Arsenal vs. Bournemouth: Score, Reaction from 2015 Premier League Match
Arsenal bounced back from the debacle against Southampton in Week 18 to beat Bournemouth 2-0 during Monday's 2015-16 Premier League action.
Mesut Ozil was once again the big hero with a goal and an assist, while Gabriel Paulista scored his first Premier League goal for the Gunners, per WhoScored.com.
The Cherries put up a good fight in the first half, but hosts Arsenal dominated after half-time and thoroughly deserved the three points.
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Gunners goalkeeper Petr Cech set a new Premier League record for clean sheets during the process, recording his 170th, per Jeremy Wilson of the Daily Telegraph:
As shared by the club's official Twitter account, Arsenal started Kieran Gibbs and Calum Chambers, leaving Nacho Monreal and Laurent Koscielny on the bench. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain also made the starting XI.
The Gunners needed a big performance to bounce back from their shocking 4-0 loss at the hands of Southampton in Week 18, but early on, Bournemouth took control. The Cherries did well to hold possession of the ball in the opening minutes, and Ozil found it difficult to find space in midfield.
Joshua King was the first to test either goalkeeper, curling a ball into the waiting arms of Petr Cech. The Norwegian then blew by Per Mertesacker but couldn't keep control of the ball and harmlessly ran it out of play.
Bleacher Report's James McNicholas was impressed with the Cherries:
Chances were few in the opening minutes, and the visitors did a remarkable job pulling the pace out of the match. Arsenal have often looked at their best this season when the full-backs have pulled players out of position, allowing Ozil to find pockets of space to play passes, but Bournemouth slowed the match down, allowing their players to maintain their positions.
King nearly made contact with a low cross at the near post, but the Gunners defence did well to throw themselves in the path of the ball, negating the danger. Theo Walcott tried his luck with a difficult volley, but he couldn't make full contact with the ball, pushing it into the hands of goalkeeper Artur Boruc.
With the passing game not working, Arsenal resorted to crosses and set pieces, and the switch in tactics paid off just before the half-hour mark. Ozil whipped in a perfect delivery, and Gabriel fired a header past Boruc, who had no chance to get to the ball.
Per Footy Accumulators, it marked yet another assist for Ozil, who is on pace to obliterate the Premier League record in that category:
The goal seemed to wake the Gunners up, and Arsene Wenger's men finally took control of the ball and started to press forward a bit. Walcott found himself on the end of another Ozil cross, but Steve Cook read the play perfectly and made a crucial block.
Per Mertesacker should have scored from the resulting corner, but the tall German instead produced one of the most comical misses of the season. Standing just in front of the goal, the ball bounced straight onto his head off the post, and Mertesacker was too surprised to direct it into the goal.
While the replays made the miss look harsher than it was―he really had little time to react―it's one we'll be seeing on blooper videos for years, per the Daily Mirror's John Cross:
Boruc had to make a good stop to deny Walcott before another corner just eluded Gabriel and Olivier Giroud, as Arsenal were now pushing hard for a second goal. Hector Bellerin's failed cross turned into a shot that flew over the crossbar, and Aaron Ramsey almost ran down a corner flicked on by Gabriel.
But despite the late push, the score remained 1-0, which seemed fair based on the way the first half played out.
The Gunners took possession of the ball early in the second half but kept the pace of their passing slow, forcing Bournemouth to come forward and try to claim the ball. This created more space out wide, and Bellerin in particular looked more active then before the break.
King came close to equalising, however, but Gabriel produced a last-minute challenge to deny the forward. On the other side of the pitch, a ball in from Oxlade-Chamberlain deflected and nearly resulted in an own goal, but Boruc was paying attention.
Dan Gosling wanted a penalty after Gabriel seemed to clip him while clearing the ball, but fortunately for the hosts, the official disagreed with the midfielder. And just minutes later, Ozil made it 2-0, all but securing the three points for Arsenal.
The German played a fine ball into Giroud, who returned the favour with a pass over the top to isolate Ozil in front of Boruc. The former Real Madrid man didn't miss, to the delight of TV personality Piers Morgan:
Walcott fired in a cross that looked more like a shot and missed both Giroud and Ramsey immediately after, and the England international really should have done better. Ozil also had another look on goal, but his volley was fired in from a difficult angle.
Boruc then stopped a drive from Giroud, as Arsenal were unleashed and looking for a third goal. Bournemouth seemed to have given up hope at this point, and the Gunners' win was never in doubt again.
The victory puts Arsenal back on track and in first place in the standings, although Leicester City could pass the Gunners again with a win over Manchester City on Tuesday. Arsenal will play Newcastle United next and should come away with another win against the struggling Magpies.
Post-Match Reaction
As shared by the club's official Twitter account, Wenger reserved plenty of praise for both Ozil and Cech:
He also admitted it took his squad some time to find its footing, but overall, the boss was very satisfied.
