A 'beautiful night' here in Eindhoven with Arsenal in seventh heaven after thrashing PSV during town's annual madcap carnival

What a result, what a performance, what a 24 hours here in the Netherlands as Arsenal put on a seven star performance on the final day of Eindhoven's bonkers annual carnival

Hello!

Happy Wednesday!

Or, as the wonderful Dutch would say: Hallo fijne woensdag!

I’m currently re-watching Arsenal’s majestic 7-1 rout of PSV from my hotel bed, here in Eindhoven, shattered but deliriously delighted, after a full-on, but utterly memorable 24 hours on the go.

What a performance. What a result. What a 24 hours here in the gloriously sunny Netherlands.

You can read my official match report below, suffice to say, I’m still absolutely buzzing now, from such an imperious show by the Arsenal at the Phillips Stadion on Tuesday evening.

No wonder Gunners boss Mikel Arteta said it was a “beautiful night.”

Hard to believe Ethan Nwaneri is still only 17. The talented teen was virtually unplayable at times last night here in the Netherlands.

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Where to start with the performances from rampant Arsenal?

It was great to see Martin Odegaard back to his imperious best, pushing and prodding Arsenal forward, through his outstanding touch, vision and creativity.

I don’t think people realise just what an adjustment players - or anyone for that matter - has to go through when they have their first child.

It’s a completely new world to anyone who has become a parent. Odegaard is only human, and he and his partner needed time to adjust to the undoubted sleepless nights with their new little one, which is what I put his patchy form down to.

Anyway, that’s my theory.

It was simply great to watch a superb player, play superbly well, as Arsenal broke all manner of records. I certainly hadn’t seen the Gunners score seven goals away from home in a European competition since I went to Belgium back in 1993, to see George Graham’s rampant Gunners rout Standard Liege 7-0, on the way, it has to be noted, to lifting the 1994 European Cup Winners Cup.

A good omen?

Well, after last night’s performance, if you;’re not dreaming of a trip to Madrid next month, then caution should be your middle name. Quite simply this tie with PSV is done and dusted.

If you saw their miserably shellshocked players interviewed after the game, you’d certainly believe me.

It was also good to seee Jurrien Timber have another solid game, popping up with an early emphatic header, as well as reassuring persistence in the build up to Mikel Merino’s goal. Which was also good to note, as the makeshift striker hit his third goal as an auxiliary attacker.

I also relished Declan Rice’s all action display, and on another night he could have hit a hattrick - and Arsenal could have got 10 goals - but we can’t be greedy, can we?

Ethan Nwaneri was virtually unplayable at times, as he continues to impress during his memorable breakthrough season - surely he must be a contender for Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad? If not, why not?

Ditto Myles Lewis-Skelly, even if Arteta sensibly replaced the talented teen on 34 minutes, after an agricultural challenge, which if an English referee was anywhere near it, would have resulted in the youngster receiving a second yellow. As it was, the match was simply another dose of big match experience for the promising Hale End graduate.

All in all, as Arteta said afterwards, ‘a beautiful night.’

Eindhoven Carnival

What made the result even more special was the fact that myself and my two pals, Ginger Mark, and Eko, had stumbled into engagingly welcoming final day of Eindhoven’s utterly bonkers annual carnival.

Well, when I say, stumbled, two top local Dutch lads, and big PSV fans we bumped into while having quick lunchtime beer in the main drag, took us to a place called Willemstraat, which was the site for the final day of the town’s carnival.

Eager to show us the best that their town had to offer, they even kindly treated us to a spot of traditional food, called Worstenbroodjes. Think Greggs sausage roll meat, in a lovely fresh, brioche hot dog roll.

It was so good, I’m going to seek out the place they took us to before I head back on the train from Eindhoven to Amsterdam later today.

Worstenbroodjes. Traditional Dutch snacks.

Eindhoven’s carnival is essentially a pre-Lent celebration that takes over the city for five debauched days, with drinking and carousing amid bright colours worn by revellers in novelty costumes, alongside parade floats, marching bands, and loud music, but especially drinking and carousing. Which was absolutely fine with us.

Such festivals are held mainly in the Southern and Eastern regions of the Netherlands, which includes Eindhoven.

Towns often get a different name during carnival. For example, Eindhoven is known as Lampegat during the festival.

