Arsenal beat Everton 2-0 today at the Emirates, keeping a first clean sheet of the season, and moving to 12 points and 6th place in the Premier League table. The goals came from Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, while at the back Petr Cech had to be in outstanding form as the visitors caused problems for us.
Read the report and see the goals here.
Ratings Update
The ratings are hidden by default until you vote, but if you just want to view the ratings and the comments, flick the switch at the top above Petr Cech ?
Lacazette is looking really good at the moment, and Torreira changes this team.
COYG
I’m happy with a win and in particular one coming with such a good goal but what exactly did Torreira change? We looked exactly the same as we have all season. Vulnerable and a bit one dimensional going forward.
Torreira might offer more defensive instinct than the other midfield options but he can’t make up for Ozil and Ramsey not wanting to defend or Xhaka and Bellerin not being able to defend.
We have quality in the side but it’ll take a change of attitude or personnel beyond one player to get us back into the top four.
I agree that when Xhaka is sloppy, it looks very sloppy. But to be fair to him, when he does that thing where he picks up the ball in the centre circle and shifts it onto his left foot, before playing a beautiful curved pass out to an advancing Monreal / Auba, it does look very, very cool. Not many others in our team can do that – reminds me of Arteta (swoon)
yep, just like petit and dixon, our valuable long balls playmakers
*coughs* Guendouzi
Cech was the top man!
We seem to be on a streak on winning in PL when not playing at our best. Long may it continue!
But, we need to play better if we want to win against tough teams. We are not there yet.
How good is it that we’ve got massive room for improvement and yet we’re still winning games!
How bout Cech today though? Also, yes Xhaka had a couple sloppy moments but thought decent overall. Laca and Auba worked hard up top and got rewarded and Holding did very well when he came on.
I only saw the second half but Ozil was terrible. Not sure why Aubameyang was replaced instead of him
I had the same thought. But Auba did look worn out by then. I think he gets subbed because Emery is managing his minutes. I almost broke my coffee table when Ozil declined to challenge for a loose ball, though. Emery is not going to put up with much more of that slacking. (To be fair, even Action Aaron seemed subdued today.)
I thought Ozil had a few bad touches for his standards. How i wish he would just foul the person who out muscles him rather then give up trying to get the ball back after chasing it for 5 meters.
Consider yourself lucky you didn’t see the first half. I don’t think he touched the ball in the first 10 minutes.
Aubameyang played 60 mins in the midweek Europa League game. He needed a break more than Ozil.
I would start Welbeck or Mhki up top with Laca and Auba, no more Ozil. I just can’t stand the sight of him in an Arsenal uniform. Absolutely no effort whatsoever. Remember when Iwobi came on and got a loud ovation for just chasing down the opposition for about 20 secs. Ozil is letting other people do all his defensive work and he’s not really creating chances. What am I missing here? Why do so many people keep defending him? We could bring in 2 top players for his salary…
Once again, I think Ozil did more “defensive work” than others saw, but it does not make me happy–it means he is not doing what makes him a great player. You ask what you are missing– well, that when he is playing well he creates more chances than anyone in Europe. The more touches he gets, the more likely we are to win. Why? Because so many of his touches last only a half-second as he finds a runner more quickly than a defender can adjust.
I love it when we win badly…..
Why is Laca benched during Wenger’s days
Because we had as well little bit giroud
Wasn’t he playing through an injury? And got surgery? That’s what I think, but I could be wrong..
I have no complaints. Great to build up a nice winning streak. Long may this continue. Coz the effect would be us grinding out a result based off of nothing but resilience and a desire to keep the streak going…winning ugly won’t be so bad. My only question; is Mihki ok?
That sky interview was criiiingggge
If we can get the captain fit and put him in the team instead of mustafi we could be onto something. Also I’m starting to love Unai, I really want him to succeed.
Why did we farm out Chambers? We’re one injury away from a real CB crisis.
Might I suggest because he’s really not very good?
Chambers has been shite for Fulham
very poor actually….
he was pretty good against Watford though, bar that one error at the end..
