Manchester United 1 Arsenal 0

When fixture lists are published every year, there are four dates we check straight away: a set of two games are north London derbies of course, and the others are clashes with Manchester United. There was a debate prior to the match whether Arsenal vs Man U is still one of England's biggest rivalries. Yes, it is still for us Gooners. We didn't care how Arsenal would win, but we just wanted them to beat Man U. So the narrow defeat was bitterly disappointing for us.

Arsene Wenger made two changes from the side which started in their famous win at Dortmund merely 4 days ago. Per Mertesacker and Tomas Rosicky travelled to Manchester only to be found ill in the morning and were sent back to London. Captain Thomas Vermaelen and a fit-again Mathieu Flamini came in their places. Mikel Arteta and Serge Gnabry were also sick before the match, but the former started, with the latter on the bench. The rest of the squad may have been fit enough to take part in the game, but they looked tired with the mid-week game taking a lot out of them.

The formation with double "pivote" in Flamini and Arteta may have looked a bit too defensive, but it is very difficult to drop either of them, when they are both fit. Besides, we didn't have much attacking option with Rosicky fallen ill, Wilshere only fit for the bench, and even Gnabry only half fit.   

While Wenger didn't use the illness that struck the camp as an excuse, he cited their poor record at Old Trafford as one of the reasons behind his side's nervousness at the start of the game. We know Man U have only lost once in their 9 encounters with us, but we were going into this match with an excellent away form of 15 unbeaten games, including the confidence-boosting win against Dortmund. Last season's Champions League finalists are arguably a stronger side than the current Man U team. We were 5 points clear at the top of the league, while Man U were 8th in the table. Man U were under massive pressure as a loss would have opened up the gap between the two teams to 11. We, Gooners, had reasons to be optimistic, going into this game. It's difficult to understand why the team were so nervous. Our record against top 6 teams last season was disappointing. One of the reasons was that we started a game poorly against those teams, paying too much respect to them, and paid a heavy cost of a lot of catching-up to do in the second half of the game. Later on, when Arsenal rectified such a tendency, their impressive form of the late season began. We hope that this is not the return of that bad habit.

After the match, we were bracing ourselves for the media reaction the next morning. We thought they would rip us apart and write us off completely as title contenders, but surprisingly their reaction was much more sympathetic than expected. The loss was widely regarded as a one-off result and didn't seem to have done a permanent damage to Arsenal's title credentials. The biggest reason was the fact that the game was closely contested. The two sides were only separated by one goal from a set-piece. In the second half, we were clearly the better side, being in control of the game for a long spell. In fact, Man U supporters were greatly unhappy with the media, claiming that they gave the Manchester side little credit. Although Rooney deservedly won plaudits for his man-of-the-match performance, the press were not much impressed with the way the reigning champions won the game. It's safe to say that we were not outplayed or outclassed as a team. Man U didn't beat us as convincingly as we did Liverpool.

Maybe we have done just enough over the past week to convince the media that we can challenge for the title. Also, this weekend's results demonstrated that the results of so called "big games" may not necessarily decide the title tilt. Chelsea were extremely lucky to get a point against a mid-table West Brom side at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. Tottenham were beaten 1-0 by Newcastle at White Hart Lane earlier on Sunday, while Man City suffered another away defeat at the hands of a struggling Sunderland side on the same day. These outcomes suggest that titles are won through consistency. Prior to this past massive week, pundits and journalists alike said that Arsenal hadn't played big clubs yet, but now they must be feeling how little those "big games" can prove.

Arsene Wenger thinks that the international break is not welcome as you want a next game straight away in order to move on from a bitter loss. However, some players will benefit from two weeks off from the gruelling fixtures. Those who go on the international duty should have a change of scenery and can come back to the Club mentally refreshed. Keep fingers crossed for Giroud, Koscielny, and Sagna to come back unscathed and healthy as they have two tough World Cup play-off games against Ukraine.

According to the last update given by Arsene Wenger on Walcott's injury, the Englishman should be back soon after the international break. The Özil-Walcott combination is another partnership we have been looking forward to since the German playmaker's arrival. It showed its promise in the Sunderland game, in which only Walcott's poor finishing prevented Özil from bagging more assists than just one for Giroud's goal. Hopefully, we will see the partnership finally take off and more width and pace added by the England winger to the Arsenal attack.

