Two games against Bournemouth this season, two 2-0 wins, two goals from Mesut Ozil. Nice to get back to winning ways, and it sets things up very well for next week’s visit of Leicester.
Here’s how the players rated.
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Thursday, December 19, 2024
Two games against Bournemouth this season, two 2-0 wins, two goals from Mesut Ozil. Nice to get back to winning ways, and it sets things up very well for next week’s visit of Leicester.
Here’s how the players rated.
Walcott’s best game in a while!
Just needs his mojo back. His self confidence and self belief are non-existent at the moment. One good game will sort him out.
Don’t be nasty about Benik, not his fault. Flaming however…
Negotiated a tricky away fixture. Hopefully a week of training will have the Coq back in the starting 11 and we’ll do Leicester home and away, City/Spurs to nullify eachother and the journo’s will be making us favourites again. Not that we ever doubted..
Am I the only one who thinks Giroud was poor. I’d personally play Welbz against Barca, Giroud’s too slow and theo’s been useless recently.
Well, he did well to knock down the header for Özil to blast into the net. And in his defense, the way we set up in the 2nd half and just tried to hold our 2-0 advantage , didn’t really give him many opportunities in the Bournemouth final third. He was fine and contributed to the win. To call his play poor, I think would be quite harsh.
So you want to play a player who’s been out for 10 months in the most difficult CL match a team could possibly get this season?
0/10 for our second half. Where were we?
We needed a win and we got it. Two first half goals and we played smart and protected the lead in the second half. Except for the super double save by Cech, Bournemouth rarely troubled us.
Be happy with the 3 points and onto the match versus Leicester City! COYG
We were sitting back to get the points and make sure we didn’t balls it up. That’s where we were.
Good performance from the Ox today, hopefully that will give him some much needed confidence
I though Oxlade-Chamberlain had a poor game, he scored a fine goal, an important goal, but he was involved in the game so little, and his passing was very poor, I think he attempted only 18 passes all game, completing only 11. That is very poor. He once again lost the ball cheaply that led to a good breakaway from AFCB. Hopefully the goal will give his confidence a boost and we see better form from him now.
Took his chance like a player full of confidence. I agree with you thought he did not play to the standards that we need him to. I feel like he’s a Theo Walcott in an alternated timeline. Pacey ex-Southampton winger, scores goals, England international, albeit with less weight on him to be the next big thing. He stays on the wing though, I don’t see him as a striker, this is where the timeline splits. His progress and Walcott’s progress when he was for as long in the team is rather the same. Hopefully the Ox will blossom while Walcott… Read more »
That’s not fair. From wide right remember in 2011 he got 13 goals in all comps, 12 he got 11 and in 2013 he got 21 in all comps and that is not including all the assists he got. Theo has way more end product then OX and when he has gets a run of games without getting injured he gets numbers. Theo’s problem is that when he comes back from injure he is a really slow starter plus he seems to have forgotten how to play out wide since his knew injure. It’s upfront or nothing for him now.
Ramsey’s best performance for a while. This is what he can do. If he stays at this level then we can mitigate issues created by flamini to some extent. Hopefully, Coquelin will put an end to Flamini’s reign in next couple of games.
He did OK against a poor midfield. He still made some terrible decisions so I pray he doesn’t stay at this level
Ah the old classic ‘he did ok but they were shit’ routine…man of the match eh Tarquin? God that must have hurt!
Would love to see the stats on how many times Ramsey gave the ball away or put a team-mate in trouble with a poor ball. If that was Ramsey’s best game in a while, then we are really in trouble!
No o order mesut doesn’t use his left more often. Wouldn’t want to be too awesome would he..?
Suddenly am more optimistic about this title thing.
Cech. Best signing in the world last summer. 11 million? A striker of his quality at his stage of his career would have been worth 3 or 4 times that.
Cech IS worth 3 or 4 times that. Thank fuck those morons didn’t realize that and sold him to us for (relatively) peanuts.
I sometimes wonder if Bellerin’s positional play is undervalued because of his pace, with people notching up every tackle he makes to his physical attributes. I think games and moments like today (similarly with Swansea/Gomis) highlight what his pace brings to us but fail to truly define what he brings as a player.
I agree- in the previous match also he may not have had the attacking blinder he does at times, but he was there with both smart positioning and speed to sweep up at least two counters that would have put us out of that match. It may be no coincidence at all he was in position for that and not at the same time attacking in the opposition’s corner.
Glad to see bosscielny break his recent record of making about 1 dangerous mistake per game. best defender in the PL and deserves extra credit considering he plays just about every game. on to leicester!
No RAMiFLAMcations for the cm partnership. God thats the worst thing ive ever said.
