Arsenal game review Arsenal News

Arsenal player ratings v Everton – three Arsenal players get a 9

Arsenal player ratings – Aubameyang gets man of the match but it was a close call.

What a hectic game that was, it was definitely exciting and there were some stellar performances from the lads. Everton was always going to be tough opponents and they showed that today.

However, the lads dug deep, they kept going and they held on to a good win.

Arsenal player ratings

Leno – 9
An excellent display from the Arsenal keeper and he barely misses out on the man of the match.

Kolasinac – 5
He gets the standard rating because he was only on the pitch for roughly 18 minutes.

Mustafi – 9
Another solid performance from the German, his turnaround is now almost complete and he was the best defender on the field today by a country mile.

Luiz – 7
Was found flapping on too many occasions. There was no actual howlers but his positioning leaves a lot to be desired. He did assist Aubameyang though and he deserves credit for that.

Bellerin – 6
A decent display but he did play Everton on side for their second goal and was run a bit ragged down the right side more than once.

Xhaka – 8
Was solid in front of the defence today, one of his better games this season I thought.

Ceballos – 7
Did well defensively today but his passing left a bit to be desired today.

Ozil – 7
Everton did neutralise him to some extent but he came good and put in a lot of effort today.

Pepe – 8
The lad is starting to show some consistency, got another assist and you can see he is feeling more comfortable these days

Nketiah – 8
Scored a goal, nearly got another one at the end and generally had a good game.

Aubameyang – 9
Man of the match for me, his two goals was enough to edge out Leno and Mustafi. Is there a better striker in the Premier League right now? I don’t think so.

Subs

Saka – 8
Came on for the unlucky Kolasinac and played a blinder and got yet another assist.

Torreira -6
Did ok when he came on, lost the ball a couple of times but generally did his job well.

Guendouzi – 6
Another one that did what was asked of him.

Manager

Arteta – 9
Three wins in a week and got the big calls right again today.

Posted by

79 Comments

  1. Mustafi a 9, who would have thought? ‘…the rejected stone…’

    I like his new hair, I think he should have darkened the sides like kun Aguero’s

  3. I think Ozil is at least an 8. He played really well and should get more credit. He had a few driving runs and showed overall determination particularly on the attack. Saka gets a 6 from because bar from his assist, he had a number of blunders in the second half which we were not punished for, fortunately. He had a particular 5 or so minute stint of just misplaced passes and poor touches.

    1. Exactly my thots saka wasn’t even 6 he was terrible defensively and almost cost us the goal on 2-3 occasions

  4. Totally agree with you on Arteta’s rating……. props to him. He’s been doing fine so far, and I expect him to get even better, after getting his own signings for the squad. Onwards and upwards…. COYG!!

    1. Oh….. and a shout out to Mustafi too….. showing massive improvements so far…… if he keeps up this performance for the rest of the season, I wouldn’t mind him staying at all

  5. I think you are getting carried away with some of your ratings particularly with regard to Mustafi, Xhaka and Pepe.You are however spot on with Auba who played as well as I have seen him in an Arsenal shirt.He put in a tremendous shift and showed what a fantastic athlete he is.Unfortunately for us he will have undoubtedly impressed any representatives of the top European teams who have been linked with him.

    1. Agree again Grandad, i think mustaff, xhaka, pepe, ozil and Bellerin are too high. It wasn’t a great game so good ratings are not deserved, with exception of Auba and Leno who between them won us the game with top top performances.

    2. Oh Grandad really? Even you’re among those who thinks Mustafi’s performance in this game is overrated? He’s not worth a 9.
      Watch the replay.
      I know how many times even the commentator had to say “It’s Mustafi there again”
      We would’ve conceded more if not for his interceptions inside the box.

      Xhaka as usual under Arteta played solid so I’m with AdMartin on this.

      It seems every coach now gets three to four players marking Pepe.
      During the whole game you had to see at least three players closing him down.
      He got another assist, so yes, he’s becoming consistent even if he’s not scoring yet, as long as he keeps creating goals for others, he’s improving

      1. Agree but its midfielders duty to hold the opposition and xakha and ceb failed in this game Everton were going forward anytime they wanted they created much more thn arsenal ..but mustafi was definately superb yesterday .i think xakha ceb bellerin pepe were just ok and saka was very clumsy torreria was confused and increased pressure on us ..guenduazi was very good and released some pressure in final minutes .overall it was a very important win for us but we have to admit we were very fortunate

