Arsenal 4-1 Leeds Utd: Player ratings as Gunners answer City’s call

Arsenal responded to Man City’s 4-1 thumping of Liverpool by beating Leeds by the same scoreline at the Emirates on Saturday afternoon.

The Gunners’ opener came against the run of play after Leeds started brightly and spurned a couple of promising chances. Gabriel Jesus scored from the spot after he was brought down by Luke Ayling just after the 30-minute mark.

The hosts were pretty flat in the first half, but they dazzled at the start of the second as goals from Ben White and Jesus put the contest beyond the resolute hosts.

Rasmus Kristensen offered Leeds a glimmer of hope before Granit Xhaka added a fourth in the closing stages after heading home Martin Odegaard’s dreamy clipped pass in behind.

The victory saw Arsenal regain their eight-point lead over City at the top of the Premier League ahead of next Sunday’s visit to Anfield.

Arsenal 4-1 Leeds player ratings

Here are the Arsenal player ratings from Saturday’s win.

Goalkeeper & Defenders

Aaron Ramsdale (GK) – 6.5/10 – Made a couple of smart stops, including one after seven seconds, before his clean sheet was cruelly taken away in the final 15 minutes.

Ben White (RB) – 7.5/10 – There were fears over White’s fitness pre-match, but there was no reason for supporters to be concerned as the defender bagged his second Arsenal goal.

Rob Holding (CB) – 6/10 – He’s never going to provide William Saliba’s class with the ball, but this was another solid defensive outing from the stand-in centre-back.

Gabriel (CB) – 7/10 – The ubiquitous Brazilian was once again sturdy alongside Holding. Covered well down the left when needed.

Oleksandr Zinchenko (LB) – 6/10 – Plenty of touches, but influence wasn’t felt until Arsenal were comfortably ahead as they sought to manage the contest. Occasionally loose in the opening period.

Continued on the next slide…

Midfielders

Thomas Partey (DM) – 6/10 – Minutes were smartly managed by the boss as he was withdrawn before the hour. Kick-started a few transitions, but this wasn’t one of Partey’s most influential outings.

Granit Xhaka (CM) – 7/10 – Javi Gracia’s ploy of using Rasmus Kristensen as a man-marker in midfield meant Xhaka’s influence was limited in possession before he scored in the closing stages.

Martin Odegaard (CM) – 6.5/10 – This was your archetypal rusty Odegaard performance after an international break. Still notched a fine assist for Xhaka’s header.

Continued on the next slide…

Forwards

Leandro Trossard (RW) – 7/10 – Struggled down the right in the first half, but burst into life after the break as he drifted into a central position. Bagged yet another assist.

Gabriel Jesus (ST) – 8/10 – Okay, now he’s really back. Arsenal’s opener was all Jesus’ doing as his quick feet garnered a penalty which he coolly dispatched. He then put the game beyond the visitors when he combined with Trossard for the Gunners’ third.

Gabriel Martinelli (LW) – 7.5/10 – Arsenal’s brightest spark in a drab opening period, and the execution of his assist for White shouldn’t be overlooked. That was some cross, and Martinelli’s quickly evolved into quite the wide creator.

Substitutes

Bukayo Saka – 6.5/10 

Jorginho – 6/10

Kieran Tierney – 6/10

Emile Smith Rowe – 6/10

Fabio Vieira – N/A