2. Newcastle unable to live with Arsenal’s pace
Arsenal started the game with just Mathieu Flamini as the sole defensive midfielder. Although Oxlade-Chamberlain and Cazorla were to play in front of the Frenchman, neither of them are central midfielders and are players who love to attack. What this meant was that there might be a distinct possibility that the home side could be overrun in midfield.
But Arsenal’s high pressing ensured that didn’t happen and instead it was the visitors who were exposed thanks to the home side’s lightning quick attack. With Sanchez and Welbeck playing either side of Giroud and Oxlade-Chamberlain bombing forward at every opportunity, what it meant was that the Magpie always had one or two players running at them at full pelt. This was a concern not only on the counter attack, but also when the visitors had the ball as they were under pressure so quickly. Although the young keeper Jak Alnick didn’t do too wrong, the defence in front of him were under constant pressure the pace of the home side’s attack and that in the end, made all the difference.