Let’s just hoard as many players as possible.
Imagine is we 8 CBs but had injuries to 6 of them? INJURY CRISIS. Se let’s get 10 CBs instead.
I thought we struggled to break down a pretty average team. Transitions weren’t quick enough and trying to force positions on certain players isn’t working. For me, Ramsey needs to be playing deeper alongside Xhaka and Torriera in a midfield 3 and then have Ozil playing in the middle of a 3 man attack (a little like Firmino for Liverpool), with the other 2 working off him. Saying that, there is clearly something up with Mesut. Whether its the Germany thing, or not being played in a position where he can affect the game, I don’t know, but the fact… Read more »
Özil like Firmino is a joke, right? Firmino is one of the most hard working offensive players in the league. He’s constantly pressing opponents. Don’t know what you’re smoking if you really think Özil could do that job. Apart from the fact that he’s nowhere near as clinical as Firmino is.
Exactly… I wouldn’t bat an eyelash to switch them up if I had the chance..
Jeez, some people like a rant don’t they. I obviously don’t mean that they’re similar players; as attackers they’re like chalk and cheese, but in OUR system, Ozil probably sits better at the centre of a front 3 (a little like Firmino does for Liverpool), where he can drop to pick up the ball (a little like Firmino does for Liverpool) and distribute to an onrushing Lacazette or Auba (a little like Salah does for Liverpool). If you prefer, how about calling it a midfield diamond with Ozil at the top of it, but when we defend the attackers spread… Read more »
Of course Ozil, regardless of his starting position, ought to be drifting into the centre, the way Messi does (who is also very different from Firmino). Ramsey ought to play a normal box-to-box role, which suits his talents brilliantly (big engine, late arrival as extra attacker in the area). The problem is that this set-up is not conducive to a high press, to which Emery seems committed. You’re right that Ozil can put some pressure on the ball, and the other attackers can help out wide–but that’s not the kind of press Emery (or Klopp) seem to want.
Ozil as a false 9? Wow, good thing you’re not the coach.
I’m still waiting to see how we’ve improved since Wenger. The first half was depressingly similar – move the ball from side to side a lot with no idea what to do next. It’s clear that we’re not a team equipped to play out from the keeper- there we’re various sphincter-constricting moment when we did this. It’s bonkers playing £60m Auba out on the left – he’s a shadow of the striker he was last season. Still, it was heartening to see the same old walnut – i especially liked the bit when he took a great pass from a… Read more »
If you want a sign of how we’ve improved maybe look at the simple fact we are not playing our best football yet but are still winning. The last couple of seasons if we started a game like that first half we knew we’d be in for a long day. We turned it around in the second half and finished the game very comfortably in the end and I think that’s a visible improvement from last season. Seriously though, it’s going to take time. Most of the players are the same players who finished sixth last season and there is… Read more »
When your MOTM is your goalie, you should be rather concerned. We’ll struggle against the next half decent team we face.
This season has been all about the second half rally!
Yeah, great point. It’s a testament to Emery’s halftime team talk and adjustments. The second time he sees these opponents, maybe we’ll start with the right tactics. It’s a new league for him, remember.
Yes but there must be a game he gets the first half right tho? We’re a good couple of games in now and the first halfs of our games are all too similar. I don’t know though.. is it tactical or just the players starting slow. It feels like we are always surprised how good our opponents are and it takes the team a while to adjust.
For me, I feel like Emery starts every game making the Wenger mistake of shoe horning all our “best” players regardless of balance, but deep inside it’s more of a “hope this works” but deep inside he knows it won’t. Then he sees the 1st half results and does what he should’ve done from then start.
But he keeps hoping they can all “click” despite evidence to the contrary.
The games in which we have picked up points have all been against dross without any decent forwards. We conceded against West ham, Cardiff and Newcastle despite this fact. We very nearly conceded against a team that has Theo “How can I find ever more creative ways of running out of pitch” Walcott. I see no signs of an improvement. Equally worrying, I see no evidence that the manager is imposing any style of play. It’s just like watching Wengers team. We don’t press, which he was doing in the summer pre season games. I just don’t get it.
