When Ange Postecoglou dreamed it beforehand, he imagined a result to kickstart his Nottingham Forest tenure, silencing a group of opposition supporters that have long been against him in the process. The former Tottenham manager could scarcely have hand-picked a spicier debut assignment. Then reality intervened.
This Arsenal team are not easily pushed around. They give away next to nothing at the back. They crave control of the ball and the flow of the game. Their mission is to suffocate and punish and they made sure that Postecoglou’s return to north London was as uncomfortable as possible – and not only because of the predictable taunts he heard from the stands.
The occasion was illuminated by break-out performance from two of Arsenal’s summer signings. Martín Zubimendi does not score many from his role in front of the back four but here he got two – the first a blockbuster of a volley from the edge of the area, one to draw involuntary gasps as he finessed the technique. The second was a header. When he slapped his forehead during the celebrations, there was an element of both fun and disbelief.
Then there was Noni Madueke, who was given a standing ovation when he was withdrawn towards the end. The winger was dynamic throughout and perhaps the greatest compliment to pay him was that he made light of the injury-enforced absence of Bukayo Saka.
