Arsenal survived a scare to book their place in the semi-finals of the EFL Cup following a 3-2 win over Crystal Palace.
The win secures a semi-final tie against Newcastle United with the second leg at St James’s Park, a venue where Arsenal have already lost at this season.
The match was a memorable one for Brazilian forward Gabriel Jesus, who fired a second-half hat-trick to take his tally to four goals this season, all incidentally in the EFL Cup. The performance has given Mikel Arteta a selection headache ahead of the Premier League trip to Selhurst Park. Does Jesus deserve to start over Kai Havertz, who has been struggling for goals of late?
However, there was one performance in Arsenal’s quarter-final victory that has led to many fans and pundits alike calling for the player to be dropped for the league trip to Palace after putting on a 5/10 show and making a mistake that allowed Jean-Philipe Mateta to open the scoring early on.
The Arsenal star who must now be dropped
Jakub Kiwior came under fire for his performance against Crystal Palace, with Phil Costa on X claiming the Polish international “isn’t good enough” for this Arsenal side.
Kiwior missed a header in the early stages of the game, which led to striker Mateta firing Palace ahead and Arsenal subsequently chasing the game.
Kiwior has made 14 appearances for the Gunners this season across all competitions but has yet to really establish himself as a key player since his arrival from Spezia in January 2023.
Kiwior has only won 52% of his defensive actions so far this campaign and with Arsenal competing for honours on all four fronts, Arteta can ill-afford to have any passengers on their prospective journey to glory.
Blocked shots
0
Interceptions
0
Tackles
0
Dribbled past
1
Errors leading to goal
1
Ground duels won
50%
Possession lost
3
The Poland defender did not make a single interception, block or tackle all game and made a glaring error that led to Crystal Palace opening the scoring. On the ball, Kiwior was also below par, having lost possession three times and won only 50% of ground duels during the match.
The performance will certainly have boss Arteta thinking about recalling a stalwart of Arsenal’s defence this season for the next crunch Premier League fixture.
The Arsenal star who should replace Kiwior in the starting lineup
Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhaes has been outstanding for Arsenal this season, scoring three goals in 14 appearances and forming a formidable partnership with fellow centre-back William Saliba.
Gabriel recently missed three games with a knee injury but it seems Arsenal are desperate for him to be back to full fitness and back in the starting eleven as he is a significant upgrade on Kiwior in a number of key defensive metrics.
Goals
3
0
Tackles
11
4
Blocks
26
5
Interceptions
7
1
Aerials won
25
5
Pass completion
89.4%
84%
Progressive passes
4.27
2.22
Gabriel leads the way over Kiwior in the number of tackles of won, number of blocks made and number of interceptions completed. It is no surprise that Gabriel also has won significantly more aerial duels than his Polish colleague.
Furthermore, Gabriel has shown his threat from set-pieces this season, already powering three goals and has helped to build Arsenal attacks from the back with a higher pass completion and more progressive passes through the lines.
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It is clear to Arteta and Arsenal fans alike that the Gunners can afford no more slip-ups if they are to win their first title in over 20 years – Gabriel returning to the side against Crystal Palace could go a long way to ensuring that doesn’t happen.
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