Michael Owen was left surprised by Mikel Arteta’s substitutions during Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Coventry City in their Premier League opener.
The Gunners got their title defence up and running in style, with goals from Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard securing a comfortable win at the Emirates.
Fresh off their title-winning campaign, Arsenal have looked to add more depth to Arteta’s squad in the transfer market.
Christos Tzolis made an impressive league debut, while Ezri Konsa was paraded around the stadium pre-match after completing his move from Aston Villa.
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The Gunners’ bench was full of quality, with World Cup winners Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino just two of the five substitutes thrown on by Arteta in the second half to see out the game.
But Owen was surprised that the Spanish tactician gave Merino minutes off the bench and said he would have preferred to have seen Max Dowman given valuable minutes to aid his development.
‘So many great players on the bench, they’re all household names,’ Owen told Premier League Productions.
‘But there is one player [Dowman] that you think, come on, give him a bit of experience. What’s the point of bringing Merino on?
‘He’s played in the World Cup, he’s not had much rest. Bring Max Dowman on and give him more experience, more confidence.
‘This could be his year. It could be a breakthrough year for him, so I was expecting to see him, but not this time.’
Regardless of the substitutes, it proved to be a remarkably comfortable opening game of the season against the newly-promoted Sky Blues.
And while only one game into the season, Owen believes it’s hard to envisage anyone getting close to the defending champions at the top of the table.
‘Arsenal have got an embarrassment of riches, and that was typical Arsenal, they’re so efficient,’ he added.
‘When you look at the strengths of that team, and you look at other teams that have been champions, you can’t see the wheels coming off Arsenal.
‘You can see them maybe dipping slightly, and only getting 83 points instead of 85, but they’re so structured, they’re so good defensively, they’ve got such a good goalkeeper, they don’t give anything away.
‘It’s very hard to see them not posting a really solid figure this year. And by solid, I’m thinking late 80s, maybe even 90. And that will take some catching.
‘I think the years when Manchester City got 100 and Liverpool 99, I can’t see anyone that good at the moment, but I can’t see Arsenal slipping. They’re just a machine, a well-oiled machine.’
Arsenal travel to face Unai Emery’s Aston Villa at Villa Park next Monday.
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