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Arsenal vs Manchester City Player Ratings
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal and Manchester City faced off in the battle for second place and it was the Gunners that pulled if off. Here are the player ratings.
A win against Manchester City puts Arsenal four points clear in second place and only two points behind Leicester City. The Gunners clung on to a 2-1 win to assert themselves as the dominant threat in this Premier League title race. It was all fun and games until Toure scored, but the result is what matters. Here are the player ratings.
For as many shots as he faced, Petr Cech rarely looked threatened. Maybe it was his positioning or maybe it was City’s ineffectiveness, but it seemed like every City shot was right into Cech’s midsection. I could only manage to deduct 0.1 points for Toure’s goal. What could he have done?. GK. Arsenal FC. PETR CECH. 7.8
RB. Arsenal FC. HECTOR BELLERIN. 7.4. Slowly working his way back into form for Arsenal. But at least he is headed in the right direction. Was able to stretch his legs and show off his pace at times but also gave the ball away needlessly.
PER MERTESACKER. 7.8. Aside from his awkward collapse in the middle of the pitch, Per Mertesacker was fantastic and made me feel foolish for wanting Gabriel starting in place of him. His intelligence in his positioning and timing is enough to help you forget that he lacks pace. Very good night for the German.. CB. Arsenal FC
7.8. Great day from Koscielny as well. He is a force at the back and he was able to keep pace with whatever City attacker he needed. He is starting to look more and more effective going forward as well.. CB. Arsenal FC. LAURENT KOSCIELNY
LB. Arsenal FC. NACHO MONREAL. 7.7. I had very few problems with our defense all night. Nacho Monreal was again wonderful all night. He did slip up once in letting De Bruyne on an unimpeded run, but it didn’t hurt Arsenal. Monreal was fantastic going forward as well. All around good game.
MID. Arsenal FC. MATHIEU FLAMINI. 7.9. Tasked with the mission of shadowing David Silva, it is easy to say that Flamini accomplished his mission. Silva was nowhere to be seen. He was even provoked into a yellow card very early. The theme of Flamini’s good outings have been ‘quietly effective’ and that’s what he was again. Although he was not so quiet when he was yelling and marshaling this Arsenal team together.
7.6. The work rate will always keep Ramsey at a 7.5+. Again he was everywhere on the pitch for Arsenal. However, he was unduly selfish at times and it cost Theo Walcott a few golden opportunities. Ramsey was accused of getting forward too often but when the runs are there, he has to take them. . MID. Arsenal FC. AARON RAMSEY
8.5. MAN OF THE MATCH. What a night for Theo Walcott. He did absolutely everything on the day. His first goal was a surreal finish, a real whipping curler to beat Joe Hart. Could have had many more opportunities on goal as well but Ramsey saw fit to muff those chances. Walcott defended and he<a href=. MID. Arsenal FC. THEO WALCOTT
MESUT OZIL. 8.3. Two more assists, although both assists were 75% the responsibility of the striker, as his team mates were finishing masterfully. Ozil was still his usual self and he was very upset to come off early. However, given how much work he put in and how much defense he played (four tackles), Ozil needed a breather before Arsenal’s hectic Christmas period.. MID. Arsenal FC
MID. Arsenal FC. JOEL CAMPBELL. 7.5. The first thing I think of when it comes to Joel Campbell against Manchester City was the bolting run to get back on defense. He looked to be working almost too hard. But then I remember the two missed chances. Campbell had a fantastic day on defense and in the deeper parts of the pitch but had some troubles in front of goal. Was still effective though. He is starting to show off his dribbling abilities.
8.2. Effort was the theme of the night for Arsenal. Aside from scoring a wonderfully placed shot, Giroud was all over the pitch as well, defending in the midfield and stifling a physically larger Manchester City. It cost him on some of Arsenal’s offensive runs but that selflessness is inspiring to see.. ST. Arsenal FC. OLIVIER GIROUD
7.3. Made some good runs and served his purpose as a sub – to keep the pressure on and give Arsenal a fresh pair of legs.. MID. Arsenal FC. ALEX OXLADE-CHAMBERLAIN
7.2. Pretty good day for the subs. Gibbs did his job as well. Put an extra defensive-minded body on the pitch without a sacrifice on the offensive side.. LB. Arsenal FC. KIERAN GIBBS
7.4. Saw Chambers for all of seven minutes but he looked more athletic than ever. He did not look slow. I even mistook him for Aaron Ramsey once. What has become of me?. RB. Arsenal FC. CALUM CHAMBERS