Reiss Nelson was also on the scoresheet as Mikel Arteta's side made it two wins from two during their mid-season training camp
Arsenal claimed a 2-1 win against AC Milan to win the Dubai Super Cup on Tuesday, as the Gunners followed up their 3-0 success against Lyon with a deserved victory against the Serie A champions.
Mikel Arteta's side were comfortably the better team in the first half and went in front when captain Martin Odegaard curled a wonderful free-kick over the wall into the corner.
And they added a second when some good play from Fabio Vieira set up a chance for Reiss Nelson, who fired a shot past Ciprian Tatarusanu via a deflection off Odegaard.
Milan improved slightly after the interval and pulled a goal back through a Fikayo Tomori header, but it proved to be no more than a consolation.
As is the way in the Dubai Super Cup, a penalty shootout followed the game – with the winners getting an extra point.
And Arsenal came out on top in that as well, with Cedric Soares, Gabriel Magalhaes, Marquinhos and Mohamed Elneny all scoring as the Gunners claimed a 4-3 success.
That means Arsenal finished as tournament winners with an unassailable eight points from a possible eight. The final game of the competition, between Liverpool and Milan, takes place on Friday, but neither side can catch Arsenal in the standings.
Getty ImagesThe Winners
Martin Odegaard
The Arsenal captain has picked up where he left before the break for the World Cup. Odegaard was excellent in the win against Lyon and he played a starring role again against Milan, pulling the strings behind the frontline. His free-kick to open the scoring was excellent and his all-round performance was one of a player who looks full of confidence ahead of the return to the Premier League. If he was being greedy he could certainly argue that the second goal should have been his as well, because Reiss Nelson's shot clearly deflected past Ciprian Tatarusanu off the foot of the Gunners skipper. But Odegaard will not worry about that at all, and on this evidence Mikel Arteta will be delighted by the form of his captain.
Thomas Partey
It was a bit of a surprise to see Partey thrust straight into the starting XI given he only started training on Sunday following Ghana's exit from the World Cup. But Arteta knows how important Partey is to this Arsenal team, and the ex-Atletico Madrid man demonstrated it once again with an excellent performance before he was replaced at half-time. Time and time he sucked Milan in when receiving the ball with his back to goal before spinning and getting Arsenal moving forward. There were no signs of rust from Partey and that will be a big boost to Arteta.
Eddie Nketiah
This was another bright performance from the young Arsenal striker. He may not have got his goal, but his display will have pleased Arteta. Nketiah looked sharp and his movement caused the Milan defence a lot of problems before the interval. It was Nketiah who won the free-kick which led to the opening goal and that bit of play epitomised his display, especially in the first half when his first thought was always to try and knock the ball around the centre-back and get in on goal.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesThe Losers
No-one from Arsenal
It's tough to find any losers from this spell in Dubai for Arsenal. Mikel Arteta will be delighted with his team's training camp. He wanted it to help dust the cobwebs off his squad following their mid-season break and it's done exactly that. The Arsenal boss will have also been very pleased to have been able to integrate the likes of Thomas Partey, Ben White and Matt Turner back into his squad before the team returned to England. Two wins from two games will have given the players a nice confidence boost and sets them up well for Saturday's game against Juventus at the Emirates Stadium. All in all, it's been a good stay in Dubai for Arsenal, who also have the added bonus of taking some silverware back with them on the plane.
Divock Origi
This wasn't a great night for the former Liverpool striker. Milan were pretty toothless all night, but the one big chance that they did create fell to Origi when the lively Yacine Adli picked him out with a fine cross from the right. It fell perfectly for Origi, who had found some space between Gabriel and Rob Holding, but somehow he managed to glance his header wide. It was a poor finish from the Belgian, who has not yet made the impact he would have been hoping for at Milan.
Getty ImagesArsenal Ratings: Defence
Karl Hein (7/10):
Didn't have much to do in the 90 minutes. Distribution was good. Made one save in the post-match shootout.
Ben White (6/10):
Straight back into the starting XI. Valuable 45 minutes of fitness work.
Rob Holding (7/10):
Given a few problems by Origi, handled most of them well.
Gabriel Magalhaes (6/10):
Will have been disappointed to lose Tomori for Milan's goal.
Kieran Tierney (7/10):
Heavily involved. Got on the ball a lot and looked to drive forward when he could.
Getty ImagesMidfield
Thomas Partey (8/10):
Only on the pitch for 45 minutes, but that was enough to show just how important he is to this Arsenal team. Excellent.
Sambi Lokonga (7/10):
Given a bit more freedom with Partey behind him. Looked to get forward more than usual.
Martin Odegaard (8/10):
Brilliant free-kick to open the scoring. Looks very sharp.