The next Premier League game will be against an in-form Southampton side, who currently lie third in the table. People are talking about their attacking force at the moment as their attacking players, Jay Rodriguez and Adam Lallana, have earned their first call-up for the England squad alongside an already capped striker, Ricky Lambert. Although they scored 4 goals against Hull this weekend, their strength undoubtedly lies in defence, which boasts the best record in the league so far with only 5 goals conceded in 11 games. Against the Southampton defence, Arsenal may face a toughest test of the season. Hopefully, we will be at our best, when the two sides meet, and get back to winning ways.

Players rating

Szczesny: 7
With Man U only registering 2 shots on target, he had little to do.

Sagna: 8
Delivered a couple of brilliant crosses. His crossing is getting better and better.

Koscielny: 7
Made 3 tackles and 10 clearances.

Vermaelen: 7
Did well on his rare start. Made 1 tackle, 4 interceptions and 11 clearances. Went forward and had 2 shots. The absence of a flu-stricken Mertesacker may have cost us three points, but every cloud has a silver lining. Vermaelen's positive comment regarding his future at Arsenal came up after the match. Captain stated that he wants to stay at Arsenal and will be ready to help the team anytime he is called upon. He may not be a regular starter, but he is still a quality defender.

Gibbs: 7
Made 3 tackles and 4 interceptions. Unlucky not to get on the end of one of Sagna's perfectly-weighed crosses.

Flamini: 6
Shown his 4th yellow card of the season to miss the next game. Replaced by Wilshere in the 62nd minute.

Arteta: 7
Made 4 tackles, 2 interceptions and 51 passes, including 11 long balls, with an impressive 94% passing success rate. Gave way to an attacking option, Gnabry, in the 83rd minute.

Özil: 6
Not at his best. 80% passing success is well below his average. Made 2 key passes, though. His attempt for goal excited us at Rendezvous bar, as well as those travelling fans at Old Trafford, only to hit the sidenetting.

Ramsey: 6
Covered more ground than any other player, including Wayne Rooney whose workrate was highly praised. But a 75 % passing success is very poor by his standard. Guilty for not blocking RVP's run in the set-piece leading to the goal. Had a good chance, breaking away, but he rushed his decision. They say that the Welshman didn't have shooting boots on this day. My advice to Ramsey and Özil is never try out new pair of boots in a big game like this. (They both showed off their new Adidas boots on Facebook Pages prior to the game).

Cazorla: 6
Quiet game by his standard.

Giroud: 6
Worked hard for the team, but his touches let him down. Outjumped by RVP in that particular corner.

Subs

Wilshere: 7
62nd-minute substitute for Flamini to add creativity. Made a difference as soon as he had come off the bench by getting behind the Man U defence, which no other Arsenal player was able to do before then.

Bendtner: 2
Replaced Cazorla in the 78th minute. Made 6 passes with a 50% success rate. Failed to make a connection with Sagna's excellent cross in the dying minutes. After his recent remark that appeared on a Danish newspaper about his disappointment in having been unable to leave the Club this summer, it will be very difficult for him to regain Arsenal fans' support.

Gnabry: 7
Came off the bench in the 83rd minute to replace Arteta. Looked sharp and was effective on the right wing.

Dortmund 0 Arsenal 1

The was a massive result for a number of reasons. The odds were against us as Westfalenstadion was a difficult place to go where no English side had won before. Arsenal, themselves, tried two seasons ago only to be denied by Dortmund's late equaliser. Arsenal were buoyed by their impressive win over Liverpool at the weekend, but Dortmund's confidence were also boosted by their 6-1 thrashing of Stuttgart on Friday night, another win added to their excellent home record. Apart from Alan Smith, who predicted a positive result for his old club, all the pundits and journalists alike seemed to have expect nothing but a home win. Probably only fans were optimistic, but to be honest, even those hopefuls would have taken a draw if it had been offered before the game.

Arsenal took a huge step towards qualification after the 1-0 victory over Dortmund, sitting top of the Group F on 9 points along with Napoli, who beat Marseille 3-2 at home on the same night. There is still a possibility of all the three teams finishing on 12 points, but the win certainly helped Arsenal's hopes of securing their place in the knockout stage. 

