Arsenal won, which is the part that goes in the table.
The part that will decide how the next month goes happened after the final whistle, when Piero Hincapie was carried off during the warm-down clutching his right ankle.
He had only come on as a late substitute against Leeds, then stayed out to complete the extra running most clubs put their unused and barely-used players through. The club has not yet said how bad it is. What is known already is that the Ecuador defender has had muscular problems this season, and that he signed permanently in the summer after a loan spell from Bayer Leverkusen. Another spell out would land on a back line that is already not functioning the way it did last season.
The numbers behind the nerves
Arsenal won the title last year largely on the strength of a defence that conceded fewer goals than anyone else. Six games into this campaign they have let in five. William Saliba is injured, and the calmness of the Saliba-Gabriel Magalhaes pairing is exactly what has gone missing. Ezri Konsa, a £55m signing from Aston Villa, has the quality but is still learning the place.
The pattern in matches says the same thing from a different angle. Arsenal have now fallen behind in three of their last four league games, and were only kept level at Sunderland by a David Raya penalty save. They were beaten 3-0 at Brighton in the match before Leeds came to the Emirates. Five wins in six still puts them right at the top of the division, level on points with Manchester City before City went to Anfield on Sunday and restored a three-point lead. But a team that wins while playing badly and a team that keeps giving itself the same problem to solve are not necessarily different teams.
Guimaraes keeps arriving late
The winner came from Bruno Guimaraes, on his full home debut, from outside the box, after Riccardo Calafiori had equalised. Leeds had led from the 55th minute. It was the second time in three league games that Guimaraes had come off the bench and changed one for Arsenal, after his opener in the 2-0 win at Sunderland in September. He is the first player to score twice from the bench this season, and both goals were struck from distance.
Arsenal spent £75m on him in the summer having failed to land the attacker they actually wanted. At 28, in the best years of a career, he was bought to win things now rather than develop into something. Mikel Arteta's verdict on his first few weeks was not soft. "He wasn't at that level against Brighton, and this is the level for Arsenal," the manager said. "Every week, every game, every minute, every action, you have to be at that level. Today was much better. That's what we have to demand."
Arteta's own read on it
Arteta talked about Brighton without being asked about Brighton. "The last time we put our shirts on, something was missing," he said. "From being exceptional and being the champions to being extremely average, like in that game, is a really thin line. So if you don't want it more than the opponent, you are not able to cope emotionally with certain situations, you're going to suffer. And we all suffered and we didn't enjoy that game, but then you have to learn the lesson."
Ally McCoist, on TNT Sports, took the generous view. "It was a great game of football. Leeds were brilliant for one hour. Mikel Arteta made changes when he needed to and the substitutions gave Arsenal what they needed. That's what champions do." He is right that champions find ways to win scruffy games. The harder question is whether a side built on the league's meanest defence can keep doing it while the defence is the thing that keeps breaking.
One more selection note worth filing: Kai Havertz started up front despite coming back early from international duty with a hamstring issue, which left Viktor Gyokeres on the bench again. Gyokeres had scored four goals in the break, registering in every match for Sweden. Arteta clearly wants more from him before that changes.
Analysis notes: Arsenal 2-1 Leeds United at Emirates Stadium. Leeds led from 55 minutes; Calafiori equalised and Bruno Guimaraes, a £75m summer signing, scored the winner on his full home debut. Piero Hincapie was carried off during the warm-down with a right ankle problem. Arsenal have conceded five goals in six league games after conceding the fewest in the division last season.
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