We need to give Oezil playing time. He will come out of his slump
Perfect Petr. Super Sokratis. Tough Torreira. Lovely Lacazette Lifted Lob.
Go Gunners.
And I like you Lively Lobster.
The interview was awful, it looked like they were in someone’s living room and added nothing to the standard post match interview infront of a sponsors board
mesut looks like an enigma, smells like an enigma, and that usually means, he is an enigma.
in terms of contribution today, yeah, he did occupy some space on the pitch
If you think that Ramsey and xhaka are the quality of players that we need, than you must hate Arsenal. We deserve better.
If you can’t see the improvement in Xhaka playing in his true role as a deep lying midfielder then I must say you are being totally biased. He was excellent today
Excellent is overdoing it, but he was overall very good.
But he shows how one footed and how much he’s prone to the press. He needs too much time on the ball and early on Everton targeted him to press.
We are winning, and sanchez is shit at manure. Happy
Sanchez? Forgot about that spritely little fellow. Serves him right for leaving The Arsenal
One of Ozil and Ramsey has to sit on the bench. Iwobi and Mkhitaryan both look better when they play for us.
Exactly right….i dont see either offering much …Ozil just looks shit right now…saw bellering giving him the business at one point
Seriously man, I can’t see both starting and another inept first half symbolized by their performance. Sort out their positions, and start either of Iwobi/Mkhi. But not Ozil and Ramsey together in their current positions. I hope Emery realizes that that’s something which is definitely not working for him.
Ramsey is getting on my last nerve. The punditry makes it worse as they contiously berate the easy target in Ozil who was poor but Ramsey was truly diabolical and continues to get a free ride. They say his best position is advanced areas but his limited skillset makes him play even worse and fuck up Ozils fragile game by playing him wide. That season where Ramsey scored a load of goals changed something in his own mind and made him believe he was the welsh Gerrard. What he needs to do is recall his actual best POSITION which was… Read more »
Emery sees the same thing you do and he keeps playing him. I wonder for how long, though. For a while after he came back from the Shawcross assassination attempt, Aaron often lagged in getting back on defense and was shy about challenges. Then he got over that, but Wenger indulged him in the fantasies you describe. (For a few months, he really did look like one of the best mids in Europe. But that was years ago.) If Ramsey can’t do what Emery demands, he won’t play. I hate to say it, but at this point, Iwobi or Smith-Rowe… Read more »
Watching today i finally settled on why Ramsey ( one of my favs) is bothering me so much. Ramsey is acting like a bball 2 that wants to be the 1. Instead of doing what he can do, he wants to handle the ball and he doesn’t have a good handle.
And until he recalls what he can do well he can’t play in the same team as Xhaka and Ozil. All three get caught out of position and turn the ball over too easily.
Thats what pisses me off. Ramseys ego spiralled out of control with the standout scoring season and a few fa cup winners.(lucky for him he scored the winners in both finals because he was poor in both but no1 remembers)
This is what puzzles me with Ramsey. He is a seasoned pro now. How does he still forget what he does best after all these years? We’ve all played some form of football before and you can tell yourself what is working for you and what is not working for you. It’s like he tries to reinvent himself every season. I am 30+ now and I’ve been playing in a sunday league thing for the last few years. I always preferred to play in a more attacking role but with more and more game time in the first season I… Read more »
We were losers today if not for Laca’s work rate and ability as well as Cech’s goalkeepingism. Torreira definitely helps too. Monreal surprisingly was the defensive weak link, but the real reason we conceded those chances was down to sloppy attacking possession, mainly to do with Auba, Ramsey, Ozil (all not playing on the front foot) and a little bit Xhaka. Love Laca!
Yo arseblog it’s so hard to go on your website or app after games I don’t know if it’s to do with the traffic coming to your page but it’s been like this for years now , both ur apps and website crashes if there’s too much traffic
Yeah I don’t bother going to Arseblog News after a game as the site doesn’t load. Just check it a few hours later and it should work.