This was the second game of Arsenal's most important week so far this season. It was a contrasting game to the 2-0 win over Liverpool on Saturday, in which Arsenal's creative midfield caught the eye. At half time, some of our members were not happy with the lack of chances Arsenal created in the first 45 minutes. Our final ball didn't have an edge to threaten Dortmund defence. Nonetheless, with a number of dangerous situations we survived, most of us at Rendezvous bar were content with 0-0 at half time.

Arsene Wenger had his game plan spot-on and the team executed it with discipline and professionalism. They were patient. In the post-match press conference, the Frenchman stressed the importance of not making the first mistake and praised his experienced midfield for not losing the ball in the stupid positions. The media exaggerated the impact of Wilshere's ankle injury prior to the match, but Rosicky was a better option for this game without doubt. Perhaps Dortmund missed the German international centre-back Hummels, who put in a man-of-the match performance at the Emirates, more than we missed Jack Wilshere. There was a time when Wilshere's absence would have been thought a disaster but now it's just a minor irritation.

We didn't create a lot. In fact, the goal came from our first attempt for goal. It was a classic counter-attack. After the goal, the game suddenly opened up and we had a series of goal-scoring chances and even nearly found the net second time.

The most pleasing fact this season is that this team has been improving every game. They have learnt lessons from their mistakes in the first game against Dortmund. Mertesacker reflected the game on his Facebook Page, using the same word "naive" as Wenger described the team. Prior to the second match, Ramsey said they would have to be streetwise in the return match. We know that there are still fans out there who wanted the team to play their brand of football, but it wouldn't have worked against this Dortmund side. Arsenal can win a game not only by playing beautiful football like they did against Liverpool, but also by creating little and defending under pressure. The fact that Arsene can now choose this kind of tactics highlights huge improvement in our defence.

In fact, Arsenal's gutsy performance against Dortmund seemed to have earned more plaudits and convinced more people of their title credentials than their fluid display against Liverpool. Arsenal showed their solidarity and defended resolutely against one of Europe's best sides as a team. On top of that, they demonstrated character, defensive stability and organisation, which they have been accused of lacking for the past few seasons.

Beating last season's Champions League runners-up on their home soil has sent out a positive message for Arsenal's domestic title aspiration as well. Our players must have taken belief from this feat. This week has been considered as a real litmus test for Arsenal's title credentials. Now two down, one to go. And the great thing is that we know that we will still be top of the table whatever happens at Old Trafford. Pressure is not on us, but Man U. It would be a perfect end to the massive week if we can increase the gap to them to 11 points.


Players rating

Szczesny: 7
Well protected by the back four, didn't have much to do, but did well when he was called upon.

Sagna: 8
Good defensive work, tried to provide width offensively as well.

Mertesacker: 8
Had an excellent game. Made 2 tackles and 8 clearances.

Koscielny: 8
Kept Lewandowski quiet. Unlucky not to score.

Gibbs: 7
Got caught out of position at times, but his pace made up for it.

Arteta: 8
Resolute display a real defensive rock

Ramsey: 8
Covered more ground than any other player on the pitch (even more than some of Dortmund players who are known for their workrate) of 12.83km. It is amazing how he pops up in those great positions. Although he has been doing that for the last two seasons, this season his finishing is making the difference. Would he have scored that goal in the last two seasons? No. Probably it would have taken him a couple of seconds to decide how to deal with Giroud's knock down. This night he dived towards the ball and headed it past the keeper without hesitation. Nearly scored a second goal.

Özil: 7
Not outstanding, but showed his class at times. His perfectly weighed cross for Giroud led to the goal.

Rosicky: 8
His tenacity and vision started the move leading to the goal. Another top class performance against his old club

Cazorla: 7
Kept the possession well in midfield.

Giroud: 7
It wasn't his best game by his own admission, but worked tirelessly and provided an assist for Ramsey's goal.

Subs

Monreal: 6
75th-minute substitute for Cazorla.

Bendtner: 1
Replaced Giroud in the 90th minute. Pointless substitution. His sole mission was keeping the ball at the other end of the pitch for the dying minutes, but he even managed to lose a free-kick near the corner flag by getting offside. Just one touch registered with no passes, no tackle, absolute zero contribution.

Vermaelen: N/A
Injury-time substitute for Rosicky. Little time to make any impact. Made just one clearance. Always good to have this experienced defender in reserve.

