Paul Merson gives contrasting verdict on 2 Arsenal stars after Burnley victory

Stability is nearing a close for Arsenal as they record back-to-back imperative victories in the Premier League, the latest one against Burnley. The Gunners received a lot of criticism for their displeasing results from their poor start this season.

Doubts loomed over the side's current capability to produce results on the pitch. However, the side is slowly on the rise towards climbing the ranks in the league table. There is a lot of time for the club to regain its niche.

Analyzing the performance of Mikel Arteta's men, club legend Paul Merson specifically mentions two Arsenal stars. Interestingly enough, the television pundit had contrasting verdicts on display from the two aforementioned players.

Arsenal's latest acquisitions under the microscope lens

Merson mentioned the outstanding contribution from Aaron Ramsdale to the Arsenal defense. Ramsdale, who made the switch from Sheffield United to Arsenal earlier this transfer window, showed a lot of promise despite being written off earlier as an off-putting signing.

The goalkeeper kept two back-to-back clean sheets, which became pivotal considering that Arsenal won those two games by a margin of just one goal, which was a separating factor in each. Merson hailed the keeper's demeanor and stated:

"I've been a bit critical of Aaron Ramsdale, but he was outstanding today, I can see now… he took pressure off the team. He looked confident, he was catching balls. No disrespect to Sheffield United but he was having 15 shots against him a game. Today he had a couple of shots and he made the right decisions."

Aaron Ramsdale has struggled to earn any notable praise for as long as, for the most part, he was representing sides that were on the brink of relegation. Conceding regularly with an unimpressive record followed his statistical charts. Now, after being complemented by a reliable backline, the errors have dropped down evidently by quite a lot.

Nonetheless, Merson questioned the awareness of another player similar to Ramsdale, who also made the switch from Brighton to Arsenal - Ben White. Despite getting the job done alongside his partner Gabriel, White looked a bit unfocused as he displaced a short pass that could have gone awry if not for Ramsdale's quick wit. Merson says:

"He [Ramsdale] made a great decision for the backpass. Ben White was still a bit shaky, he goes to pass the ball back to Ramsdale and it’s well short. But Ramsdale comes out and gets his foot to it."