I have to say that despite the three of us being the only English in the hall, we were welcomed royally by so many friendly people, mostly in wonderfully outlandish, bright costumes.

They’re not known as the crazy Dutch for nothing. We even got to meet the Carnival Prince - a big thing here - who kindly gave us all a special carnival medal, which we wore proudly, as the bonkers festivities continued around us, including people on specially made bikes, who had to down pints, while cycling fast.

Not sure I would have excellent with such efforts, but it certainly made for fun viewing. As I tweeted, the carnival was a cross between It’s A Knockout, Blackpool Wetherspoons, and the Big Top, all in a wonderfully convivial and welcoming atmosphere.

The message of carnival is that fun is the only thing on the menu - and that the seriousness of life is suspended for the entirety of the festivities. Something we certainly bought into.

No wonder we love our Euro travels, because you just never know what will happen, or who you will meet. Thankfully, in the carnival town of Eindhoven this week, we met some top notch people, who helped us enjoy the day regally.

See my Morning Star newspaper weekend column for more on my Champions League trip to Eindhoven.

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My view from the PSV press box before Eindhoven vs Arsenal on Tuesday evening.

My official Morning Star newspaper match report from the Phillips Stadion press box

PSV 1-7 Arsenal: A beautiful night as majestic Gunners thrash Eindhoven to leave Gooners dreaming of Real Madrid

Imperious Arsenal hit seven Champions League goals at Eindhoven

PSV Eindhoven 1–7 Arsenal: Champions League match report by Layth Yousif in Eindhoven

Mikel Arteta’s imperious Arsenal hit seven goals against an utterly shellshocked PSV side, to leave them dreaming of a Champions League clash against the mighty Real Madrid in the last eight next month.

Three goals before the break from Jurrien Timber, Hale End academy graduate Ethan Nwaneri and makeshift striker Mikel Merino put Arteta’s impressive Arsenal firmly in the driving seat on Tuesday evening in the Netherlands.

After glorious early spring sunshine amid the convivial atmosphere generated by the town’s annual carnival, the Gunners dominated their hosts in a stunning first half that emphatically sealed this Round of 16 tie in splendid fashion.

Despite PSV pulling a goal back moments before the break through a Noa Lang penalty, rampant Arsenal struck with a brace early in the second half to kill the tie stone dead with goals through Martin Odegaard and Leandro Trossard – to leave a cakewalk that saw Odegaard grab a second and substitute Riccardo Calafiori hit a late seventh to cap a remarkable evening, as the Gunners notched their fifth consecutive Champions League win.

Speaking after the match, after smashing the club's record for biggest away win in the competition, and becoming the first side ever to net more than six in a Champions League away match in the knock-out stages, a delighted Arteta said: “It was a beautiful night.”

“The players really made us enjoy the night. It was a big game in the Champions League, in the knockout stage and to play with flow, to score the goals we did and in the manner that we won the game – very, very impressive.”

Prior to kick-off, Arteta made two changes to the team that drew at Nottingham Forest, with Myles Lewis-Skelly replacing Calafiori at left-back, with Thomas Partey in for Jorginho.

On nine minutes Odegaard broke into the box, and, as he pulled his leg back to shoot, the Gunners captain appeared to have made the merest contact with PSV No34 Ismael Saibari, prior to his air shot that saw him fall to the ground. VAR was quick to rule there was no infringement.

Three minutes later Declan Rice fired low into the far corner, only for referee Jesus Gil Manzano to adjudge offside after the Gunners midfielder had gone beyond Tyrell Malacia.

On 16 minutes, as the game opened up, PSV struck David Raya’s far post through Saibari, prior to Ryan Flamingo firing narrowly wide.

Stung, Arsenal swept forward two minutes later, as Timber resoundingly headed in Rice’s cross to put the visitors 1-0 up, as the 1,600 travelling Gooners at the other end of the stadium celebrated wildly.

Worse was to come for Peter Bosz’s struggling PSV, as a mere 180 seconds later, Arteta’s side went 2-0 through teenage wonderkid Nwaneri - who was virtually unplayable at times as his stellar breakthrough season continues - fired in a superb left-footed shot past PSV keeper Walter Benitez and straight into the top corner, to cue further pandemonium in the jubilant away end.

Two became three when Merino slotted home on 31 minutes to underline the North Londoners dominance, following Timber's persistence.