Arsenal 2 Liverpool 0

This was the first of the three massive games in the space of 9 days to test Arsenal's credentials as genuine title contenders. They passed it with flying colours, but the result was still not enough to silence the doubters completely, even after Arsenal increasing their lead to 5 points over second-placed Chelsea and Liverpool.

Arsene Wenger made only one change from the side that started in a 2-0 defeat of Crystal Palace last Saturday. Tomas Rosicky came in for injured Mathieu Flamini. As Jack Wilshere was ruled out due to an inflamed ankle (which is reported as a minor problem), Rosicky's involvement was widely expected. Rosicky is our favourite choice over Wilshere anyway as the Czech moves the ball around much quicker than Jack does and always provides more dynamism to our attack. Against what is dubbed as the Premier League's most deadly striking force, Mikel Arteta's return from suspension was crucial for us in the absence of Flamini in order to protect the back four.

As Brendan Rodgers admitted afterwards, our midfield (namely Özil, Rosicky, Cazorla, Ramsey and Arteta) was superb in terms of technical quality and mobility. We may lack recognised wide players at the moment, but when these midfielders are in full force, it is difficult to stop Arsenal's attack. Özi, Rosicky, and Cazorla in the advanced midfield provide so much creativity. 

With a clean sheet against the most prolific partnership in England's top flight, our defenders deserve credit as well. Mikel Arteta has done a very good job of what he was doing all last season. Our two centre-backs kept Suarez and Sturridge quiet. The back four contained the dangerous substitutes, Coutinho and Victor Moses, effectively.

Overall, it was an excellent performance from the league leaders against a joint second-placed Liverpool side. However, there is still room for improvement. Liverpool nearly scored from our free-kick at the other end, when Suarez broke and Sagna had to foul him to stop his run. Rodgers was obviously unhappy with the referee's decision to pull back play, but if we had been more alert, the controversy (not to our eyes, though) could have been altogether avoided. Later on, Mertesacker was seen giving Rosicky instructions when he went up for set-pieces, so hopefully our defenders are more aware of the danger of counter-attacks now.

Arsenal's impressive performance was convincing enough for Brendan Rodgers and even Liverpool fans to think that the better team won. The comprehensive win against one of Premier League's in-form sides seemed to have convinced more pundits that Arsenal CAN win the title this season, but many still think that Arsenal WILL NOT win the title. In fact, at the Arsenal Playa Flamenca Supporters Club, many of the members don't believe that Arsenal will win the Premier League, although everybody hopes it. Wenger understands such supporters' feelings by citing the Club's 8-year trophy drought as a reason. We, the seasoned supporters, have seen our team's form collapse late February after we had had a good start to the season during those eight years.

The fact that Chelsea lost 2-0 to Newcastle earlier on the day speaks volumes for the importance of consistency. Mourinho was not happy with his side's lacklustre display (the shock result surprisingly received little publicity. Imagine how the media would have reacted if it had been Arsenal), but it just goes to show that even a team of quality players like Chelsea cannot just turn up and win a game. We are just happy that our team play easy-on-the-eye football most of the time, scoring some beautiful goals (the other north London club must be jealous). And when they cannot do that, then they grind out the result at the moment. It is simply wonderful that the team deliver both performance and result in a big game like this.

Whether Arsenal are real title contenders or not, time will tell (perhaps, haters like a certain ex-Newcastle striker will continue denying Arsenal's title credentials until the last game of the season, just like he maintained that the north London club would not finish in the top four last season). We just need to concentrate on the next game. The one thing certain is that the team will go into the next game full of confidence after the win. Sunday's match at the Old Trafford poses totally different complexion from the past seasons. At least bookmakers seem to think that we have a better chance to win the title than Man U at the moment. But before that, we travel to Germany for another massive game.


Players rating

Szczesny: 7
Almost impeccable display apart from a careless throw which fortunately bounced back into his arms.

Sagna: 8
Solid defensively. His crosses have been improving significantly, one of which picked up Cazorla and led to the first goal. 

Mertesacker: 7
Solid apart from one pass directly to a Liverpool player.

Koscielny: 8
Kept SAS quiet.

Gibbs: 7
Made good runs forward. Suffered a calf injury and replaced by Vermaelen in the 78th minute. Hope his injury is not serious as he has been in such a good form this season, but Nacho showed that he is more than a capable deputy against Chelsea. We are not too much worried about it.

