Havertz Leads the Offside Count as Arsenal Edge Hull City by a Single Goal

Arsenal beat Hull City 1-0 in the Premier League. In the first half, one of Arsenal's clearest chances was ruled out for offside. The team's attacking play looks disjointed, and moves often break down before the opponent has even had to defend.

Nobel Mendy of Hull City pulled Kai Havertz's shirt, and a penalty appeal followed. However, Havertz was in an offside position, and it was not clear whether he was trying to play the ball. The winning goal came in the 72nd minute. Martin Odegaard put the ball into the net after it rebounded to him from Noni Madueke's shot. Mikel Arteta said he had not made any joke about the penalty situation that was missed.

The statistics stand out. In the last seven Premier League seasons, no team has averaged more than three offsides per match. Arsenal were flagged 35 times in their 10th game of this season, which is 11 more than any other team in the league. Havertz, with 15 offsides, is the player who has been caught offside most often in the league. That is more than an Arsenal player managed in their entire title-winning campaign last season.

Arteta accepted that there is a problem. In his view, the root cause is timing. Reacting even a second or half a second late to the ball's signal can lead to an offside. Arteta said the sample size is still small, but that the problem is real.