Cech – Who says he isn’t good with his feet. Important stops when Monreal was caught too high and Sokratis could not get back in time. As mentioned, nothing as yet would deem to suggest Leno should displace the incumbent. Bellerin – Had a torrid time with the handful Richalison. Toffees paid too much for him but the Brazilian if he carries on may have utility for his National side. Always problematic for Bellerin bc the team is unbalanced in asset and the midfielders ahead of him (Ozil ostensibly) would not protect the necessary cover for the Spaniard to fully… Read more »
Auba is wasted on the left, simple as that.
We all know Laca is on fire in PL, but Auba is too good to be restrained on the left.
Off topic: what a player is Gueye, kind of poors man Kante.
Tame Uruguayan! We’ve got a tame Uruguayan! Tame Uruguaaaaaaaayan! We’ve got a tame Uruguayan!
As in one that doesn’t bite?
To me Ramsey and Ozil were both terrible. Both were sloppy and gave the ball away. Id much rather have a player that can carry the ball like Iwobi.
I think Auba is terrible on the ball as well. He offers very little other than speed and finishing.
Check and Lacazette were bright slots. Tierrera looked good too.
We were very lucky early on not to concede and i thinks its more down to our inability to keep possesion rather than defending that costs us.
Ill take the 3 points but it was a stinker of a performance
Would have been a totally different game had Cech not come up so big early. One of his best games in a while and definitely the MVP of the match. Nice to see Torreira get a league start and deserves to stay in there, but hope we’ll continue to see Guendouzi as well.
Im so confused about aubameyang right now.
We still give away cheap balls.. and I am hating Ramsey ATM.. he must have made like 50 piss poor passes in EPL this year.. and is holding out for a better contract..
Most of our players seem to be in a world of their own
Honestly we’re lucky we are winning games, a team with better forward line would absolutely blast us apart.. The number of chances they created in the first half was ridiculous.. We struggled to get out of the half way line..
We have to be ready to take a drubbing soon.. I am not particularly fond of thinking abt our Liverpool games this season..
Something needs to be changed.. Is Emery too indulging Ozil?
If Emery was indulging Mesut he wouldn’t be sitting him out on the wing while Ramsey stinks out the middle. Ramsey is a jammy player, always gets a lucky assist or goal and everyone forgets that he’s been awful all the time. How many assists have been miskicks that a teammate has picked up, and how many goals stolen off his teammates toes? Mesut isn’t a winger but he is a team player. Ramsey isn’t a no 10 and he’s like Wilshere and Walcott, ridiculously over rated.
You know, football is a very low-scoring game. If a player regularly gets lucky assists or lucky goals, it’s good enough. If it keeps happening, maybe it’s not luck.
It was a tough match and it’s great we got the win, but a few things really need to be pointed out. Firstly, how in the world does Mustafi get the same rating as Sokratis. I remember at least 2 times in the match when Mustafi just failed to clear simple balls and slipped and the incident that injured Sokratis was also his fault and could have been been much worse. Secondly, don’t understand why Ramsey and Ozil are being played together and in the same position. Ramsey doesn’t have the close control or the dribbling skills to play a… Read more »
Yeay another win! Like the look of Torreira. Love this team and our new brand coach. The only thing I would change from the currentstarting line up is Oil and Ramsey removed are they’re not on form and let the flamboyant Guendouzi get back to the starting eleven and add the in form Mikhi or Iwobi. it would solidify our midfield with Xhaka-Guendou-Pitbull and bring desire and creativity with the in form Iwobi/Mikhi. It would also allow Auba to play closer to Lacazette on our offensive phases because we have a more dense, defensive minded and hard working midfield.
I’ll be honest, when I saw Holding coming on I was kind of glad that Mustafi was coming off. Not thrilled when I realised it was Sokratis.
I simply can’t see how Mustafi will be anything other than a liability for us.