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Arsenal
Emiliano Martinez: 7/10
Nobody expected Bernd Leno’s absence to just be an afterthought. His no.2 has done extremely well, often helping to keep Arsenal in games. Today, he did that again by making 7 saves. He was just unfortunate that those in front of him couldn’t match his performance.
Shkodran Mustafi: 4.5/10
Post-lockdown, no defender has looked more improved than Shkodran Mustafi. However, today Arsenal fans were reminded why they wanted him gone at the start of the season. The German reverted back to jumping into tackles with constant lapses in concentration.
David Luiz: 6/10
Often the source of Arsenal’s defensive woes, David Luiz can’t be faulted for his performance today as it was his defensive partners who let him down. Against Tottenham, the 33-year-old won 2 aerial duels, made 2 interceptions and was only dribbled past once.
Sead Kolašinac: 4/10
Playing out of position as an LCB, Kolašinac’s unsuitability finally cost the Gunners a game. In recent weeks, he had shown glimpses that he was uncomfortable in that position, especially on the ball.
Against Tottenham, he was punished for a sloppy pass that directly assisted Tottenham’s first goal. For the rest of the game, the Bosnian looked hesitant and nervous on the ball, refusing to open up passing lanes as Arteta had initially instructed.
Hector Bellerín: 6/10
In one of his better games in recent memory, Bellerín tried his best to make things happen down the right flank. However, Tottenham’s insistence to double up on the flanks nullified his final third runs as he was deprived of space and time on the ball.
Dani Ceballos: 7/10
In a poor first half from the Gunners, Dani Ceballos was once again the only shining light. His intensity in the middle of the pitch matched Tottenham’s energy and he was often the catalyst for Arsenal’s counter-attacks.
The Spaniard also showed himself to be very press resistant, often wriggling out of tight spaces whilst still having the composure to pick out passes. Perhaps due to fatigue, the 23-year-old was dispossessed 4 times near the end of the game but that doesn’t take away from his 2 key passes and 89 completed passes.
Granit Xhaka: 5.5/10
It was always going to be hard for Arsenal’s pivot to play against Tottenham’s midfield three. Xhaka tried his best to match them but the Gunners were often overrun in the middle on the counter-attack. In a relatively ineffective performance, the 27-year-old completed 82 passes and was dribbled past once.
Kieran Tierney: 6/10
Nullified by the double team of Aurier and Sissoko, Tierney struggled to have any effect in the final third.
Nicolas Pepe: 5.5/10
Making a return to the team after a two-game absence, Pepe looked like a man who’s not played 90 minutes in a while. After a while he started to warm up, regularly turning Ben Davies and winning some fouls. However, it must be said that despite a few flicks and dribbles, Pepe didn’t contribute as much to Arsenal’s attacking play as is expected of a £72 million player.
Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang: 5.5/10
In a game of little quality, Arsenal’s main man had three chances to put the game to bed but missed all three. It’s hard to criticise Aubameyang as he has often been the Gunners’ saving grace. However, today a striker of his quality should have put those chances away. On another day, Arteta’s men could have left the Tottenham Hotspur stadium with all three points and an Aubameyang hattrick.
Alexandre Lacazette: 7/10
Often berated for his lack of away goals, the Frenchman responded by netting his second goal on his travels in successive games. How he took the goal was simply stunning as he hit a rocket from close to 30 yards into the top corner. After that, Lacazette spent most of the game working hard to make himself available to the midfield for a pass centrally.
Substitutes
Bukayo Saka: N/A
Brought on with 20 minutes to go, Saka struggled to make much of an impact down the right-hand side. Tottenham’s rigid defence left him void of space to create his magic.
Joe Willock: N/A
With only 10 minutes left, Arteta decided to change Arsenal’s shape to a 4-3-3 with Willock making runs through the middle.
Cedric Soares: N/A
Arteta is on record saying that Cedric thrives in the final third and he was brought on in a desperate attempt to make things happen late on, to no avail.
Reiss Nelson: N/A
Like his counterparts, Nelson was brought on in a change of shape by the boss. His presence would make no effect, as the 20-year-old would only touch the ball 4 times.
