Arsenal recorded an impressive 2-0 victory away at Aston Villa, but it was not an easy game, and Mikel Arteta turned to his bench for a solution.
Gabriel Martinelli struggled on the left wing, with little support from Declan Rice in midfield, and the Brazilian still looked short of confidence.
It was a tight game for Arsenal at Villa Park, and goalkeeper David Raya pulled off a heroic save to prevent Ollie Watkins from opening the scoring.
This gave Arsenal new energy, as did the introduction of Leandro Trossard in place of Martinelli, and the Belgian opened the scoring within minutes of his arrival, slotting an outstanding finish to Emi Martinez’s left.
Trossard delivered a superb performance off the bench, and he has now revealed that he had identified what he needed to do long before coming on.
Riccardo Calafiori of Arsenal (R) interacts with teammate Leandro Trossard, as he comes on as a substitute during the Premier League match between …
Leandro Trossard reveals what he said before coming on to score for Arsenal against Aston Villa
Speaking after the game, Trossard explained that whilst he was on the bench, he spotted exactly where he thought he would gain a good shooting chance, and this thinking led to his goal.
“I said in the first half, ‘I can have a look at the game, that there’s space in behind.’ I knew there was space on the penalty spot there,” Trossard stated.
“I try to read it and the ball comes to me perfectly. All I have to do is put it in the net.
Trossard was benched for Martinelli and the pair will compete with each other for the starting spot on the left-wing this season, but the 29-year-old has focused on his positive performance.
“Everyone wants to start and play games, it’s nice to help the team and score goals. There are so many emotions. When you score, it’s like you don’t know what is happening.”
Leandro Trossard’s game-changing performance for Arsenal
Trossard proved to be the perfect substitute for Martinelli against Villa. What the Belgian lacked in pace compared to Martinelli, he made up for with his intelligent vision.
The attacker positioned himself perfectly as the ball fell to him in the box, and as one of the best finishers at the club, he did not hesitate and slotted the ball perfectly into the bottom corner.
It was yet another clutch goal from Trossard in a key moment, and the rest of his performance was also strong, with his introduction helping Arsenal win at a ground where they lost last season.
Trossard may now hope to start ahead of Martinelli, but given his usefulness as a substitute, he may be best coming on against tired legs to add more goal threat.
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