    3. Those who regularly give ratings on here are way out of line with the widely accepted ratings where 5 is below average, 6 is average , 7 is above average and 8 is really good. 9 is excellent. To award three of our players as excellent is nonsense of course. I agree with Grandad, as I nearly always do and thought only Auba got the correct mark. Club bias does NOT equal true marks, even though understandable. Torreiras and Guendouzis marks I will not argue about though. LENO MADE A MISTAKE FOR THEIR SECOND GOAL BUT WAS STILL AN 8 AND OTHERWISE WOULD HAVE EARNED A 9. 7 for Luiz and 8 for Pepe are ridiculous marks and way too high! Mustafi played well and earned a 7, NOT a 9 though. So are many others too high, though all round and considering the fatigue factor, it was a fine game in general. If marks are so clearly team biased, they are pointless.

  7. So, does it mean we won’t sell Mustafi?
    How are fans feeling now?
    Please Mustafi try and shame people and have the last laugh. Honestly we thought you are not good and you did not give us reason to think we were wrong except about now. Prove me wrong please. That will be better for me and the club.

    1. No, i think Mustaffi deserves massive credit but he needs to be sold in the summer and every game he plays and we get a result makes him more saleable. He is an accident waiting to happen always has and always will be but his attitude is fantastic and he tries 100%, thats it. If he stays he needs to be back up, i dont see us going on to be a top four regular with him playing every week. Just as it is really not picking on him because he is a fighter but a flawed one.

        1. Some fans are just pessimistic. This guy is a world cup winner for goodness sake. He had issues with his confidence in the past but he has got it back. There is no need to sell him.

        2. Very sad when a” fan” can’t wait for a player of the team he claims to support to make a mistake just to prove a point!

          1. Am not here for your abuse. He won a world cup and playing good now. Hatred is a disease. Free your mind lad. I wasn’t directly responding to you.

      3. @ Reggie, grandad and other mustafi haters, you have to keep your pride. Give the man the credit he deserve for once and stop him. I know you all are waiting for your precious Rob Holding to come in

        1. Yasasif, read my posts and dont write stuff that is false, i have not mentioned Holding and i have always said what i believe to be the truth about mustaffi. There is no hate in my post about mustaffi only realism. Calling his attitude fantastic does show any hate at all. Get your facts right.

        1. Hi Jon, ive always stuck up for Mustaffi but the guy has a level and we all really know what that is. I dont think he is a bad player but he isn’t a reliable player, any fool can see that.

  8. 8 for Pepe is too generous though he got an assist. Aside the assist I didn’t see much of him. Leno is my MOTM.

  9. mustafi keeps revealing himself.. Some stupid goals we conceeded.

    thanks for the 3pts

    hope our next 3 will be 9pts.

    1. Oh you just hate that guy don’t you.
      Because the goals we conceded was definitely Luiz falt no Mustafi
      Stop hating and be real

  10. I hope someone actually fills in at LB.
    Expecting Saka to play again this coming Thursday and again in our next weekend game would be asking too much.
    It was crystal clear, fatigue came calling for him after 50 minutes.
    It’s why I love what Arteta is doing with Martinelli.
    Nketiah needed the chance to prove he can do a decent job also, and Arteta had to give him the chance to prove himself.
    He seems like the faster version of Giroud to me. His hold up play for someone his age was impressive.
    Mustafi like I’ve said, if he’ll keep performing Luke this and stays focused, I’ll sign him on a ten years contract.
    He’s always been a very good defender, his biggest and only problem is his lack of concentration every time.
    It appears Arteta is helping him fix that also.
    Surely fans will be waiting for the moment he’ll make an error and they’ll fully and abundao come for his head.

    Everyone, including the guys on the bench are playing solid.
    Three win in a tough week speaks a lot. You could tell they were tired.
    Glad a lot of us on here ain’t the coach, most people will definitely play our players to their death.
    Really on Thursday again, if Arteta rotates some player.
    I’m willing to bet some people on here will moan about why is so so player sitting on the bench like Aguero plays every single game for City.
    I’m ready to bet it’ll happen, the moaning about the selection this coming Thursday.
    Now it’s up to Lacazette and Martinelli to do their jobs on Thursday again.
    Have a wonderful week everyone.

    P.S: Arteta is really tempting me into writing another long, deep and boring article like I do before

      1. Lol.. I do get the “Long article” comment once a while but I also gotta admit I do get massive positive feedbacks also.
        Under Emery, I just got tired of trying to do any assessment or article.
        Slowly I’m looking towards doing that again now under MA.

