Arsenal 1-4 Chelsea Player Report Books: Gibbs Good, Bendtner Impressive, Defence Rubbish

Lol@Hiddink's cute blue tie.

Now this is my first ever player ratings (I call it report books) article for Arsenal… Here goes:

Fabianski (5.0) – Honestly, he couldn’t have done anything for the 4 goals he conceded. Made an excellent save for the 4th goal, but Malouda was at the right place at the right time, and that goal was inevitable. However, nobody’s happy with conceding 4 goals, so a 5.0 (borderline pass) would be fine.

Gibbs (7.0) – Solid performance. Even though many people said that he was “devastated” from his mistake against Man Utd, I don’t see any devastation at all. Great mental strength for him to be able to stand up and play football again. Don’t forget to send him your encouragements.

Sagna (6.5) - Was great joining up in attacks but when it comes to defence, he’s partly to blame for the 4 goals. Nevertheless he provided the cross which led to Bendtner’s goal. Showed his consistency once again. He’s never had a really bad match this season.

Toure (6.5) – Was excellent in defence during the first half. THEN all of a sudden, he scores an own goal (he didn’t have a choice), is involved in the rumble jumble at the back, and concedes 4 goals. He made vital tackles in the first half, including winning battle of strengths against Drogba on numerous occasions. But second half he was a little below-average. Needs to step up and organise the backline better.

Silvestre (5.5) – Didn’t do horribly but again he has somehow shown the Arsenal fans and Arsene Wenger that he’s nothing but a very average player. He should have seeked his fortune at a club like Wigan or Everton. At Arsenal, he’s just not good enough to be a trustworthy backup.

Song (6.5) – Didn’t do too badly. Once again he needs to tell the fans his position – is he a holding midfielder or an attacking midfielder? From how I see it, he favours attacking and I wonder if that’s what Wenger wanted him to do.

Nasri (6.5) - Had a better game than Fabregas. Made some smart passes which were a danger to the Chelsea defence. No assists though.

Walcott (7.0) – I heard the commentator say he was good at times but just couldn’t provide 101% for the whole match to be able to stay on the pitch. I disagree with that. I really felt that even though he didn’t score and was a little wasteful at times, he was the most threatening player for Arsenal. Taking him out would mean Chelsea had one less “threat” to worry about and Ashley Cole can then relax.

Diaby (5.5) – Sorry for being harsh, but once again, he held up the ball, made some runs, but in the end he didn’t contribute much. He needs to improve that aspect of his game; I’ve said it many times. You can do 15 stepovers, 20 roulettes or 17 fakes, but if you don’t score, pass or support your team nobody would give a shit about you. Not the media, not the fans. He should make full use of his remaining matches or I can see him leaving.

Fabregas (6.5) - Not his best game. Could have easily gotten a 6.0 but seeing that he was involved in some attacks, plus a little bit of favouritism, he gets a 6.5. His passes weren’t really “pin-point” today. Can he really play in the hole behind the striker? I think not. He should play where he played last season, which worked out so well. In fact I wouldn’t mind seeing him play a little deeper too.

van Persie (5.5) – He just couldn’t get into the game. Had a few decent chances here and there but he didn’t really do much. I think he only had 1 threatening shot (I might be wrong). Too inconsistent. I’m sure if some club offers big money, Arsene wouldn’t mind cashing in on him.

Adebayor (5.0) – Didn’t really do much since coming on. Had a few great chances but waste them. A 5.5 would be fair but I deducted 0.5 points for the dive. Silly boy, he’s lucky not to get a yellow.

Bendtner (7.0) – Ahhh, the “hero” of the game for Arsenal. Not long ago he said he would be concentrating on improving his game and I really think he’s doing just that. However, I’m still NOT convinced he should stay. But if he keeps this up, I might have to quietly, forcefully, say “I’m Sorry” to Bendtner for my rant. Check out the article/rant here.

Denilson (5.0) – Really anonymous. Can’t blame him as he was a substitute though.

Pardon me if my reports are a little long or wrong. As I was watching the match lots of thoughts came through my mind and I thought I should publish it. Tell me YOUR thoughts too. Who would have watched the match without saying “Bendtner’s good… Ooops.”? Also tell me if my reviews are inaccurate. As always, bookmark our site or subscribe to our feed if you like my articles. Thanks for reading.

Dariano