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Arsenal fans have branded Oleksandr Zinchenko a "liability" after his costly error against Aston Villa.
Villa netted against the Gunners in the seventh minute of their Premier League clash on Saturday. The goal came down Zinchenko's side, with the left-back allowing Leon Bailey to cut inside by not getting tight enough to the winger.
He then failed to track Bailey as the ball was played out wide to the Jamaican. And to cap off his poor defending throughout the phase of play, the Ukrainian did not get back in time to intercept the cut-back to John McGinn, who opened the scoring.
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It was not the first time Zinchenko had failed to cover himself in glory this season, having lost the ball in a dangerous area against Wolves last week, which almost cost the Gunners a victory. He went on to receive a yellow against Villa as fans of the north London club took to social media to slam his defensive frailties.
One Arsenal fan wrote on X: “These lot might win the league Zinchenko can’t be starting these tough away games," while another pointed out: “Zinchenko is a a defensive liability!”
A third fumed: “Zinchenko had 3 CHANCES TO STOP THIS ATTACK. AND HE F***ING FAILED!” while a fourth added: “Don’t think we can afford Zinchenko’s defensive frailty anymore, certainly not away in the PL”
And others chimed in by saying: “As long as Zinchenko is starting for Arsenal, teams will continue to target that left hand side for fun," and: "Here we go…pathetic. Zinchenko and David Raya are just so poor.”
Before Saturday night, Zinchenko had made four errors leading to shots in the Premier League since the start of last season. His ability to pick out key passes further up the pitch had largely seen fans overlook his calamitous mistakes on the opposite end, which have been aplenty.
He lost his runner for Chelsea's goal in the 3-1 home win last season and was at fault for Theo Walcott's goal in a game against Southampton. Perhaps his most costly error came against Liverpool last term, where he was nutmegged by Trent Alexander-Arnold in the build-up to Roberto Firmino's goal, which is regarded by some as the moment Arsenal's title hopes fell apart.
- Aston Villa FC
- Arsenal FC
- Mikel Arteta
- Premier League
- Unai Emery
- Footballblog
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