You never know what you're going to get with these exhibition matches. The mass substitutions, the odd lineups, the fact that the all-stars don't normally play or train together and that this is Arsenal's second preseason game guaranteed that there'd be some sloppiness. But both squads took this match seriously. There was a record total of yellow cards for this fixture, and a few injury stoppages. The Gunners took this game by the throat early and never let go, with Jesus scoring in the fifth minute and Trossard after 20. A first minute handball in the second half gave Jorginho his chance from the spot, which he converted. Martinelli and Havertz scored late to embarrass the MLSers, who got their first shot on target in the 86th minute.
Trossard, Saka, Odegaard, and Timber were especially sharp, I thought. Kiwior was misplaced in the Zinchenko role and was dispossessed repeatedly. The all-stars should have punished a couple Arsenal mistakes but couldn't finish their chances, while every Arsenal goal was very well taken. Rice played about a half hour but didn't really feature much in a game played mostly in the offensive half.
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