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Petr Cech – 6.5
Had to make a few saves when Arsenal were in the ascendancy in the second half, especially one to deny Cazorla. Other than that he was untroubled as his defenders made his job easier. Could do nothing about Walcott’s goal.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 7
Combined fantastically with Hazard on the wing. Made a superb long pass to find Mata for the opening goal. Tormented Gibbs all the time. Had to retreat to the defense in the second half.
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Branislav Ivanovic – 6
Didn’t have much to do in the first half but was called into action many times in the second half but he worked well with Cahill to nullify the attacking threat of Giroud.
Gary Cahill – 6
Had a real mix of a game wherein he was out of position which allowed Walcott’s goal but denied him superbly for what would have been a sureshot injury time equalizer.
Ashley Cole – 6
Assisted Oscar in possession on occasions but was mostly limited to his defensive duties and was constantly distressed by a pacey Walcott. Made many unnecessary fouls but held out till the end.
Ramires – 8
Contributed to the attack and the defense running all over the pitch. Broke up play and ran forward and initiated many attacks. Linked up well with Lampard and the attackers and cleverly won the penalty, although he might have made the most of it. His industry always troubled Wilshere and Diaby.
Frank Lampard – 7
The age shows nowadays when Lampard just doesn’t throttle forward as his other team-mates do, but he is still in complete control of the midfield, picking out players with his long balls and spreading play wisely. Coolly slotted home his penalty and it cannot be stressed enough how vital he is to the team.
Juan Mata – 7.5
Took his goal extremely well with an unbelievable first touch and blasted it home with his left foot. Made clever runs and played his attacking colleagues in. Made a superb pass to Ramires which won him the penalty.
Oscar – 6
Made a couple of early chances but his influence faded away later on. Contributed well in attack but Hazard and Mata were running things. His influence faded away in the second half as he was subbed off.
Eden Hazard – 7.5
Ran the show on the wing, constantly dribbling past the full back and helping out in defense. Made several chances in the first half but his effect waned down in the second and was replaced in the last few minutes as he was exhausted of energy.
Fernando Torres – 6.5
Tried to attack but was mostly let down by his touch and got over-eager on the occasion when Mata fed him through a brilliant pass. He contributed to the defense but that’s really not what Chelsea paid 50 million pounds for.
SUBSTITUTES
Ryan Bertrand – 6.5
Was bought on to give some much needed stability in the second half which he did well. Didn’t contribute to attack though.
Demba Ba – 6
Was denied by a vital interception by Vermaelen and did more attacking in 10 minutes than what Torres in 80. Looked really dangerous.
Marko Marin – N/A
Came on for Hazard in the 87th minute.
Wojciech Szczesny – 5
Brought down Ramires to concede the penalty and almost repeated the same at the end against Ba. Could have closed down Mata’s attempt at goal. Did make a few saves in the first half though.
Bacary Sagna – 5
Mata and Oscar had a field day against him as they powered past him on many occasions. Continued his poor run of form by contributing little to the attack and providing some terrible crosses.
Per Mertesacker – 6
Caught out of position for Mata’s goal but kept a tame Torres quiet. Had a brilliant opportunity to score in the first half but his shot went straight to Cech.
Thomas Vermaelen – 5.5
Didn’t show that menacing presence of old as the Chelsea attack (apart from Torres) easily beat him on most occasions. Didn’t work well with Mertesacker and they really have to get their act together as they have great potential.
Kieran Gibbs – 5
Was bullied by Hazard as he ran rings around him. Didn’t attack in the first half at all as he tried valiantly to stop the onslaught. Got forward to very little effect in the second half though.
Francis Coquelin – 6.5
Had a relatively better game. Made some good passes forward, especially one for Walcott but he was offside. Looked better in the second half and was involved with Cazorla in many attacks but had to be subbed off seemingly because of injury.
Abou Diaby – 4
Another weak performance by the midfielder as he was too slow to intercept Chelsea’s fluid forward play and always came out second against a Ramires who was full on confidence. Made sloppy passes and those which were accurate were backwards or to the side.
Jack Wilshere – 7.5
Led the charge in the second half and also did his bit in the second half as he was surrounded by players not willing to put in the effort. Brave in the tackle and always hunted down the ball. Motivated his team to get forward at every opportunity. We’re witnessing the formation of Arsenal’s next captain.
Santi Cazorla – 7
Worked extremely well with Wilshere and made a perfect pass for Walcott’s goal. Struggled slightly as Chelsea kept closing him down but still managed to attack at every opportunity making clever passes and always giving options.
Theo Walcott – 7
Threw in many poor passes but used his best weapon, pace, to great effect. Beat Cole on many occasions but disappointed with his crossing. Came to life in the second half and showed great composure to finish off his goal. Should take more care with the timing of his runs as he was found offside on quite a few occasions that could have benefited the Gunners greatly.
Olivier Giroud – 6
Wasn’t the threat that Wenger would have wanted to be lacking the finishing capability. In his defense, he did make some extremely good runs and take up good positions but all that seems to wilt away when he’s faced by the goal. Missed the target on 3 occasions but just couldn’t finish it off.
SUBSTITUTIONS
Aaron Ramsey – 6
Came on for Coquelin and linked well with the others in the Arsenal attack.
Andrey Arshavin – 5
Came on for an ineffective Diaby but failed to impose himself as a threat. Another disappointing effort by the Russian.
