Arsenal ground down Watford’s defence before turning on the style at Vicarage Road to ensure they end the weekend in second place in the table.
Here’s how the players rated today, and remember you can leave your own ratings on our voting system below.
That action in the box right before Alexis came off is an example of why players go down when they could stay up. He was wiped out by two Watford players including the keeper, and if he had stayed down in the heap and flailed his arms about, he’d likely have gotten a penalty and possibly a red card. But he jumped back to his feet and chased it, and almost kept it in, because he’s Alexis and that’s what he does, and so he is punished for it by not getting a deserved penalty call.
He did go down on his knees when that sleazy cunt Capoue slapped him, then just went “This diving shit is below me” and picked himself up straight away. How come Capoo didn’t get carded for this offense btw?
Because Alexis didn’t make a meal out of it the way Cunt Costa did.
The English love to complain about exaggerating contact but when players get routinely punished for NOT exaggerating by the incompetent referees we have in this country it’s easy to see why so many players do exaggerate. Our refs are so useless that if you don’t act like you’ve just been shot in the face they probably won’t even notice.
Troy Deeney is the sort of player that if he played for your club you would adore him. Determination, commitment, physicality, gives 100% all the time. Problem is, when he plays against you, you fucking hate him.
Mark of a decent player.
No goals this season. If he played for us people would be flaying him alive.
Certainly had the better of Coquelin on one occasion in the first half
Ballerin great composure for the Ramsey goal, top player.
Interesting to think how good he’ll be when he grows up!
I like your comment, but – just for kicks – are you sure you’re a pedant? Also, this is my first comment in months because I’ve been on mobile for almost everything. The Arseblog app is wonderful because I can still keep up with the main things on the site but it would be nice to read & make comments as well. Great game also, I know we all were getting a bit squeaky by half time because of… but maybe something has changed. Wait! No, I’ve seen nothing, everything is the same, I didn’t do anything okay?! I’m not… Read more »
The app works fine for meme. You just have to click on the message icon to enable comments…. Well this is for Android.. Don’t know about ios
Just use the web version. Comment to your heart’s content that way.
You can make comments using the app though.
The season averages are well low – Nacho for example been exemplary this term. Were there a couple of zeros in there blogs? (thinking cl maybe..)
Nice away performance on a touch pitch coming back from a break. No bad performances really. Fair play to Ozil for assisting while falling down. Hector could really be something special.
Liking the look of this team. Bayern game is going to be very interesting
Sublime Ozil
Bellerin only 7.5? Get outta here. Was top class today, basically a winger and a full back all at once. Almost like playing with an extra man when he’s that good.
Every game Bellerin has played in save for that Borussia christening has drawn just a few minor criticisms from me because he always seems to be able to cook up something special (scooting by Chelsea’s Ake like he wasn’t even there), only advance with knowledge that there is cover (that’s mainly great team play), and he is so calm on defense, he doesn’t get rushed because he knows he’s faster than everyone – he just directs them away from the danger areas until help arrives. It’s a really wonderful thing to watch, he’s got real confidence in himself and this… Read more »
He’s excellent, no doubt about it. Hard to think of another RB in the world I’d really trade him for. Some of them might be slightly better players right now, but I can’t think of anyone with his mixture of excellent quality now and stellar future potential given how young and raw he still is in terms of experience.
Is Monreal the new Sanga? Every game he’s goes about his business and never looks like he’s in any kind of trouble what so ever.
Also, the moment where Alexis was wiped out by Gomes but got up and carried on summed up why he’s probably the best player in the league. A certain left winger who keeps on getting compared to Messi and Ronaldo isn’the fit to lace Alexis’ boots
Always rated Sagna as a baller, but I think Nacho is playing better this year than Sagna ever did. End product is better, he improved his heading game (a strength of Sagna), and he seems to be a real leader on the pitch. Not trying to rag on Sagna, just compliment Nacho. He’s been great.
Nacho has really nice technique as well. He’s better prepared to take on opponents than Sagna ever was, and he’s more intelligent with his use of the ball in terms of passing. I admired Sagna as a very functional player and an exceptional defender, but always felt he was a bit hefty for a modern full-back. Monreal’s more agile, but also an intelligent and diligent defender like Sagna was. Then again to my mind, our current full-back pairing is to die for. I’ve always loved watching Alves and Alba for Barcelona as an example of just how much full-backs can… Read more »
Monreal has one and only one weakness: he has a tendency to get caught under the ball when someone crosses to the far post. That said, if that is the only weakness your fullback has, that’s pretty exceptional. And with fewer and fewer sides playing big lump center forwards it is not all that likely a weakness to be exploited. He is one of the best interceptors of the ball you’ll find, he’s cool, he doesn’t give away sloppy fouls, he is excellent at providing attacking support without overcommitting. He’ll give you 8 out of 10 almost every game. He’s… Read more »
This. (And I’m totally unbiased)
Alexis, Ozil, Cazorla, and Ramsey; how unplayable can these guys be atimes.
Bellerin and Monreal are the best full-backs in England at the moment.
