Martin Keown believes Bruno Guimaraes showed exactly why Arsenal look capable of defending their Premier League title, after the midfielder came off the bench to transform Saturday’s 2-1 win over Leeds United.
For an hour, Arsenal looked flat. Leeds were compact, aggressive and deservedly went ahead through James Justin.
But the champions found another gear when Mikel Arteta turned to his bench, with Riccardo Calafiori equalising before Guimaraes completed the comeback.
It was not Arsenal at their fluent best, but that almost made the victory more impressive.
Keown says Guimaraes took Arsenal to ‘another level’
Reacting to the game on TNT Sports, Keown praised Arsenal’s response and singled out Guimaraes for changing the mood inside the Emirates.
“Well, if you’re gonna be champions again, to repeat it, you have to win these games. And Arsenal found a way to win,” Keown said.
He added: “Then suddenly Bruno Guimaraes comes off the bench, and he plays with that electricity, a personality.”
Keown felt the introduction of Guimaraes and Martin Odegaard completely changed Arsenal’s rhythm.
“Suddenly you see all the intricate football from Odegaard, and Arsenal are flying again and look like champions,” he said.
His strongest praise was saved for Guimaraes: “This man here, he’s really endeared himself to the faithful here. He’s another level.”
TNT Sports also described Guimaraes as a “super sub” after he finished a superb team move for the winner.
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Guimaraes gives Arteta exactly what champions need
(Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
That is probably the biggest takeaway from this win.
Champion teams do not always dominate. Sometimes they struggle, fall behind and simply find another way.
James Justin put Leeds ahead in the 55th minute before Calafiori equalised seven minutes later. Arteta then introduced Guimaraes, who scored the winner in the 70th…
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