Despite coming into the Etihad with arguably the best defensive record in the Premier League, Arsenal were bamboozled with a superior wave of attacking football that saw them concede a whooping six goals. Arsene Wenger made some changes from the side that performed so poorly against Napoli with Bacary Sagna, Nacho Monreal, Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott returning to the side.
In the wake of the Gunners debacle against Manchester City, listed below are Gooner Daily’s ratings for Arsenal’s disappointing lot;
Wojciech Szczesny: Some would say that he was blameless for the hatful of goals he conceded but receiving six goals is a testament of how poorly Arsenal’s defending fared as he wasn’t offered any protection from his rearguard. 5/10
Bacary Sagna: The French defender did well to pass his fitness test to play the game but besides his assist for Per Mertesacker, Sagna had a bad day in the office like his fellow Arsenal defenders. 5/10
Nacho Monreal: His performance reminded me of Armand Troare’s appalling outing in the 8-2 humiliating loss to Manchester United. This was his worst performance in Arsenal colors and probably his worst in his fledgling football career. He proved why he and Kieran Gibbs are classes apart. 2/10
Laurent Koscielny: Kos the Boss made a vital interception with his head early in the game but he lost out to Alvaro Negredo in the build up to the second goal Arsenal conceded. He also suffered a knee injury that required him to be stretched off the pitch. 5/10
Per Mertesacker: The BFG has had some dominant performances in the past and his outing in the Etihad last season was awesome as he made a host of tackles, clearances and merteceptions. This time out, Mertesacker had a torrid time dealing with the pace of the Man City attack and seeing him sent to the cleaners for Fernandinho’s second goal was a damn horrifying sight. 5/10
Mathieu Flamini: The Flamster was one of Arsenal’s finer performers in the recent debacle away to Napoli but he was outclassed, outgunned and outnumbered in midfield as the imperial Yaya Toure stamped his influence on the game. 5/10
Aaron Ramsey: His attacking prowess was on show as he did well to create an assist for Walcott but Ramsey was a peripheral figure in the game and he failed to protect his back four alongside Flamini. 6/10
Mesut Ozil: Arsenal’s big-money signing was a disgruntled and lost figure on the pitch but he still managed to get an assist in the game. His aberration of a pass to Flamini played a role in Man City’s third goal. 5/10
Jack Wilshere: Arsenal’s poster boy was rested against Napoli for this clash and as expected, he played out of position, a familiar sight this season. Wilshere put up a poor performance and his ‘gesture’ to the home crowd at the end of the match could get him into hot soup. 4/10
Theo Walcott: According to Arseblog News, Walcott had 30 touches, 11 passes, two successful crosses and four shots on target with a 50% shooting accuracy, as he scored two well-taken goals. Good to have him back!! 8/10
Olivier Giroud: Strikers are judged on goals and Giroud has been found wanting yet again. He was an isolated figure up front but his teammates still managed to try their best to fashion chances for him but as expected, he missed his chances and looked to the sky in anguish. I can forgive him for that header that glanced wide but launching Wilshere’s cross into orbit really exasperated me. 4/10
Thomas Vermaelen: Koscielny’s injury handed the Verminator another chance to stake a claim for a first-team berth but his arrival coincided with four extra goals and he didn’t work well with the BFG, that had probably become used to play alongside Koscielny. 5/10
Nicklas Bendtner: The self-acclaimed World Best striker showcased his dominant aerial ability with a goal with was adjudged to have been offside and he created a chance for Walcott that was saved by Costel Pantillimon. 6/10
Serge Gnabry: I was quite puzzled with his introduction as the manager had the likes of Santi Cazorla and Tomas Rosicky to summon but the young German’s rustiness was on show and he was culpable for losing the ball that led to the penalty. 5/10
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