Some ITKs said we will struggle to score goals; Arsene knows.
We have defensive issues, they said; 5 clean sheets in 9 – only 7 goals conceded.
They have a soft centre, some analysts said; who is better than our Coquelin? Absolutely none.
I wander what the next narrative will be.
I think we have a few players at the moment who don’t get any real recognition, but we as fans know how brilliant they are. The consistency from Monreal, the all-round quality of Bellerin, the rise of the Coq (sorry) – these 3 guys don’t really get much love outside of Arsenal circles, but I can’t think of anyone in their positions in the league that I’d swap for them.
Hold your horses. Its October, not May.
There’s still a long way to go before the chest thumping starts.
Last night, Shearer wheeled out the old ‘squad depth’ narrative as our weakness.
When we can bring on Chamberlain and Giroud, our 2nd choice left back whi Started for England on Monday didn’t get off the bench, we seem to be doing OK.
Not to mention our top scoring defender happens to be playing at another top 4 club right now.
Not to mention the Wilshere, Welbeck and Roscity to come back
Looks like coquelin has been working on his passing,can’t remember him making too many bad ones,he’s slowly developing into a world class player,also shutting up the pundits that say you have to have the physique of matic or you’re to play defensive mid
He’s always passed better than people give him credit for. People just saw him coming in and destroying everybody and assumed he couldn’t do that AND be a good passer. But he is. When he doesn’t force it. Occasionally he has tried things he shouldn’t but I think it’s mainly because he must get sick of not getting the credit he deserves for that side of his game.
Dont need the physique of Matic, but would be good to have an option like that to step in when Coq is injured/suspended. Someone like Carvalho would be a big step up on Arteta/Flamini
He’s always had the passing ability, but there is more to it than that, being in the right place to help others on the ball, and creating some space with smart, quick passing. He’s doing these things better this season, and it shows.
Watford did’nt water the pitch. Tried to muscle us out of the game. Real quality of players like Ozil Santi and Alexis was the difference to today. Mature and responsible performance.
Maybe they didn’t water the pitch, but still it’s their home ground and they deserve to give themselves the advantage. So what if they changed the pitch to get some advantage?
Please win the EPL this season and give us an endless joy
Please don’t call it the EPL. It is a horrible Americanism (I’m an American). “The Prem” sounds so much nicer.
I love Ramsey. That handsome little Welshman. Dreamy.
I love the way we make our tactical shift…it shows we have a plan B and our plan B works..COYG
Second on the log! Season averages don’t reflect that really… I’m guessing the we’re too critical on the odd loss huh..?
They don’t look quite right do they – something up with the counting?
Sir Chips must of been happy to see Michael Arteta come on.
Getting Bellerin and coquelin for next to nothing has to be some of the best business we’ve done in a long time. Infact hats off to wenger for alwayz getting value for most of his signing (from anelka to fabregas even nasri,adebayor and van persie). If bellerin keeps on developing like this, he would officially become the best fullback in the world within the next two seasons
What???
Bellerin and Coq are academy players just so you know
Three things that might not have been eye-catching in our great performance but nevertheless, they emphasize our all round great team performance (yet again):
1. Extremely good header by Giroud, saved by Gomes (somehow)
2. Cech’s distribution of the ball was great all evening
3. Arteta’s late reassuring presence (emphasized by his tackle and perfect pass to relieve pressure).
A touch off topic here, but isn’t Wenger getting a little predictable in his substitutions?
No matter if we’re winning, losing or drawing the game this season, Arsene has brought on Olivier and the OX. I realize the idea of giving them minutes but shouldn’t they be used in certain situations only? Thoughts anyone?
“If it ain’t broke don’t fix it”.
Sorry for getting comment happy since it’s the first time in a while as I mentioned above, anyways… Exactly mike. Both of those guys offer something that almost no other players on the squad have, Giroud in particular. With Walcott on we can counter attack really well, but even then, our players are so anti-route 1 that they would never just hoof it across the field as a clearance, they’d rather pass it to the midfielder who’ll do that but by then he’s covered and can’t match up physically. From my eyes, Giroud won almost all clearances that were close… Read more »
Changing tactics doesn’t mean changing the players every game
Maybe because they (Giroud/OX) are our only attacking options available. (Welbz, Wilshere, Rosicky injured)
He has brought on Gibbs as well for Ozil/Sanchez when we were defending a lead in the closing minutes.
Wait till 70 mins (or more) regardless of how a player performs. That is what Wenger does 9 out of 10 times all these years. No wonder we have rarely been able to come back from a-goal-or-two-down situations.
The pure accuracy of those passes with pressure on them by the opposition is just breathtaking. They really are fantastic players with our little magician the Center of it all.That is what Arsene Wenger is all about . Making football beautiful.
Great performance all around. Koscielny was boss in the back, Coq in midfield and all the midfield maestros (Santi, Ozil and Sanchez) were sublime. Glad Giroud and Ramsey got goals for a confidence boost as well. Now on to 3 points against Bayern!
