Arsenal’s new signings Viktor Gyokeres and Cristhian Mosquera made their unofficial debuts in a pre-season clash against Tottenham in Hong Kong. After impressing in an open training session earlier in the week, the duo finally got their first on-pitch minutes as Mikel Arteta eased them into match action.
Mikel Arteta had spoken in the lead-up to the game about the potential for the new signings to get some minutes and mentioned how little preparation they had been exposed to. It was, therefore, of very little surprise that the pair were not selected to start.
However, they were both able to participate in the game. Here’s a detailed breakdown of how both Gyokeres and Mosquera performed, and what their cameos revealed about their roles in the squad.
Cristhian Mosquera
The Spaniard entered the fray with around 13 minutes left in the game, replacing Jakub Kiwior and joining William Saliba in defence. He was tasked with playing the right centre-half role as the Frenchman moved to the left-hand side and immediately began combining with his new teammates.
He pushed up with his fellow teammates into the Spurs half, helping to suffocate the Gunners’ north London rivals before using his pace to chase back and clear up when the opposition tried to counter. He was always looking, when on the ball, for the pass forward into the No.6.
He did have a chance to try a flick on from a corner, but got too far underneath it and the ball went out harmlessly.
Viktor Gyokeres
In the 77th minute, Gyokeres was introduced, replacing Havertz in the forward line. Considering how little training he has had, it was no surprise that his debut came so late in the game. A couple of corners were immediately won but sent nowhere near the Swede as Martin Odegaard tried a long and high through ball that didn’t give the striker much of an advantage in the race.
Max Dowman sent a cross to the back post which Oleksandr Zinchenko tried to cut back, but it couldn’t quite reach Gyokeres. He first real touch did lead to a chance as he brought the ball down well in the box and set it for Martin Zubimendi who couldn’t strike well; but a good example of how the Swede does like to bring others into play and is not solely focused on scoring himself.
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