Besides the two footed tackle, which was very dumb and completely unnecessary, Flamini made me very nervous anytime a player dribbled at him. Maybe it was because he was on a yellow but the Bournemouth players went by him so easily. And if they changed directions while they were dribbling Flamini looked as if he was going to fall over every time as he tried to stay with them.
We need the Coq back for Leicester…. We win that and we’re in a real shout for the title….
Barcelona keeps getting closer and Flamini’s still in the team. It’s like playing chicken against one of those mining trucks.
Barca will chew this team in the first half alone. Given our standard, I fear they might not even play their full 1st team. We should not think of that tie at all and focus on the league and FA cup…
Ambition (noun) – desire and determination to achieve success.” Based on the performance of the midfield combo of Flamini and Ramsey over the past many weeks, can anyone look at that starting line-up today and say that Arsene has ambition for this team to challenge for a title? What has happened to him over the past 5+ years? But for the good fortune of being assigned a neanderthal referee, all of our fears would have been realized in an 8th minute sending off of the lower-echelon squad player that is our manager’s preferred DM. Full credit to Bournemouth, they had… Read more »
you’re like a less funny rambling pete
If you would like to criticize the post, as others did, then have at it. The fairly uniform interpretations indicate that it came off as more strident than intended. At the end of the day, it is sport and should be enjoyed as such and my passion/frustration is a by-product of how magnificent it is to watch this team fire on all cylinders. But please do not make the mistake of thinking you know anything about me, including whether or not my sense of humor (which was not part of the post at all) is up to your standards. For… Read more »
A friendly advise: try not to take yourself too seriously. It is no fun. Get out of that basement. It is time to go out in the sun and play.
Another definition of insanity is repeating the same banal old Einstein quote over and over and expecting people to still find it interesting.
Amen to that!
Using that quote is the definition of inanity.
“What?”
-Richard M. Nixon
That hate on Flamini is becoming fucking ridiculous. He’s not that bad as the most of you fans are trying to present him. Actually today he played very well, he was reliable on the ball. As for the tackle for me that’s never a red. I think the referee wouldn’t even gave him a yellow, if the Bournemouth players wouldn’t protest. In the past you would applaud for that kind of tackles.. Yes, he is not perfect but he is a decent squad player, great motivator with winning mentality. We need that kind of players and I hope he gets… Read more »
That two footed challenge was spot on, 100% ball. Would’ve been regarded as a juicy tackle if he went in one-footed
It’s quite fashionable to shit on Flamini these days but barring those two reckless bits, he did solid work.
Yea, it’s getting all rather easy to blame Flamini for when things go wrong. The ‘two footed’ challenge was never a straight red, he was in control and took the ball. He wasn’t high nor was it reckless. The referee, when watching it at the time, looked unfussed by the challenge, it was only because the Bournemouth players protested that it was ‘two footed’ not that it was dangerous. I expect the boss continues to play Flamini because Coquelin is not quite ready for a full game, Elneny had the day off to be with his newborn, which only leaves… Read more »
Aha, so THAT’S why we haven’t been seeing Elneny recently. Was beginning to worry.
Congratulations to him then!
His squad status? He’s playing every game lately.
By the way, is Arteta injured again? Otherwise I can’t understand why it’s not him and Ramsey in the centre of midfield.
I feel you on this one. The flamini hate is really annoying. I get it he is not a world beater and i would prefer coquelin over him. He doesnt fill me with confidence everytime he defends by retreating. But he has tried his best. He gives his best. He has filled the gaps when we had injuries…and yes.,he does his best.I also feel Ramsey’s style of play makes it hard for him. I believe he would better next to cazorla.so can we please stop moaning about a player who gives his all while putting on our shirt! Let’s support… Read more »
The only thing anyone is ‘blaming’ Flamini for today was a stupid, unnecessary two-footed tackle that most refs would have given him a red card for. He was really lucky. As I said in the ratings, what he did aside from that was fine, but if we’d gone down to 10 men after 8 minutes, there’d be no defending him at all.
For those that think it wasn’t a red, imagine an opposition player going in like that on one of our players and ask how many would be happy with a yellow.
If you really think that was a red card challenge and that Ramsey and the Ox played well, I’ve got to question your objectivity in assessing these matches …
Ratings are, by their very nature, subjective.
I don’t have a big problem with Flamini like some do. I’ve said countless times the partnership with Ramsey is flawed, but there’s no personal issue. That was just a stupid tackle yesterday.
As for Ramsey, he was involved in both our goals, and put in a big shift defensively too. People will see what they want to see though.