All time most career assists: Riquelme with 181 assist. From today, Mesut Özil has the same at the age of 27.
Just red it.Not sure if it’s true. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if it is.
https://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/social/gullible-arsenal-fans-mocked-for-saying-mesut-ozil-has-broken-the-all-time-assist-record-tweets/
It is true. Another assist and the Wizard of Öz will make History. Who cares of Ballon d’Or when you can be the Best Assist Provider of all times??? ?
You must be referring to Dennis
Bollocks d’Or
Each to his own, I love me some Santi Cazorla.
Finally understand why Chambo looked rather crest-fallen. After a decent goal vs Lithuania and the calibre of todays opposition he would have maybe expected to start and if not start then atleast get alittle more than a measly 10 minutes.
Sulking won’t help him though just ask Giroud.
Okay, unpopular opinion time, I think the Ox should go on loan. He’d be a starter for any team in the bottom half and he’d probably be an absolute beast in the championship if he was motivated; other leagues, I can’t say for sure, always a crapshoot. He isn’t polished enough to beat anyone in their current positions at the moment, although I’d prefer him to Walcott on the wings, but Ramsey seems to be making it work because everything transitions to almost a 3-5-2 when we get to the final third as he goes central and (generally) Bellerin becomes… Read more »
You have a point. I honestly thought Wenger would start him today and rest Sanchez but apparently there is no such thing when it comes to the Chilean robot. Also thought Ramsey had an excellent game: he was unlucky not to score at the back post (on the replay, you can see his shot clip the crossbar) after making a great run, and aside from an errant shot or two had some very good interplay with Sanchez, Ozil and the excellent Bellerin. If we’re going to get some points off Bayern, we’re going to need our midfield to keep clicking.… Read more »
“Not polished enough” is apt. I feel he has stagnated also not sure having him on the bench is especially beneficial. A loan would be an option though his ability to be our “wildcard” when he is really up for it makes for a tougher call.
All in all he badly needs a run of games and with Ramsey/walcott ahead of him plus a returning Welbeck his situation is not ideal is all.
P/s
At one point Gnabry was looking like the real deal on the wing. Does anyone know how he is getting on at West Brom?
Gnabry hasn’t played much, didn’t even make the squad yesterday, but I’m not sure if there’s an injury or something. Scored for Germany u21’s during the interlull though.
Put it this way almost all of our loaness bar Jenkinson Martinez and Wellington are not getting game time.
Toral and chuba started brilliantly but are now subject to 10-20 mins cameos off the bench. So is Hayden at wolves.
Dan crowley same and he is in league 1.
Our academy isn’t doing that well
What about Sanogo?
Theo 7.5?
Is “kapoo” a different person than “Kapooay”?
Alexis is currently on fire.
…and you’re saying it so lightly.
Why are the season averages so low? Cech and Monreal have surely averaged more than 5.5?!
Thought coq and santi were immense today, COYG!!
The boys were a bit sluggish in the first half, but because it was Watford they got away with it. I hope they rectify that when we face Bayern next week.
Coquelin MOTM for me, easily. Him and Nacho were the only ones who were excellent pretty much all game.
Assured performance after a tight first half. Bellerin certainly provides that extra boost in the attack with his ability to dribble to the end line and into the box and also to cut in around the 18. Sagna never did that, he would just straight up and down the sideline. You see so much more interchanging with Ozil, Ramsey and even Carzola out wider than Bellerin now, to me it’s allowing us to break down stingy defense on the ground instead of just having to flight crosses in as Sagna would (often off the mark). Monreal is such a joy… Read more »
Bellerin being able to dribble is indeed one of his many excellent attributes. Very few fullbacks will dribble into the top of the opposing box from outside to inside – to the extent they’ll make it into the box at all it’s usually after going down to the touchline.
It’s an interesting and unpredictable piece of his game that teams often seem to struggle with. Against liverpool is where he did it in the flashiest way but he’s done it to a bunch of other sides too and often they don’t seem to know what to do.
Can anyone explain why monreal’s average is 5.5 for this season?!
I think it’s because the average rating thing is fucked up. I will check with our developer (who’ll need to develop the back of my hand if he doesn’t get it fixed!).
Better ratings for Per. Gunnerblog was completely off. Sure he has issues with pace but the German’s positioning and decision making (including “taking one for the team”) is excellent. OTOH Koscielny made one great interception but generally was mistake ridden in first half. Yet McNicholas seems to think (like Giroud), somehow our BFG is poor because of pace alone. This is an in built bias that does not reflect the true nature of things. Giroud was on for a short period of time and managed to put in a good goal with one of his first touches. Its not a… Read more »
Are the average ratings accurate? Is it just me or do they seem rather low?
our first 4 games were drab remember? and we were a little bit harsh with the ratings then. it takes time for these things to build up you know..
I actually have to disagree about Troy Deeney, his determination actually brought the best out of the defense today. He’s obviously not talented enough to play for Arsenal but I would love our players to have even half the work ethic that puts on week in, week out.
I loved that Ramsey scored yesterday! hopefully he gets a few more this season!