Arsenal 1-1 Fulham: 5 talking points as Gunners grab late equaliser | Premier League 2020-21

#3 Arsenal lose Alexandre Lacazette through injury

Alexandre Lacazette picked up an apparent hamstring injury in the second half

Just minutes after Arsenal made a double substitution, Lacazette pulled his hamstring and the Gunners were forced to make their third change.

His injury will be a big blow for Arteta, who is already missing the services of Aubameyang, Martin Odegaard, Kieran Tierney and David Luiz.

The manager said:

"We'll have the scan on Tuesday, see the extent of the injury and see the timeline to it. I don't know."

The French international has been in pretty good form in recent weeks, scoring four goals in the last two games and playing a crucial role in setting up Arsenal's semi-final clash against Villarreal in the Europa League.

Given Aubameyang's poor scoring form this campaign, the 29-year-old's absence will definitely affect Arsenal's top six and European ambitions.

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#2 Arsenal must sort out their defensive pairing

Gabriel gave away a penalty

Without a doubt, Rob Holding and Pablo Mari form Arsenal's best defensive pairing. The duo kept a clean sheet on Thursday when the Gunners played Slavia Prague at Eden Arena.

However, Arteta's decision to replace Mari with Gabriel Magalhaes against Fulham did not pay off. The Brazilian gave away a cheap penalty after catching Mario Lemina inside the Arsenal penalty box and it became a turning point in the match.

Of all the centre-backs in the squad, Gabriel seems most comfortable playing alongside his compatriot Luiz, who is currently nursing a knee injury. The partnership between Holding and Gabriel simply does not appear to be as effective.

Since the Englishman works best with Mari, Arteta ought to stick with playing the two of them at the heart of Arsenal's defence.

📊 | #AFCArsenal have only a 27% win rate when Gabriel Magalhães & Rob Holding have featured in the starting line-up together. pic.twitter.com/RaxYMlSQHV

— afcSource™ (@afcSource) April 18, 2021

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#1 Time for Eddie Nketiah and Folarin Balogun to step up

Eddie Nketiah scored a late equaliser for Arsenal

With Lacazette's injury, it's an opportune time for both Nketiah and Folarin Balogun to step up as Arsenal's main striker.

The former came on to grab a late equaliser for the Gunners and Mikel Arteta praised him after the game:

"He always offers his best. Today he scored a goal, he had another two important chances and he's always a threat in front of goal."

Meanwhile, Balogun, who is rumoured to have signed a contract extension with Arsenal, should also begin to get some playing opportunities for the first team in the coming weeks.

The 19-year-old has a total of 12 goals and four assists in 25 matches this season, with two of them coming in the Europa League. Lacazette's absence will be a great chancefor these two young strikers to prove themselves.

Eddie Nketiah has scored 13 goals for Arsenal with an average distance from goal of 5.8 yards.Eight have been scored inside the six yard box

— Orbinho (@Orbinho) April 18, 2021