Arteta: 8
Influential. Protected our defence well and when he went forward, he delivered a perfect pass to Sagna, whose cross then led to Cazorla's goal. Made 7 tackles 2 interceptions and 106 passes with a 94% passing success rate.

Ramsey: 9
Scored a stunning goal. Had 2 shots on target and made 6 tackles, 2 interceptions and 84 passes with a 82% completion rate.

Özil: 7
Quiet game by his standard, but he still had 2 shots on target. Provided his 4th assist in the Premier League, which took him top of the assist table alongside Giroud and Ramsey.

Rosicky: 8
After the end of excellent movement he started, made a shot from a tight angle, which drew a finger tip save from Mignolet. Had a good game.

Cazorla: 8
Scored his first goal of the season through a superb half-volley from the rebound of his own powerful header which hit the woodwork. His celebration showed how much the goal meant to him. Getting back to his best after injury, more is expected from him.

Giroud: 7
Had a couple of clear-cut chances, but failed to convert them. Disappointing as his touches and finishing have been impressive this season. On the other hand, his hold-up and link-up play was good. 

Subs

Monreal: 7
72nd-minute substitute for Rosicky to ensure that the team would see out the 2-0 victory. Made good runs on the left flank. We were saying that Wenger didn't make these defensive substitutions before this season, but this day's bench might be one of the reasons. Bendtner and Akpom wouldn't have offered a strong attacking option. Wenger didn't have much choice. 

Vermaelen: 7
Came on for injured Gibbs in the 78th minute. Reliable.

Jenkinson: 6
Replaced Cazorla in the 84th minute. It was a good gesture from Arsene Wenger to give the 21-year-old a chance to redeem himself after the error in the midweek game and to show his faith. However, he was shown a yellow card for an unnecessary foul in his short appearance, of which sole purpose was to shore up the defence. On the other hand, he did well to keep the ball at the other end in the dying minutes.

Arsenal 0 Chelsea 2 (4th Round of Capital One Cup)

The media was very quick to jump to conclusions that Arsenal cannot beat big teams as they couldn't wait for the opportunity. All the negatives were inflated out of proportion, while the positives are hardly talked about.

At Arsenal Playa Flamenca Supporters Club, we are obviously disappointed with the result. Losses always take something from your heart and when it's against Chelsea, it hurts. However, everybody knows that the Capital One Cup has always been Arsenal's lowest priority and we have more important three games coming up in the next 12 days. Some of the members argued that the substitutions were too late, while others thought Giroud and Özil could have been left on the bench to keep them fresh against Liverpool and free from injury. One thing we all agreed was that we needed rotation. We knew that Chelsea have an advantage over us in terms of depth in the squad and it was proved.
 Both sides saw a number of changes in their starting line-ups from the weekend. For Arsenal, only Aaron Ramsey, Santi Cazorla, and Laurant Koscielny kept their places. In fact, we expected more extensive deployment of youngsters as Wenger spoke about Serge Gnabry, Isaac Haydon, Gedion Zelalem and Thomas Eisfeld in his pre-match conference. Ryo Miyaichi started on the right wing, while Nicklas Bendtner took the lone-striker position. Serge Gnabry failed to pass fitness tests through a knee problem, while Zelalem and Eisfeld were ruled out due to the lack of match-fitness and a back injury, respectively.

Emmanuel Frimpong found himself in trouble before the match after posting an alleged racism claim on the Twitter. After the match, Wenger explained that the Ghanaian said his tweet was a joke. Frimpong was mysteriously ruled out of the squad the day before the match due to the shortage of "competition" (how can a player gain match-fitness without being given playing time?). In his post-match conference, Wenger also played down Frimpong's exclusion from the squad, by stating that Frimpong was in fact listed as a 19th player for this game, but when he was called up in the morning, he was sick. U-21 players, Haydon and Yenarris, were left on the bench.

What we have learned from the game. (1) We desperately need a quality striker. Bendtner's performance was woeful. He could not hold up the ball. His off-the-ball moves were very poor. His movement was so slow. In fact, Arsenal looked most dangerous in the first half when Ryo played through the middle (although the Japanese international's finishing left much to be desired). The Dane had a mere 28 touches in 67 minutes, while Olivier Giroud made 14 touches in his 23 minutes-plus-stoppage time appearance.

