Arsenal kicked off their Europa League campaign with a 4-2 win over FC Vorskla at the Emirates this evening. Two goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and strikes from Danny Welbeck and Mesut Ozil helped ensure the three points, but once again we failed to keep a clean sheet.
Read the report and see all the goals here.
Here’s how the players rated tonight, and please note we are going to make some more changes re: the ratings system, about hiding our marks if you don’t want to see them etc, but bear with us!
Good match today, thought torreira and iwobi were great.
COYG, let’s beat everton on the weekend!
Loved me some Mkhi tonight, don’t know about. Wish Holding could be playing more. Good game tonight for the lads especially Aubameyang.
Sum up my thoughts on Miki to a tee!
Been said a lot but (if he’s okay) Torreira has to be starting now.
Torreia did alright but much like Leno, I don’t see him really forcing his way into the side based on a game against shite opposition like tonight. Likely to be as you were at the weekend.
Thought this was easily Big Papa’s best game in an Arsenal shirt. Made a couple of fantastic sliding tackles and chased down the ball relentlessly. More of this in the Premier League please!
Loved how pissed he was when he had to make those last ditch tackles too
There was no hint of a foul on those tackles either–really excellent.
Liked the bit where he was trying to remove the opponent’s shorts.
He does shit like that and then shrugs and acts like he’s done nothing wrong. Naughty man.
The amount of people who said he was a shit player when we signed him but he’s looked very good.
Happy for Iwobi and glad Auba is scoring goals…if the end of last season is anything to go by, once he starts scoring its hard to stop the man!
Where’s Nacho?
Unnecessary comments on Iwobi who no doubt has been poor at times but no worse than Ozil Ramsey and even Mhii who are constantly defended and excused on this blog. The last time Iwobi started he was also our best player against Chelsea and finishedlast season fairly strong.
Saying he played really well is unnecessary?
Adding in the ”his best game in ages’ when that is false.
He played well in the Chelsea game for sure, but he was even better tonight, making it his best game in recent times (just ahead of the Chelsea match). And that was the interpretation I got from Blogs’ comment too. No offence but you may have just took the original comment the wrong way.
It was his best game in ages. He was really, really good. That doesn’t mean he hasn’t been good before.
I thought Iwobi had a rank average game, as his passing in the final third is still atrocious.
With the exception of his assist, which was still a yard ahead of Auba, almost every pass in and around the opposition box wasn’t good enough.
12 misplaced passes from 47 attempted last night shows why he isn’t making the premier league match day squad
Wasn’t Papa supposed to be old , slow and ambling ?Smashed the narrative right in. A good display from him and generally the whole team but then we went full Arsenal and gave them the grace of a frankly undeserved scoreline.
Iwobi was massive too.
Smith-Rowe should be handed more first team opportunities by today’s display.
Onwards and Upwards.
Same people that said that also say Leno is a poor shot stopper so hoping for a double whammy of condascending wrongness haha
It’s rather strange right, just our leakiness? Have we ever had a start to the season where we have failed to keep a clean sheet a month+ after the campaign began?
Where’s Monreal?
He’s there!
Iwobi was class
That finish from Auba ?
Ozil, Guendouzi, Smith-Rowe, I assume are a technical issue. 8, 6.5, 7 for them respectively.
The ratings don’t show on my computer when using Chrome (Mac OS 10.13, Mid 2012 MacBook Pro). It does work with Safari. Just thought I would mention it as feedback.
It is working now, somehow! Maybe the ratings take longer to load than the rest of the page, and I was a bit overhasty when commenting.
Yep, it takes a second or two because they’re being pulled in from an external source 😉
That’s what she said?
It’s probably apple’s fault.
Does Ozil actually like playing football?
I gave you a thumbs down, like other people did, but there’s a serious point here. We shouldn’t underestimate the strain Ozil has been under because of the situation in Germany, a situation that by now has almost nothing to do with football.
Yeah I get thumbs down and I admit the question like that is provocative but I am really wondering. People talk about his body language not reflecting his desire. But yesterday when I compare his will to play the ball with the enthusiasm of guys like Guendouzi, Smith-Rowe or even Elneny, I am struggling not to think this guy maybe is just sad.
I thought something similar about the bench during the very sleepy first half. Do they like watching football at all? Would the rather be home, tending to the geraniums?
No, he has never liked football! Spending hours on the training ground, in the gym, getting harassed by the media, by stupid fans, by polemics instead of living the life of a young boy, then a young man, simple, quiet, normal. Yeah, no, he doesn’t like football.