If someone like Karl Henry, Adam or Cattermole had put in a tackle like that against us I’d have been foaming. Regardless of how you time it, if you leave the ground with two feet you’re showing no regard for your opponent’s safety. Had the other bloke actually gone in it could have been messy. If he does that vs Barcelona the ref’s going to make it easy for the golden boys and we’ll be down to ten, spending 80 demoralising, exhausting minutes chasing shadows. Flamini’s a handy squad player, but the problem now is that he’s starting in a… Read more »
It’s a shame because the one full season Flamini played for us in 07/08 I think he was the best destructive midfielder in Europe and probably the best I’ve seen for Arsenal (including Vieira, Petit et al – honestly he was that good!) but after that season injuries have ruined him and now he’s just an adequate PL player who wouldn’t look outstanding at any other side in the league. He can basically keep up with our play but doesn’t offer a lot more. We could really do with him being taken out of the team for Coquelin or Elneny.… Read more »
Sorry for the long reply: It feels like such a different time – we were still 4-4-2 back then. I can’t rely on my memory but I think Cesc had a bit more discipline about him in those days. I know it wasn’t until around 2009 that he started playing behind the striker. Another thing about that 07-08 side was that Eboue offered a bit of balance to the midfield on the right. He wasn’t popular, but I think he was there to bring some legs and physicality to the midfield. But for sure, Flamini with a couple more yards… Read more »
Gabriel reminds me a lot of Koscielny when we first signed him. Clearly talented but a bit inconsistent and occasionally rash having made a rapid rise in his career. Hopefully he can emulate Kos’s subsequent success but I have to say I’d be more comfortable with Per back in against Leicester, even if they have a pacy frontline.
We got Ozil
Mesut Ozil
I just don’t think you understand
He is Arsene Wenger’s man
He is better than Zidane
We got Mesut Ozil! #Goosebumps
Two goals in 90 seconds from our first two shots on target? I’m still confused.
Sorry bur if a player had made a two footed challenge on ozil, sanchez, etc most fans would be screaming for a red card & a ban. Arsene is the first person to critize these types of challenges & wants a more skill based less physical team.
It was an unnecessary challenge that could have cost us the win. Flamini has become a liability who needs to be dropped and moved on in the summer.
I’d play with these line ups in our next 3 games:
Leicester: cech, bellerin, gabriel, koscielny, monreal, coquelin, ramsey, campbell, ozil, alexis, giroud
Hull: ospina, flamini, chambers, mertesacker, gibbs, arteta, elneny, oxlade, iwobi, campbell, walcott ( replaced by welbz after 60 mins)
Barca: cech, bellerin, gabriel, koscielny, monreal, coquelin, elneny, ramsey, ozil, alexis, giroud (would rather use theo or welbz in that game because of their pace but unless one of them explodes in the next 2 weeks I’d stick with giroud.)
Speaking of Afobe, a swedish pundit/journalist who’s also an Arsenal fan was asked which striker he’d think Arsenal would like to sign and he said Afobe, which is ridiculous. No disrespect to the guy, he’ll probably be a good striker, but he’s had one good season and four good games at Bornemouth. Pavel Pogrevnyak had that as well.
Very happy that the Ox got on the board today. I hope that helps his confidence. Very puzzled why we are still playing Flamini in the middle for the entire game. I guess Elneny was not as ready as we were led to believe?
Elneny’s mrs had a baby this morning I believe?
Really?! Well, that’s the best possible explanation for for his non-appearance. Let’s hope he has a chance to pull out one of those goofy ball-under-the-shirt goal celebrations soon!
Well I thought we were awful today, just luckily Bournemouth were even worse. Our central midfield and defence is a mess right now, I’m not looking forward to vary and mares next week, massive improvement needed.
At this time of the year performances don’t matter. Or at the start of the season. Or either side of Christmas. Or after Easter. When do they matter??
100% agree. you’d think we’d beaten barcelona the way some people are going on. it’s not even good football to watch at the moment. i hope wenger has a plan because at this rate we’ll finish below spurs.
Negotiated a tricky fixture and now should have Coq back in the first 11 and a fully fit Alexis with minutes under his belt for the big one – weirdly – against Leicester!
Agreed. We desperately needed a win & we got one. Hopefully the team performance will improve. No point being unnecessarily negative – we’ve been worse in the recent past!
If we play like the second half v Leicester then we’ll do a Man City 1-3.
Coq urgently wanted. You know what I mean. and Alexis is just about match fit.
It’s on again ….
Bit surprised about all the Flamini hoo ha. It wasn’t actually even a challenge. No one was in danger, it wasn’t high and he was there miles before the Bournemouth player even arrived. There was no tackle.