(2) The Ramsey-Wilshere central midfield partnership does not provide the right balance of defence and attack. The combination limits the both players' attacking capability. But we didn't have any option in this game because of Flamini's injury and Arteta's suspension. Haydon was out of his depth against West Brom in the holding midfielder role, while we are not sure that Yenarris would have coped with Chelsea's attack. Fortunately, this conundrum should be solved before the next game when Arteta is available again. Flamini's return from his groin injury cannot come soon enough for us.

(3) We have a selection headache for the left-back position. Nacho Monreal's discontent has been well documented, having had to spend most of time on the bench due to Kieran Gibbs' current form. Our preferred left-back has been the Englishman, but the Spaniard presents very strong competition after his commendable performance this night.

(4) On the other hand, Carl Jenkinson is not totally reliable as Bacary Sagna's deputy yet. His positioning was questionable again in this game after the previous round of Capital One Cup. He can be easily dragged into the centre. Poor Ramsey had to cover him so often. Jenkinson was regarded as a sole culprit for the first goal, but we think that Fabianski and Wilshere might have also had a hand in it. Confusion among the three was to blame, but very few deny that Jenkinson had a terrible game. Crossing has been regarded as one of his strengths over Sagna, but it was also all over the place this night.

(5) Theo Walcott's pace has been sorely missed. Against a well-organised defensive-minded team, we need Theo's pace to get behind the defence line.

(6) There was not as much as the media want to talk up between the two sides. On the contrary to the SkySports match report, Arsenal had livened up themselves after conceding the first goal. We applied pressure on Chelsea defence in the beginning of the second half and Özil and Giroud's introductions sparked Arsenal's revival. The stats indicate Arsenal's slight dominance in overall possession of 53% with a slightly better passing success rate of 86% against Chelsea's 84%. Chelsea had 14 shots on target, of which 3 were on target, while Arsenal registered 12 shots with 1 on target. It was a tight game as Wenger described it. It could have gone either way but the result was decided by tiny details as usual. We were punished by the lapse of concentration and we didn't have a moment of individual brilliance that matched Mata's sublime shot.

(7) Koscielny and Vermaelen can play together. These two are so similar (similarly too adventurous) that the fans have not been so keen on the paring so far. However, this game proved that the partnership between these two is a feasible option.

Some say that the exit from the Capital One Cup competition is a blessing in disguise. It's true that an opportunity to win one of the silverware this season has gone, but at least the exit means that we have no mid-week fixtures in the last two weeks of a busy January (and a week in December). Also, we have Theo, Poldi, and the Ox to come back, which should add our depth in the squad soon.

Oh, and how hypocritical Mourinho is. He criticises the opponents' time-wasting in one game, but it is OK for his three players to simultaneously start having cramps and lie down on the ground.

It is more important than the result of this game that Arsenal will show a great response against Liverpool on Saturday evening. Hopefully, our first XI will do just that.

Player Rating

Fabianski: 6

Could do nothing to stop Mata's goal. Apart from the two goals, he only made a comfortable catch. 

Jenkinson: 5

Very poor game.

Koscielny: 7

Made 4 interceptions especially high up on the pitch and darted forward.

Vermaelen: 7

Made 8 clearances and 1 last-man tackle. Solid.

Monreal: 7

Created a good goal-scoring chance from his own interception. Defensively solid as well.

Ramsey: 6

Made 4 tackles, 2 interceptions, and 3 shots off target. Not at his best. We thought he would be given a breather for this game. Taken off in the 82nd minute.

Wilshere: 6

Made a couple of good runs. 

Rosicky: 7

Was at the heart of Arsenal attack, and had a generally good game

Cazorla: 7

Completed his first 90 minutes since his return from injury. 

Miyaichi: 5

Had a glorious chance to score in one-on-one situation with the keep after getting behind the Chelsea defence, but failed to convert it. Made some good runs on the right wing, showing his pace in the first half when Arsenal played long balls. In the second half, he was often muscled out by Chelsea defenders and was replaced by Özil in the 64th minteu. 

Bendtner: 5

Little quality, no commitment. 

Subs

Özil: 6

Replaced Ryo in the 64th minute. Showed his class in flashes. 

Giroud: 7

Made a difference immediately after coming on the pitch in the 69th minute, drawing the first save of the match out of Schwarzer.

