Quantcast
Home   >   Match   >   RATINGS: WBA 1-1 Arsenal: Bendtner Poor But Youngsters Dig Deep

RATINGS: WBA 1-1 Arsenal: Bendtner Poor But Youngsters Dig Deep

By on September 25, 2013

A very poor first half, a decent second half and a draining 30 minutes of extra time. But eventually we prevailed on penalties and the youngsters showed some real bottle.

Here are my ratings:

Fabianski 7/10

Made a few decent saves and dealt with crosses well throughout the game. Didn’t get his hand to any penalties but didn’t have to as two were blasted wide.

Monreal 7/10

Made himself a hero scoring the winning penalty and had a pretty solid game at left back. He’s certainly a dependable back-up for Gibbs.

Mertesacker 8/10

The big German held things together at the back and made a crucial interception early in the second half which prevented certain goal before making a last ditch clearance off the line in extra time. MOTM

Vermaelen 6.5/10

Not a bad outing for his first start of the season. His position play was a little suspect early on but he settled in to the game. He was booked for a late tackle in the second half, left Berahino free to head home the equaliser and I was disappointed he didn’t take the opportunity to exercise a few daemons by taking a penalty.

Jenkinson 7.5/10

Very good display from Jenks and he was basically our main attacking threat, despite being a right back. Was always an outlet and used his pace well to cause them problems. He also sent in several dangerous crosses.

Arteta 6/10

Looked like he lacking in match sharpness, which is understandable. Gave away a couple of needless free-kicks on the edge of the box and generally looked a little rusty. Was eventually subbed but got some vital minutes under his belt.

Hayden 6/10

Looked a little nervous early on but settled in to the game.  Lucky not to be sent off for a reckless tackle on Mulumbu midway through the first half. Eventually subbed.

Eisfeld 6.5/10

Was anonymous for much of the game but popped up with a lovely goal midway through the second half. His touch was excellent and he dispatched is like a seasoned striker. Looks a little lightweight at the top level though, needs to bulk up a bit as he was constantly bullied off the ball.

Gnabry 5/10

Didn’t take his opportunity to shine, unfortunately. Was pretty poor throughout and capped a disappointing display by missing his penalty. Only positive things of note was he won the ball in midfield in the build up to our goal and sent Bendtner clear with a decent through-ball.

Ryo 6/10

Faired slightly better than Gnabry, but only because he sent a few dangerous crosses into the box and he worked tirelessly throughout the game, getting back to Monreal out in defence.

Bendtner 4/10

You can tell he hasn’t had a pre-season! He was terrible for the majority of the game. He looked unfit and did little until he set up the opener with a neat pass to Eisfeld. Scored his penalty as well but wasted a glorious chance to win it in extra time when he was sent clean through, but he dallied and was eventually tackled before he could even get a shot off. He’s nowhere ready to push Giroud for a starting spot.

Subs:

Akpom – 6.5/10 – Battled hard down the right and cooly slotted home his penalty.

Bellerin – 6.5/10 – Went close with a couple of speculative efforts from the edge of the box.

Olsson – 6/10 – Was clam in possession and also showed guts by dispatching his spot kick.

So we’re through to the fourth round where we’ll play Chelsea at the Emirates. The youngsters showed real bottle, especially those who took penalties ahead of their more senior team mates. However, we’ll have to play a lot better than this if we’re to beat Jose Mourinho’s men in a few weeks time.

If you haven’t seen the game or want to relive it, you can watch highlights here before the video gets removed!

What did you make of the game?

12 Comments