'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Arsenal hammered Crystal Palace 5-0 in the Premier League at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, January 20.
The Gunners entered this contest on the back of a worrying run of form. They won just one of their last five games, losing the last three in-a-row. Mikel Arteta's men crashed out of the FA Cup after a 2-0 loss to Liverpool. The manager made one change to his lineup as Leandro Trossard started ahead of Gabriel Martinelli.
The Eagles, on the other hand, won just once in their last five games as well. The other results were three defeats and a draw, just like their opponents. However, Roy Hogson's men were 14th in the table before kick-off. The manager named a strong lineup for this contest.
Arsenal made a decent start to the game and grabbed the lead after just 11 minutes. Declan Rice, new to corner duty, provided an assist for Gabriel to score and put his team ahead. The Gunners saw their lead doubled just before half-time as Dean Henderson scored an unfortunate own goal.
With 64% possession in the first period, the hosts looked fairly comfortable. Crystal Palace, on the other hand, hit the target thrice in six attempts with their 36% possession. However, they could not break down Arsenal's defensive lines. Eberechi Eze looked like a lone ranger at times and lacked quality support up front.
The hosts led 2-0 at half-time.
Arsenal came out all guns blazing for the second half of the game and tripled their advantage just 14 minutes in. Gabriel Jesus played Leandro Trossard through on goal with a smart pass and the Belgian applied a composed finish to make it 3-0.
Both Arteta and Hodgson used up nearly all of their substitutes post that as they looked to bring some fresh legs on. However, that did Crystal Palace more harm than good as they seemed to switch off later on.
Substitute Gabriel Martinelli showed his class in a late cameo, scoring a brace in two minutes following errors by Palace's defense. Arsenal secured a confidence-boosting 5-0 win to climb to third in the Premier League table.
On that note, let's take a look at the five hits and flops from this game.
#5. Hit - Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal)
Jesus put in a busy performance as he led the line for the Gunners in his typical style. The Brazilian often dropped deep or drifted wide to be more involved in the build-up play. He provided an assist for Trossard to score and make it 3-0 in the 59th minute.
Jesus also attempted three shots but failed to hit the target. He completed all four of his dribbles, played four key passes and won eight duels. The Brazilian was at his playmaking best until he was subbed off in the 81st minute.
#4. Flop - Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace)
The Palace custodian did not face many shots on goal but ended up conceding each time Arsenal managed to hit the target. He was also guilty for the second goal of the game, eventually awarded as an own goal against his name.
Henderson was involved in a come-together with Benjamin White of Arsenal and the hosts were slightly lucky no foul was given instead.
Henderson also passed the ball with just 39% accuracy, including just three accurate long balls in 17 attempts. He made just one save throughout the game.
#3. Hit - Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace)
Eze was by far Crystal Palace's best and most-entertaining player on the pitch despite their heavy defeat. He passed the ball with 81% accuracy, including four key passes and four long balls. Eze also won 10 duels and attempted four shots, of which two were on target.
He comfortably completed 90 minutes of the game and was unfortunately the only bright spark in his team. Eze also completed a game-high six dribbles from nine attempts.
#2. Flop - Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)
Arsenal's captain cut a rather frustrating figure and struggled to make an impact on this game. He passed the ball with 88% accuracy, including three key passes and one cross. However, he failed to attempt a single shot on target and also won just two of his 11 duels in a rather disappointing showing.
The Norwegian was also dispossessed an alarming 15 times, sometimes putting his teammates in tough situations. Lucky enough for Odegaard that Crystal Palace were misfiring as well.
#1. Hit - Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal)
Gabriel was dominant on both ends of the pitch and scored the opening goal after just 11 minutes. He also had a big part to play in the second goal and it was unfortunately awarded as an own goal, taking the credit away from him.
The towering Brazilian won eight duels, making five clearances and one block. He also passed the ball with 88% accuracy, including five long balls. Gabriel attempted three shots and scored with the only one of those on target.
Following his goal, Gabriel is now the highest-scoring defender in the Premier League so far this season.
