The Gunners had been on a high in the Premier League with three consecutive victories after the disappointing defeat to Manchester United. With the Gunners’ direct title rivals all dropping points, the onus was on them to make a statement with a win over a much-improved Everton side under new guidance, but that didn’t quite pan out.
Arsene Wenger fielded a familiar side with Bacary Sagna still missing out with a hamstring injury allowing Carl Jenkinson to feature in his stead. That meant returns for regulars like Kieran Gibbs, Mikel Arteta, Jack Wilshere and Olivier Giroud in the starting lineup.
Listed below are Gooner Daily’s ratings for Arsenal’s disappointing draw with Everton;
Wojciech Szczesny: Despite the fact that Everton, rather surprisingly, had more possession than the Gunners, they didn’t really penetrate the Gunners. However, I’m in the opinion that he could have done better from Gerard Deulofeu’s strike, as the ball came straight at him. Kudos to him for charging down on Romelu Lukaku afterwards. 7/10
Carl Jenkinson: The young fullback didn’t put a wrong foot in the game but unfortunately, he failed supply the kind of service to Olivier Giroud that gave Nicklas Bendtner his goal against Hull. I’m sure you get my drift. 7/10
Kieran Gibbs: The Englishman was more than a match for Kevin Mirallas and like Jenkinson, he didn’t really support the attack as much as he would have liked. He still sent in a couple of good ball though. 7/10
Laurent Koscielny: Koscielny was a beast usual having altercations with Lukaku as well but his major success were the outstanding clearances and interceptions that kept happening again and again. 8/10
Per Mertesacker: The BFG made some interceptions and clearances as well. Worked in tandem with Koscielny to keep Lukaku at bay. 7/10
Mikel Arteta: The usually efficient Lego-haired Spaniard was overrun in midfield and almost made a costly mistake late on by gifting the ball to Lukaku but he had his team to thank as they spared his blushes. Not one of his finer outings. 6/10
Aaron Ramsey: The Welsh superstar had set higher standards for himself this season and he was rather sloppy in the game. He also had two great goalscoring opportunities you’d have expect him to score but it was a case of poor finishing rather than good goalkeeping from Tim Howard. 6/10
Santi Cazorla: 15 games into the Premier League and we haven’t seen the Santi Cazorla that wowed the Emirates faithful last season. Whether you call it ‘Second Season Syndrome’ or just another bad day at the office, Cazorla failed to influence the game. 6/10
Mesut Ozil: The German trickster looked sharp all game long and when it seemed as if all hope was lost, he lurked around the danger area to convert a chance whiffed by Olivier Giroud. 8/10
Jack Wilshere: Like Santi Cazorla, Arsenal’s ‘poster boy’ has gone hot and cold in many games this season and playing out of position hasn’t really helped his cause. On the right flank, he was isolated and didn’t really work in the same wavelength with Jenkinson. 6/10
Olivier Giroud: The Handsome French Bloke was rested against Hull and his batteries were full for this clash. Even though I cannot fault his defending, work rate, linkup play and selflessness in the game, his finishing was really questionable.
If Ozil wasn’t on the far post to convert’s Walcott cushioned header, it would have been an embarrassing moment for Giroud. His late goal-bound effort was unfortunate though. 7/10
Theo Walcott: Came into the pitch for a few minutes and provided an assist for what seemed to be the match winner till Everton pegged the Gunners back. It’s high time Walcott starts games. His pace is an asset to the team. 7/10
Mathieu Flamini: Was authoritative from the moment he got into the pitch, barking orders and orchestrating his teammates. Drifted forward once but blasted his effort wide. 7/10
Tomas Rosicky: The wily old fox instigated the goal with a sublime cross field pass to Walcott. The rest they say was history. 7/10
Do you agree or disagree with Gooner Daily’s post match thoughts and match ratings?
Feel free to share them with your comments below.
Sayonara.
Gooner Daily has been nominated for the Best Sports blog category in the 2013 Nigerian Blog Awards. Please vote!
You can download the Gooner Daily BlackBerry App to receive notifications on your Smart Phone when a post is published.
You can follow Gooner Daily on Twitter @goonerdaily. I’ll follow back
Feel free to visit Gooner Daily’s Facebook page and click on the like button.
You can also join Gooner Daily’s Mailing List to get notifications of new posts by email by clicking on the Follow button