upcoming game against Liverpool next weekend.

Mikel Merino nearly made an impact on his first full start after a nice setup from Raheem Sterling, who was later replaced by Jakub Kiwior to strengthen the defense. Prior to that, Semenyo had already forced a solid save from Raya at his near post, and Tavernier missed a great opportunity to score from a cross when Raya, after fumbling the ball, managed to block the shot. Meanwhile, Arsenal fans expressed their frustration through various chants aimed at Webb and other situations they felt were unfair.

Semenyo missed a prime opportunity just 90 seconds into the second half, following a smart backheel pass from Milos Kerkez. However, after having spent nearly an entire match with only 10 players in draws against Brighton and Manchester City earlier this season, Arsenal initially looked at ease as they defended their goal.

It looked like Arsenal's best chance for a breakthrough was going to come from their right flank, where Dango Ouattara was giving Ben White a tough time. So, it was unexpected when he was substituted as Iraola made three changes shortly after the hour mark. Gabriel Martinelli, coming off the bench, nearly made an immediate impact with his cross, which was cleared just in time by Marcos Senesi. Kepa Arrizabalaga must have felt a surge of panic when he accidentally passed the ball directly to Merino, but he managed to make up for it by stopping Martinelli's shot.

In their next offensive move, Bournemouth finally achieved what they had been hoping for. Kluivert made a smart flick after a quick corner taken by Lewis Cook, setting up Christie to score confidently. Semenyo had a chance to extend their advantage when Arsenal struggled to clear another corner, but he couldn’t get his shot on target. However, they didn’t have to wait long for another opportunity, as Kiwior's poorly executed backpass resulted in Raya fouling Evanilson in the penalty area. Kluivert calmly took the penalty, leaving Arsenal to reflect on their mistakes.