        Sorry your man bear got injured today also. Oh boy we do need him, as young Saka is slowly burning out doing the job of a winger and defender thrice in a week

        1. I was gutted, Eddie…. watching him walk off the pitch brought a tear to my eye ☹
          Will look forward to your article(s) 👍

  11. Some arsenal fans are so pathetic, some are even waiting for Mustafi to make a mistake so as to prove some stupid point. Big shout out to Aubamayang, I remember some saying here that he’s not a leader, I mean how else can a player show leadership skills than what he has been doing.

  12. Today arsenal has played well against everton at home . But arteta was too late in making the change for ceballous and ozil .

  13. Am I the only one noticing this, it seems all the coaches now put 3 players on Pepe, the way he’s been marked it’s nearly impossible for him to do anything anymore.

    1. Thank the heavens I’m not alone on that, so I don’t get to be told I’m defending him while he’s been poor.
      I defended him a lot in that Newcastle game before he got his assist and goal.
      Maybe people do see it but chose to ignore it just to have a go at him and his price tag, but whenever he’s with the ball, you suddenly see three to four guys running to close him down immediately, so he has no space to dribble out to

    2. You’re not the only one bro… It’s good though because that frees space for the others. If he can’t score at least he’ll assist

  14. I’m not fan of player rating as I believe we win or lose together. I’m so happy for the team. That is 3 wins in 7 days with 2 clean sheet. Do some people believe Arteta has done anything to this team. More WINs Arsenal more wins

  15. Really happy for Arteta… huge win for him, against his old team.
    Richarlison is a dirty sod.. and comes across as a sulky child. Don’t like him.
    Nice to see Andre Gomes back.

    Auba defo motm…. Mustafi was solid, getting used to saying that now 😄

  16. Eddie ,I do not have to watch a replay.Mustafi did well today and was the better of our two centre backs.However ,to me as someone who was involved as a Scout many years ago a nine rating is appropriate only for an outstanding performance and with respect apart from Auba I did not witness any other player at that level today. Everton were of course fresher than us today and it certainly showed in the last 20 mins.A great result for us though and without going overboard, young Nketiah looks to me like another Ian Wright in the making.

    1. Anyone who really want to be fair will tell you Mustafi was outstanding today.
      PEA will get the most accolades definitely because in the end it’s the goals we scored that matters, but truth be told, among the 22 players on the pitch today, Mustafi was probably the best at defending today.
      So he’s my MOTM.
      I wasn’t his biggest fan, I’m aware of his flaws but he’s winning me over with his performances under Arteta.

      I remember an article I submitted last year that was published when I pointed out how we can’t judge this squad and the players under Emery as it’s a total sham and I recall pointing out we need a proper manager before we can assess this set of players.
      I feel I’m being proved right, I can get the link for anyone who wants to go have a reread

      1. How was mustafi out standing Eddie? He virtually destroyed our offside trap for first goal by running deep on the free kick…school boy football. Then in second half he again gave away the ball in dangerous position that could have resulted in a goal easily. He was lucky not to be punished for second mistake but cost us the first one. If this is definition of outstanding defending then I rest my case. Not getting punished for your mistake does not mean you have defended well. Defending well means you don’t make those mistakes.

        1. “He virtually destroyed our offside trap for first goal by running deep on the free kick…school boy football.”

          Now you see you really have pure dislike for the man and will never wee anything good about him?
          If you’ll kick a man, at least do it when he’s guilty and stop spreading lies and wrong information. Mustafi was no where responsible for the first goal, Mustafi was holding his man before the ball got in the box.
          The player who ruined the offside trap by going back deep was Kolasinac!!!
          Even with his white hair you chose not to see Mustafi was no where close that position and tbh it’s disheartening this is how we’ve come to always look from for ways to have a go at Musti.
          He wasn’t responsible for the first goal, that was Kolasinac ruining the offside trap and David Luiz’s inability to clear a ball.
          At least have some honor and stop spreading lies this validate your propaganda

  19. This is becoming a pointless exercise so in future I shall refrain from commenting at all on the subject of player ratings.

  20. Ceballos is not the player I thought he was. He’s WAAY better – in the sense that he works hard off the ball and really seems to have an entusiasm for the game. He work to stop an Everton break in the second half was a thing of beauty. If he keeps playing like this Il be sad to see him go back to RM.

  21. Some fans are just pessimistic. This guy is a world cup winner for goodness sake. He had issues with his confidence in the past but he has got it back. There is no need to sell him.

    1. Ironic, isn’ it. They desperately want a defender out of the team who has improved lately and got his confidence back and is working very hard, but they want a striker in the team that used to score lots of goals but has lost his touch.

