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Henrikh Mkhitaryan struck late to rescue a 1-1 draw for Arsenal against Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
The visitors started the game brightly and took the lead on 13 minutes. Ivan Cavaleiro latched on to a poor pass from Granit Xhaka, swapped passes with Raul Jimenez and then fired past Bernd Leno.
Arsenal had chances to equalise after the break and saw Hector Bellerin and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang miss good opportunities.
It was left to Mkhitaryan to rescue a point with just four minutes of normal time remaining. The substitute fired in a cross from out wide which evaded everyone and ended up in the far corner of the net.
Emery Must Keep Faith With Xhaka Despite Error
Wolves broke the deadlock at the Emirates with a goal that owed much to a horrible mistake from Xhaka. The midfielder opted to dummy a pass from Mesut Ozil, allowing Cavaleiro to go on and open the scoring.
Squakwa highlighted how error-prone the midfielder has been in the Premier League:
Squawka Football @Squawka
No outfield player has caused more errors leading to goals in the Premier League since the beginning of the 2017/18 season than Granit Xhaka (4).
Becoming too regular. https://t.co/DtoNONwZ0G
It was a costly error from Xhaka, but Unai Emery should keep faith with a player who has looked vastly improved this season.
The Switzerland international has formed a strong partnership alongside Lucas Torreira in the Arsenal midfield, and the duo were particularly impressive in the 1-1 draw with Liverpool:
Squawka Football @Squawka
@harryedwards16 Most ball recoveries during Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool:
• Granit Xhaka (15)
• Lucas Torreira (10)Most ball recoveries for Arsenal in the Premier League this season:
• Granit Xhaka (72)
• Lucas Torreira (68)👬 https://t.co/6IRISsQqy3
His versatility has also been tested to the full. Injuries in defence saw him forced to play at left-back against Leicester City, Sporting and Crystal Palace, and he did a solid job in an unfamiliar position.
Xhaka was started in all Arsenal’s Premier League outings so far this season, scoring important goals against Newcastle United and Crystal Palace, and deserves to keep his place in the first XI.
Arsenal’s Slow Starts Will Doom Champions League Hopes
Arsenal’s slow starts to games have been a recurring theme this season, as highlighted by Opta:
OptaJoe @OptaJoe
0 – Arsenal and Cardiff are the only two teams not to have been ahead at half-time in any of their 12 Premier League matches so far this season. Sluggish. #ARSWOL
The Gunners were slow out of the blocks again on Sunday, putting in a poor first-half performance against a lively visiting side.
Wolves could have been even further ahead by half-time. Goalkeeper Leno was forced into good saves from Jimenez and Helder Costa in the opening 45 minutes.
DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/Getty Images
Emery opted to change things at half-time. He sent on Matteo Guendouzi for Alex Iwobi and Aaron Ramsey and Mkhitaryan followed later.
Arsenal had chances to equalise but had to wait until the 86th minute for Mkhitaryan to finally find the back of the net.
They were lucky not to concede again after their equaliser too. Morgan Gibbs-White hit the woodwork in stoppage time for Wolves.
It’s a disappointing result for Arsenal, who would have expected to take all three points against Wolves but once again gave themselves too much to do after a poor start.
The result means they are now three points behind Tottenham Hotspur in fourth going into the international break.
However, Arsenal simply can’t afford to keep starting games so slowly if they are to finish in the top four and secure a place in the UEFA Champions League.
What’s Next?
Arsenal are back in action after the international break away at Bournemouth on November 25. Wolves host Huddersfield Town on the same day.
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