Arsenal find powder-puff Sevilla ideal prey as they offset those Newcastle frustrations
Champions League Group Stage - Matchday 4
Arsenal (1) 2 Trossard 29, Saka 64
Sevilla (0) 0
Mikel Arteta and Arsenal needed something calming after the histrionics that followed the 1-0 reverse at Newcastle at the weekend. The Unai Emery derby provided it.
A goal of sublime execution got the ball rolling after half an hour - Jorginho very much the architect with a defence-splitting pass which gave Bukayo Saka room to run into and square for Leandro Trossard to tuck home. The false nine wearing 19 having the simplest task.
Mind you, that was also the case for Kai Havertz, who contrived to get a far-post header horribly wrong when he should have converted a corner in the opening moments. Luckily that did not matter.
On the hour, Gaby Martinelli raced in from the left inside his own half before angling a perfectly-weighted pass collected by Saka at a gallop. The winger has looked a little out of sorts in the last few matches, but finished expertly, cutting inside a back-peddling defender before arrowing into the far corner.
Sevilla, who offered no threat (their first shot did not come until the end of injury time), were all but done as the clash between two of Emery's former teams continued on its one-sided way.
Jorginho, wearing the captain's armband in the absence of the injured Martin Odeggard, turned in one of his most convincing displays so far for the Gunners and seemed to relish the added responsibility.
It was also a good night for the quietly impressive Declan Rice, who at times seems the de facto skipper. His high press won possession for the Gunners that led to Trossard's goal.
Arteta's impassioned outpourings about the Geordies' controversial winning goal on Tyneside came across as more petulant than reasonable a few days ago - and the club's statement backing the boss did not do much to invoke some sense of perspective.
Hopefully this evening's work will have restored some balance. The defeat in Lens fell between two impressive wins - at home to PSV Eindhoven and at the Ramon Sanchez Pitzjuan a couple of weeks ago against Los Rojiblancos.
It has been mostly good so far in the club's long-awaited return to Champions League action and qualification for the knockout stages is close at hand.
Sevilla may have begun this season modestly and lie 15th in La Liga having failed to win away so far in their domestic league, but they are still a big name when it comes to Europe - even if their extraordinary run of success in recent years has been in the Europa League rather than in this elite competition. Theirs is still a scalp worth taking.
It's Burnley at home next on Saturday for the Gunners - on paper a solid opportunity to put further distance between themselves and that fruitless trip to the north east.
Gunners: (4-3-3) Raya - White, Saliba, Gabriel, Tomiyasu (Zinchenko h/t) - Havertz, Jorginho (Elneny 90), Rice - Saka (Kiwior 85), Trossard (Vieira 81), Martinelli (Nelson 81)
Sevilla: (4-2-3-1) Dmitrovic - Sanchez, Bade, Gudelj, Salas (Ocampos 76) - Jordan (Soumare 65) (Diaz 73), Reges - Lamela, Sow (Rakitic 65), Pedrosa Nianzou 76) - En-Nesyri