  22. Aubamayang would have scored more than 20goals if only he’s been played as a number 9, the guy is a goal machine. I am 100% sure Lacazette won’t have scored that first goal, the way aubamayang timed his run from being offside and the way he finished it off was pure beauty.

  23. Great result today but I do think there’s a lot over reaction also. Everton could have scored another 2 or 3 as we looked a little shaky at the back again. We needed a bit more steel in Mustaffi today and we got it! Credit where it’s due. Sorry, but Xhaka is still not the right player for our attacking style and never will be. Ozil is turning it up which is great! Over all, a great 3 points and well done you Gooners!! COYG!! 👍😃

  24. I just wanted to say that it,s great to see some positive , constructive comments,common sense….from @reggie,lenohappy,sue,grandad…I was starting to despair ,COYG!!👍

    1. Things are going ok for us at the moment and results are picking up, we have some great youngsters and a manager that so far the players are supporting. The performances aren’t brilliant but resilient and we can hopefully, if it keeps getting better, look forward to a decent run in.

      1. True!MA has said he has many more things, tactics…to implement but doesn’t want to skip steps he firstly wants the team to do the basics well first which makes sense,slowly but surely!

  26. Good that we got a win – hard fought ! Tiring towards the end which wasn’t a surprise after having played on Thursday . I think Pepe needs to do more ! He doesn’t take players on enough and he certainly doesn’t track back enough and help the defence . Great team effort overall .

  27. Good show of game management. To come back what was in the end, twice it was good showing.

    65 min – 80 min arsenal needed to scoring a spare or building up score it. Not linger for full time.

    Saka leno auba Pepe luiz eddie all positive input. All goals saves and assist, that’s 6 players out of 10.

    They got a 7.5. They need to be at 8.5 as next stage.

  28. Don’t know where all these rating n so much praise is coming from. We won that’s good but in reality we were very poor in 2nd half, just survived n nearly made it to end. If not for Everton poor performance Infront of goal we would have lost the match. My concern is, the way we were dropping like flies 25minutes from final whistle. It felt like our players just lost their legs. We were struggling to hold and pass the ball. Stopped running n plugging the gaps. Defended poorly, if don’t concede the goal, does not mean you defended good it was pure luck n some poor finishing by Everton. I bet if Everton scored from amount of chances they had in second half …all the rating n fans comments would have been different.

      1. Agree Reggie, feel like finally some luck is going our way as well when we don’t perform well. Along with effort n hard work one needs a bit of luck to succeed as well. Hope this unbeaten run continues for long. I believe we can still salvage something from this season…may be FA cup or best UEFA cup n our route back into champions League.

    2. Let’s not forget that most of the Arsenal players were worn out because they were playing their 3rd game in 7 days as opposed to Everton who were more refreshed

  29. Generous rating across the board, starting with Leno. Gave up two goals, the second being very soft. Few big saves bringing him back up to a 7.
    Auba might be the only who justified a 9.
    Overall, great win and you can the change in this team which is nothing short of remarkable; however, let’s save the amazing ratings for amazing performances. This one was good.

  30. Despite the fact that we had to hang on for dear life, the author has decided to award several and very generous 8s and 9s. We conceeded 2 goals, yet Leno and Mustafi get a 9. Wasn’t Leno directly at fault for the 2nd goal? Xhaka should have had a 7, no assist no goal. Pepè and Saka deserved no more than a 6. Saka was excellent in the first half but truly diabolical in the second. Pepè was for the most part a passenger who suddenly popped up with an assist. Bellerin should have received a 3. The right side was simply a highway for Everton and it’s pure luck that they did not score from their gazillion chances.

  31. Leno-Was at fault for the 2nd goal but the saves he made is outstanding.UNDERRATED.His reactions are second to none in the whole world right now.8

    Bellerin-Everton targetted hi side as he played the inverted role,not comfortable playing that role.The pace he used to have will take time to come back but not good defending to be quite honest.6

    Mustafi-Was really committed throughout.He made some superb interceptions and taclles.Was the better of the back 4 in terms of defending.His distribution was not good today and his decision making needs to be faster.7

    Luiz-Very poor positioning.His error led to the 1st goal.Bit what a pass!!!! for auba.6

    Kolasinac-Bad defending.But feel sorry for him.Clearly you can see the change when saka came for him.I think he was rusty.And please come back soon.5

    Saka-First half was superb from.That ball to nketiah is just fire.Second half he was a bit poor.He clearly was tired and i think that and his overconfidence led to some mistakes.7