Merino, who hit two at Leicester last month as an auxiliary forward, prior to struggling in the aftermath - drawing blanks during the frustrating 1-0 home defeat by West Ham, and the goalless draw at the City Ground – was overjoyed to hit the net again, as his teammates flocked forward, happy to celebrate with the popular Spaniard, even if Arteta’s black-shirted side looked slightly shocked to be 3-0 up at such an early juncture.

Arsenal being Arsenal, nothing is ever as easy as it should be - with Spanish referee Manzano awarding PSV a penalty shortly before the interval, booking midfielder Partey for hauling down Luuk de Jong in the box.

Up stepped PSV No10 Lang, emphatically making no mistake from the spot to pull a goal back at 3-1, two minutes before the break.

As the clock ticked down to end a lively opening 45 minutes, the muscular de Jong aimed a header just over Raya’s bar, much to the chagrin of the passionate home support, already lifted by Lang’s spot kick moments earlier.

However, any Arsenal fears PSV would stage an unlikely comeback after the interval were soon quelled when Odegaard made it 4-1 two minutes into the second half, after Benitez could only parry Nwaneri's cross into the Gunners' captain's path.

With celebrations barely subsided, the rampant Gunners made it five, when the hard-working Trossard slotted home sixty seconds later, following a perceptive ball into his path from substitute Calafiori.

Arteta sensibly replacing the already booked Lewis-Skelly, with the Italian, after the teenager was lucky not to be awarded a second yellow card, for an agricultural challenge on No37 Richard Ledezma in the first half.

Still the Gunners were not satisfied, with Odegaard popping up for a second goal, and Arsenal’s sixth on 73 minutes, before Calafiori powered through with five minutes remaining to fire past the beleaguered Benitez, to leave Gunners fans dreaming of the Bernabeu.

A beautiful night indeed.

Arsenal Player Ratings:

Champions League Player Ratings: Arsenal in seventh heaven in Eindhoven

Outstanding Arsenal thrash PSV to leave Eindhoven stunned

Player Ratings:

David Raya: 7.5/10 - Lucky when PSV struck the post early on but did what he had to do as part of a defensively secure backline

Jurrien Timber: 8/10 - Popped up with an early goal back in The Netherlands to steady Arsenal nerves

William Saliba: 8/10 - Solid and reliable

Gabriel: 8/10 - The King of Brazil is always a threat at set pieces while being resolute at the back

Myles Lewis-Skelly: 7.5/10 - Back in the starting line-up after having replaced Riccardo Calafiori. Lucky not to have picked up a second (third) red card of the season after a crunching challenge midwa through the second half that saw Arteta sensibly withdraw the young defender

Thomas Partey: 7/10 - Failed to progress his cause in terms of a new deal after being booked after fouling Luuk de Jong in the box, that left Spanish referee Jesus Gil Manzano no option but to award a penalty that No10 Noa Lang slotted home with aplomb

Declan Rice: 7.5/10 - Provided the assist for Timber’s header as part of a neat and tidy performance that helped quieten the home crowd in a lively first half

Martin Odegaard: 8/10 - Was he fouled in the box early on, VAR thought not. No matter, the Gunners captain hit one after the break to put the visitors 4-1 up

Ethan Nwaneri: 8.5/10 - Simply unplayable at times. England boss Thomas Tuchel surely has to consider the Hale End academy graduate for the Three Lions World Cup qualifying matches at Wembley later this month. fired in a superb strike to continue a stellar season – and to think the lad is only 17 years old

Mikel Merino: 7.5/10 - Scored his third goal as an Arsenal striker on a memorable evening in Eindhoven

Leandro Trossard: 7.5/10 - Deservedly hit the Gunners fifth to put the seal on a hard-working display

Substitutes:

Riccardo Calafiori: 7.5/10- Replaced Lewis-Skelly midway throught he second half and underlined his attacking prowess by smashing home the Gunners seventh to cap a stunning night for Arsenal

Oleksandr Zinchenko (71' for Partey): 7/10

Raheem Sterling (71' for Nwaneri): 7/10

Ben White (76' for Merino): 7/10

Kieran Tierney (76' for Timber): 7/10

The Arsenal in Eindhoven: Victoria Concordia Crescit

See you at Old Trafford for Manchester United vs Arsenal on Sunday, cheers.