Sunday's early kick off saw Arsenal travel to the Brentford community stadium with the memory of last season's opener in the same stadium still fresh on their minds. It was a heartbreaking opening defeat that threatened to throw a spanner in Mikel Arteta's project, fast forward a year later and Arsenal played like a team reborn. Confident on the ball, increasing the tempo at will and silencing the home crowd in an assured manner.
Ivan Toney, who bullied Arsenal's defence in last season's opener looked a shadow of himself with the ever calm William Saliba nullifying his every move, as evident with his best effort coming from a set piece.
Mikel's men played with maturity beyond their age and the inclusion of Thomas Partey gives them balance in attack, allowing the youthful attackers to play at full throttle while providing cover and an ever ready outlet for the defence. A fully fit Partey is crucial to Arsenal's top 4 ambitions. There's a good blend of youth and experience in this Arsenal team and for a first time in a long time, they are beating the teams they're expected to beat. October will be a true test of how far they've come, with the first match after the break being against their unbeaten North London rivals Tottenham Hotspurs.
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