    Xhaka-He is clearly the most consistent performer under MA.He is just superb.The switch of plays he did in the 2nd half…OMG.he is using his right foot more often now which is a good thing.Just superb.8

    Ceballos-Was sloppy in the opening minutes then made a lovely through ball which should have ended in a goal.His defending is really impressive today.He is just a classy player.7

    Ozil-Will always get the stick if he doesnt score or assist.If you will just understand his game and the creativity he brings and the things he sees along with the touches and passes he made,this guy is world class.He lays the perfect platform for a goal.Connect plays.Kept the flow or fluidity going.His work rate was also superb today.8

    Pepe.Was a bit silent today,but what an assist.He could have scored today,he did nothing wrong but was a bit unfortunate.80% adaptation complete.8
    Auba-Class.Class.Class.Captain AUBA.9

    Nketiah-What a finish for 1st goal.Workrate just superb.He would have scored a second one but was a bit unlucky.8

    Torreira-Aggressive defence.He was a bit rusty today.But did his job quite well.6

    Guendouzi-Superb pressing.But his defence was quite poor but this guy iss just a player in the making.6

    MA-3wins in 7 days.7+3=A perfect 10.

  32. In my opinion, such high scores should only be given when we totally dominate a game from beginning to end. Remember, a 10 is “walking on water”, and the writer gives 3 guys a 9 after we struggled to beat a mid-table team at home. We were run ragged at times there and let their midfield boss us and our defence. Lost composure near the end amd gave far to many balls away

    Leno 8
    Bellerin 5
    Mustafi 8
    Luiz 6.5
    Saka 6
    Ceballos 7
    Xhaka 7
    Özil 7
    Pepe 6
    Nketiah 7
    Aubameyang 8

    1. This is the closest to a fair rating that I have seen.
      However, I would knock off a half point from Leno for the second goal.
      I was also not that convinced about Ceballos and Ozil throughout the course of the match. Ozil’s play deteriorated considerably in the second half before he was subbed off although he had played well up to that point.
      Mustafi’s rating is also too high. Arsenal could have been punished for his errors notwithstanding the blocks, headers
      etc. This is a classic problem with the ratings he is often given. When Arsenal don’t concede from his mistakes people will point to his stats which have always been pretty good.
      Arsenal were actually lucky to take all three points from this game in my view.

    2. For their determination they get those high scores cause like you say we were on the back foot alot. One thing arteta must work out that will even improve our team even more is by putting a man on the option deep laying play maker like what gomez did when he came up. Is exactly what Liverpool do. If you allow handerson to lift up his head and pick a pass he have willing runners infront of him so we must at all times have someone on those players. Don’t get me wrong not saying we must setup differently cause we playing to our strengths and defending when we have to have cause the change in results

  33. Yeah,Bellerin should be a 6,and Ceballos an 8,Bellerin is overrated I think he has lost some pace since his injury and is not a good defender,we should be looking to replace him in the summer,Ceballos’s work rate alone and the fact that he never shirks his responsibilities should give him an 8he had a very good game today,but considering the amount of games we have played this week i have to give them all some credit here,well done all.

  34. Saka definitely 6 he gave the ball away far to much. I need to echo ozil need more credit he was gliding. Dani ozil on the field bring back some memories from carzola ozil time please make his deal permanent. Hope cola will be ok

  35. Better sell Mustafi whilst on form, Arsenal can manage to recoup some money from his sale. He should be accompanied by Xhaka and Ozil to the exit door. Form is temporary

    1. Perfectly said. Performing for one month out of the entire season means nothing. Sell, sell, sell. We’ve already seen these players in UCL as well and they are flops. So why hope they turn into something they arent? Happy they are currently doing well, but if a club comes around wanting any of them they need to be gotten rid of. We need to rebuild. (Tho Ive accepted the fact Ozil will just run down his contract)

  36. Our goals against were two errors, the defensive performance was good, not great but it was good, esp considering the amount of attacking players we went with. Cabellos, Ozil, Saka, front three, a rusty Bellerin. Nketiah and Saka, have only joined the team, Cabellos too is new along with Pepe. Manager comes in at a disappointing time. The lads done good, the team done their job. I applaud Mikel Arteta and some of the more senior players. Mustafi has shown great character, it was not easy to turn that around even if it is still a bit soon. A few players have had to do similar, whether going about it quietly or having to dig deep. Some youngsters taking the mantle and learning valuable lessons. Eve have only lost to City and pool while under that manager, our lads done very well considering.

Comments are closed

Top Blog Sponsors