What you are saying is that he loves football, doesnt mean he has to like it every day.
Holding was excellent – very solid. I think you are a bit hard on him
I thought he was good!
Mkhi has a direct hand in 3 out of the 4 goals and he gets 6.5? I sometimes ‘naah’ about this blog to be honest
Apparently his performance was of an equal level to that of Danny Welbeck. Maybe it’s just me, but I thought Welbeck did absolutely nothing all game, other than the goal, whereas Mkhitaryan was involved in a lot of what we did in an attacking sense.
Had doubts about Sokratis but he has really grown on me. We need iwobi and Mhki on the flanks! It makes much more difference compared to playing Auba and Ozil on the wings. If a big player misses out, so be it.
Beating this team is nothing great.Beat Everton and maybe I can say the gunners are
finally laying the foundation for an assault on the title which must be the ultimate gold,sorry goal.
I switched off the tv after the 1st half . Its the same old Arsenal trying a series of short passes.
Imho,Arsnal will well be beaten by the top 5 shd they meet now.The attack is too predictable and there
is no element of surprise which can catch defences off guard.
The attack from stopping an enemy offensive is to laborious and pedestrian and can be easily stifled.
I guess by switching off the tv you missed Auba’s breakout goal then, which did exactly what you’re whining about our attack missing.
Its also a bit difficult to catch an opponents defense out by surprise when you’re clearly dominating possession and putting them under a near constant state of attack, which we were for large parts of the first half.
Wait a minute, that was Auba’s first goal in the first half. Did you watch ANY of the match then?
You switched off the TV. Then you told Jan. You are so in love with Delle Alli. You can’t stand it when Arsenal win so you don’t blog after they rout. But you are so quick to do if Spurs win or man united do.
Pep only has a good career because he inherited GG’s back four.
Michael Jackson’s thriller album is better than Bad.
10/10 – Montreal waiting in the penalty area and making a late run for Welbeck’s goal. Box to box left back!
“Made 100 passes, completely 94% of them. He’s the defensive Granit Xhaka!”
YOU TAKE THAT BACK!!!!!
It was a compliment!
Presumably it doesn’t come across as one if you are a Xhaka hater.
I guess, but I don’t think I’m a Xhaka hater …
I can’t take anyone seriously who talks about ‘hate’ & ‘haters’ in relation to other people’s opinions of a footballer’s ability.
Great game. After the double switch, game died off. What a difference Torreria makes, total quality. He is the midfielder we’ve been waiting and craving for. Pure Class. Sucks to say Ozil, just its cutting it.
Ah, Özil… always Özil. Not liked but in the minds of everybody.
Ah, Arsenal….always just about Ozil. (For Alex anyway)
Nacho to me had a very good game. He never seemed to make a single mistake and pushed forward to join the attack very well.
I like how vocal sokrates and lickstener are. They seemed to be directing traffic much more than were used to seeing.
I like the holding sokrates pairing.
I love how quickly Teirrera moves the ball…always looking to make things happen.
Leno does look way.more composed with tue ball.
Iwobi mom to me. Played himself closer to the first team. Elneny did not, neither did Holding nor Lichtsteiner. The latter is less effective than Bellerin going forward, and – it transpired – no better to defend.
As Mustafi has done so many positioning mistakes, I hoped Holding would be better. He wasn’t, and we need to buy a central defender in January.
What on earth did holding do wrong?
Is it only me or does anyone else think that Cech could have maybe saved those goals? I don’t mean to say Leno was bad, coz he wasn’t but he’s not as good at shot stopping it seems to me.
Bonus Rating: Santi Cazorla 1079838483/10
Smith-Rowe #99? I’m sure it’s #55.
This seems to be the thread of miscommunicated intentions. Enjoyable to watch lol. There’s something about Iwobi that’s still raw for all the games he’s had. He has a good mind but it’s like his touch isn’t always there. A few very clumsy first touches and awkward second touches – and I say that acknowledging my own lack of first team football at Arsenal or any other team lol – but it’s worth a mention. Those moments were sandwiched by great movement and passes. He’s almost there. If he can work with the elder men in the team on cushioning… Read more »
I think Iwobi did very well, watch out for Emile, he’s a very talented.
Obviously the opposition was not very strong and to concede two goals (even with a four goal lead) is ridiculous at home to that level of opposition, but was good to see some players such as Iwobi, Torreira and Miki who haven’t had much time of late play so well. Was interesting to see how strong of a team Emery played and even with his substitutes of Ozil and Guendozzi shows that he probably feels his best chance for the CL next year is to win this competition.
Our defence is a real worry. Still.