Arsenal player ratings and review – Ramsey MOTM

Match review and ratings by Twig A great win for Arsenal away and Ozil makes his much awaited debut for the Gunners. It was an Arsenal performance that was typified by glaring misses especially in the first half. It wasn’t a vintage Gunners performance by any means, but it’s a valuable 3 points. Here are my player ratings. Szczesny (7/10): Couldn’t really do anything about the penalty. Overall an assured performance from the Arsenal No. 1. Sagna (7/10): Was lucky not to have been booked for his tussle with Altidore. He was the last defender, and the referee could have been much harsher than the free-kick he gave (which was very harsh on Sunderland anyway). Sagna once again, though, doesn’t look out of place at centre back. Koscielny (7/10): No one would argue that Koscielny is one of the best centre backs in the league on his day. But the red cards, conceded penalties and sending offs are becoming more frequent in his game. Vermaelen is back now, and Koscielny would need to be less reckless, if he’s to keep his place in the starting eleven. Gibbs (7/10): An assured performance as we’ve come to expect from Gibbo. Did well in some occasions to create space for himself and make a cross into the box. Maturing really well. Jenkinson (7.5/10): Other than a horrendous headed clearance in the First Half, I thought Jenkinson played really well today. He picked Ramsey superbly for our second goal. He still looks lost when defending from central areas though. Flamini (7/10): Did his job well in an understated fashion. He was tidy in his passing as well. Didn’t stray too far from his defenders, which was nice to see. He needs to cut down on the yellows though – that’s two yellows in two games now… Wilshere (7.5/10): Wilshere seems to be getting back to his best finally. Some great combination with Ozil and Giroud. Nearly got an assist for Walcott, which the latter spurned. At his best, he’s unplayable. Ramsey (8.5/10): Man of the match for me, and probably for everyone else! Where would we be without Ramsey this season?! Even before his injury, Ramsey had been a goalscoring midfielder, and he has five goals so far this season. His first goal was priceless and came at a time when we seemed to be letting the game slip by. If he keeps his goalscoring act, he could be Arsenal’s MVP this season. Ozil (7.5/10): Superb first touch, and carefully weighed pass to set Giroud on for the first goal. That Ozil would get an assist in his first game, wasn’t a thing of surprise was it?! Top assist-maker in Europe in the past few seasons, and it is easy to see why. Also made two terrific passes for Walcott, which went wasted. Didn’t do too badly in his first taste of English football. Didn’t look in 100% top, top physical shape to me and seemed to avoid getting “stuck in” in the physical side of the game. But that’s probably due to his illness. I think we’ll see the best of Ozil when Cazorla makes his return from injury. The combination is mouthwatering. Walcott (6/10): The Theo of last season would have got a hat-trick today. Theo was too casual in front of goal for me. It’s a marvel he hasn’t scored so far this season. I hope it doesn’t start playing in his head too much. Giroud (8.5/10): It was tough choosing between Ramsey and Giroud for the man of the match, but you can’t argue with a brace can you?! Giroud is growing into a really, really important player for Arsenal. He’s more calm and accurate in front of goal now. A lot would be said of Ozil’s assist, but Giroud’s first time finish, just like in the game against Spurs, was that of a man on top of his game. Four goals in the premier league so far. Lets hope his injury isn’t serious, as we haven’t got a backup – or at least, a proper one! Monreal (N/A): Even though Gibbs would be many people’s first choice at left back, Monreal isn’t too bad himself. Wenger really needs to use Monreal more as we could be losing a very good player next season. With the world cup fast approaching, Monreal would surely want more than coming on in the 87th minute of each game. Gibbs can’t play in every game. It’s important that Wenger rotates between both Gibbs and Monreal, just like he did last season. Akpom (N/A): All I can say is lets hope Akpom wouldn’t be the one leading the line for us against Marseille due to Giroud’s injury. That would probably be too big a step up for him at this time. It’s a shame that the only backup we have to our main striker is a 17-year old. 17 year olds can of course cut it at the big stage, like Pele showed in 1958, but then, Akpom isn’t exactly Pele, and this is not 1958. Twig