New Premier League season, new Arsenal as debutants Saliba, Jesus and Zinchenko make the difference

LONDON — Arsenal started their 2022-23 top flight campaign with a 2-0 win against Crystal Palace, showing early signs of promise for this season. The Gunners hit the ground running, with their three debutants delivering solid performances.

Here are the main points, top players, key stats and notable moments from the game.

— MATCH REPORT | LEAGUE TABLE | FIXTURES

Jump to: Rapid reaction | Player ratings | Best/worst performers | Highlights and notable moments | Post-match quotes | Key stats | Upcoming fixtures

1. New season, new start for Arsenal

Arsenal were on the back foot on the opening Friday night of last season as they lost 2-0 to Brentford, but it was a different story under the lights across London this time. There has been plenty to excite Gunners supporters during a preseason in which they made shrewd signings and won all five friendlies, but this was the first major test of their hopes of returning to the top four and they passed. They had to ride their luck at times with Aaron Ramsdale called into one excellent stop to deny Eberechi Eze early in the second half, but Marc Guehi's late own goal gave them a deserved win that will only heighten the sense of optimism around the club.

— Premier League team-by-team guide and burning questions — O'Hanlon: Ranking the Premier League's best players (E+) — Premier League kit ranking: Which jerseys are 2022-23's best?

2. Palace miss Gallagher spark

Eze is a fine player and as he steps up his return from an ACL injury, the highly rated 24-year-old will surely improve as he steps into the void vacated by Conor Gallagher, who returned to Chelsea after a season-long loan last term. But Crystal Palace missed Gallagher on Friday. Only Wilfried Zaha (15 goals, two assists)