Bellarin I think deserves more points, and well done to the players. They all put in good shift. COYG
People vindicating that Flamini ”challenge” is nothing short of ridiculous. We would be raging about it if it was on one of ours.
Again don’t know what Cech needs to do to earn a higher rating, again did all he could with some fine saves and control of all the balls into the box, even came out and dribbled up the field one time after intercepting a ball. Can’t say enough about the job he’s done and what he’s meant to the team. Great finish by Ozil with the right foot, nice to see him continually get into the great goal scoring positions and to see him look to score. Just wish he would try some shots from distance to keep the keeper… Read more »
He got 8 out of 10, the highest rating of anyone.
Elneny was with his wife who gave birth this morning
Coquelin is on 4 yellow cards, so maybe Wenger thought he could manage with Flamini against Bournemouth, and preserve Coquelin for Leicester and United…if we beat Leicester, we really need a draw between City and Sp*rs, or a City win. Then we have to beat United. Then I will really believe.
there’s 13 games left … 39 pts.
Some very tough games to come so seat belts on.
Is it still five yellows=suspension after Dec31st? If so, I can understand the decision to play Flamini over Coquelin in this game. We should be able to take on Hull without him.
Happy for the win. Would have liked more goals but there’s a positive angle as we’ve been a bit crap at defending leads, just sitting out a game, in the past.
Am I the only one who finds the bonus rating a bit petty? I assume the dig is mainly directed at some fans bemoaning that we let Afobe go, but there is still no need for this derisory tone with regard to his performance. It is fair to say, that he showed a bit more class by thanking Arsenal fans for their support in a post-game tweet.
It was tongue in cheek, and aimed at some fans/sections of the media, not a dig at Afobe who is clearly a good lad and showed that with this post-game response.
Everytime Giroud has his regular terrible games Arseblog feels the need to remind us that he didn’t get enough service, it’s not Ozil or Sanchez or other player’s fault that Giroud can’t create space or make it easier for the teams to find him in scoring positions. He’s simply not of the required standard. Walcott attracts heavy criticism and rightly so but the same standard should apply to Giroud when he plays a bad game. I think that’s fair.
I am not always Ramsey’s biggest fan but, and based only on the second half I thought Ramsey had a good game and, as Blogs said in the ratings, his best game for some time. I think the selection of Chamberlain helped him, too.
I hope he keeps on making me rethink my opinion of his general game. I don’t mind being wrong about him one bit when he plays like that and better !
Ridiculous rating for Flamini as per usual. Not surprising really. Many fans haven’t got a clue what they are watching and prefer to fit in their own narrative regardless of reality. Two footed challenge. Coquelin does that plenty. Flamini got a bit lucky but he got the whole ball before even making any contact with the Cherry. Secondly, had he gone in sliding all over the place thereafter, many would say he is undiscipline. Instead, he kept it tight and covered positionally without taking the bait to dive in. Coquelin came in after and we were no safer. In fact… Read more »
What I saw was a player leave the ground and go in two-footed for no good reason. I think most refs in the league would have sent him off for that.
You’re right to say his general play was fine, but that moment was outrageously stupid and he got away with it. As does any player who goes in like that, whether it’s Coquelin or anyone else.
Plus statistics of convenience. When it suits them, they will furnish Elneny completing 96% passes against Burnley. They will then choose to ignore the fact Flamini barely misplaced a pass this game against much better opposition. Coquelin comes on and misplaces a pass, loses the ball and no one complains. Had that been Flamini it wold have been massively highlighted. Sorry but you’re going to have to do better than that. The unfair singling out of a yellow card (something Coquelin has collected plenty of times + Wanyama is on another red) in negation of Flamini’s two crucial blocks in… Read more »
God the amount of moaning going on is ridiculous. Yes, we weren’t at our best. Yes, there’s always room for improvement. But the point is that we got the points when we needed to. What’s wrong with enjoying that a little bit? Does everyone have to have a moan about SOMETHING after every match? I swear even in a parallel universe where we do beat Barca someone will find something to moan about. Lighten up people, there’s still plenty to play for. You can save the moaning for when we’re actually out of everything.
come the end of the season, we would be fed the line that there is nobody available to improve this team
Phew! that flamini challenge. the most frustrating thing for me this season was not being able to play against chelsea with 11 men because this was the season we were supposed to right the wrongs against them. i really think we could’ve beaten at least once in the league this season. if flamini saw red, it would have been maddeningly frustrating. but the positives for me: the ox scoring, that’d give him confidence, ozil scoring again, sanchez getting back to his groove (if there’s a game for him to return to his best, it’s leicester this weekend and i feel… Read more »