Bournemouth 2-3 Arsenal: Player ratings as Rice double helps Gunners come from behind

Arsenal came from behind to beat Bournemouth 3-2 and extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table to six points on Saturday evening.

Mikel Arteta made a number of changes to the side that thumped Aston Villa 4-1 before New Year with the return of Declan Rice to the midfield being the most notable alteration. Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli also replaced Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard on the wings.

It was Bournemouth who opened the scoring and it came in dreadful circumstances for the Gunners as Gabriel Magalhaes looked to play the ball back to David Raya, but passed it straight to Evanilson, who fired in to break the deadlock.

The Brazilian number six made amends soon after though when Noni Madueke made a good run into the box before playing a cross in, which bounced around before the centre back volleyed in.

Both sides battled it out throughout the remainder of the half, but there was nothing to separate them, meaning the score was level at the break.

Arsenal took the lead for the first time on the night minutes into the second-half. Viktor Gyökeres did well to hold off the Bournemouth defence as he collected a ball from over the top before it fell to Martin Ødegaard, who showed great awareness to lay it off for Declan Rice to pass it into the net from the edge of the box.

Arteta's side continued to keep their hosts under the cosh and that paid off when they added a third with Rice securing his first ever Premier League brace. Ødegaard played substitute Bukayo Saka in down the right side of the box, which drew Djordje Petrovic from his goal, allowing the winger to cross for his fellow England international to fire in.

The Cherries handed themselves a lifeline with 15 minutes to play when Eli Junior Kroupi picked the ball up well outside the area and fired a thumping effort past Raya and into the Arsenal goal, reducing the deficit to one.

Bournemouth pushed to find an equaliser, but Arsenal did so well to see out the victory and go six points clear at the top of the table.

Here's the Arsenal player ratings from their comeback win at Bournemouth.

Bournemouth 2-3 Arsenal player ratings

Goalkeeper & Defenders

David Raya (GK) - 6.5/10 - Not much he could do about either Bournemouth goal. Distribution was good once again.

Jurrien Timber (RB) - 7/10 - Solid on the right once again, helping his side keep the Cherries at bay for much of the game. Made occasional runs to help out in attack.

William Saliba (CB) - 6.5/10 - Relatively straightforward performance with there being not much he could do about either of the hosts' goals.

Gabriel Magalhaes (CB) - 6.5/10 - Made an awful mistake when he passed straight to Evanilson, who then beat Raya to open the scoring. Made amends minutes later as he volleyed in to level it up for his side.

Piero Hincapié (LB) - 6.5/10 - Held relatively firm down the left side and did well to draw a number of fouls.

Midfielders

Martin Ødegaard (CM) - 7.5/10 - Assisted his side's second goal, showing great awareness to lay it off for Rice to fire in. Played a neat through ball for Saka to race onto and square for Rice for the third goal.

Martín Zubimendi (CM) - 8/10 - Really solid at the base of midfield with his role allowing Rice the freedom to work his way up the pitch and score two goals.

Declan Rice (CM) - 8.5/10 - Put his side in front minutes into the second half with a well-taken finish from the edge of the box. Grabbed a second when he darted into the box to meet Saka's low cross and fire in.

Forwards

Noni Madueke (RW) - 7/10 - Did brilliantly to dribble into the box and play a cross in for his side's equaliser. Caused some more problems down the right side, but could have been better with his decision making.

Viktor Gyökeres (ST) - 6.5/10 - Held off the Bournemouth defenders well in the build-up to his side's second goal. An otherwise quiet performance in attack. Taken off with 25 minutes remaining.

Gabriel Martinelli (LW) - 6.5/10 - Was the source of some trouble on the left flank for Bournemouth, but couldn't have too much impact. Replaced by Trossard after the hour.

Substitutes

• Gabriel Jesus (on 66' for Gyökeres) - 6/10
• Bukayo Saka (on 66' for Madueke) - 7/10
• Leandro Trossard (on 66' for Martinelli) - 6/10
• Mikel Merino (on 80' for Ødegaard) - N/A

Player of the match: Declan Rice