Park: 5

82nd-minute substitute for Ramsey. Made 8 passes and 10 touches with a 100% passing success rate. No notable contribution.

Crystal Palace 0 Arsenal 2

Spanish sunshine is sometimes a pain for some. To be honest, those who took seats on the terrace of the Rendezvous Bar, our new venue, couldn't see much of the game.

Ahead of a series of tough fixtures against our league title rivals in November, this was a must-win game for us. We also needed to bounce back immediately from the disappointing defeat to Dortmund on Tuesday night. In addition, winning this lunch-time kick off would guarantee that we stay top of the Premier League for another week, no matter how other results would turn out this weekend.

Arsene Wenger made only two changes from the side that started in the 2-1 defeat to Dortmund. Mathieu Flamini was back in the starting line-up after a five-day rule governing concussion injuries prevented him from playing Tuesday night. Jack Wilshere was dropped to the bench after suffering an ankle injury during the Dortmund match. Tomas Rosicky gave way to Santi Cazorla.

Arsenal started brightly. A clear-cut chance fell on Giroud in the 3rd minute, when Sagna's brilliant cross found the French striker, but his header was just wide. For the first 10 minutes, Arsenal's dominance was phenomenal, but did not have the edge to break down well-organised Palace defence.

The deadlock was broken just after half time. Serge Gnabry won a penalty, which was converted expertly by vice-captain Mikel Arteta. Replays showed that the German teenager should have been awarded a penalty before half-time, too. The referee didn't only get this one wrong, but made another mistake when he showed a straight red card to Arteta. The Spaniard tangled up with ex-Gunner Maroune Chamakh and the both fell to the ground 40 yards away from the Arsenal goal. The decision was arguable in so many ways. Whether Chamakh was the last man or not can be debatable as another Palace player and Koscielny were running in the middle parallel to them. It was not a clear goal-scoring chance as the incident happened far away from the goal on the right flank. One can also argue that it was a shoulder to shoulder challenge. It was a harsh decision, if not wrong.

Wenger would have appealed if Arteta had been suspended for more than a game, but the boss said that an appeal is unlikely as he was going to rest the vice captain for Tuesday's Capital One Cup match anyway. Whether the sending-off was injustice or not, we shouldn't have put ourselves in that situation. Arteta had to stop Chamakh because the Spaniard was the deepest defender as the whole team pushed high up. How many mistakes of this kind have we made in the past? We have conceded goals from our own corners on more than a few occasions.  There is no need to dig up the archive footages. As recently as four days ago, we conceded Dortmund's winner from their quick counter. We have to rectify our vulnerability to counter attacks.

On the other hand, we like the team's resilience to grind out the win in the end. We could have capitulated a few seasons ago after such big blows like losing Flamini, a combative midfielder, to a groin injury so early in the game, and then another holding midfielder in the 65th minute. As soon as Arsenal's metronome had been given his marching orders, the Eagles smelled blood and mounted pressure. Szczesny pulled off two world-class saves within a couple of minutes. Then, when Ramsey broke on the left flank, he timed his lofted cross perfectly for Giroud's run. Giroud's header met the cross and went under Speroni's arm into the back of the net. The second goal relieved the huge pressure off us. We, the Gooners, could finally enjoy the rest of the game.

As Wenger admitted, Arsenal were not the sharpest. Asked whether he was worried about fatigue, the Frenchman answered "Sometimes when you play every three days you look tired and then in three days you are flying again. It goes a bit in cycles." Let's hope that players will recover quickly before the gruelling early November fixtures.

The next match is a Capital One Cup home tie against Chelsea, but at the Arsenal Playa Flamenca Supporters Club, many people's focus is already on next weekend's clash with Liverpool. Although we have an advantage of one more day rest over Chelsea, they have more depth in the squad. We don't know what sort of team Wenger will field, it will be difficult to overcome Chelsea to advance, especially if the Frenchman wants to give a breather to the key players. We think Arsenal should prioritise their league campaign.

Players rating

Szczesny: 8
Barclays Man of the Match. Made a couple of match-saving stops.

Sagna: 7
Delivered two brilliant crosses for Giroud.

Mertesacker: 7
Commanding display.

Koscielny: 7
Solid.

Gibbs: 7
Not troubled.

Arteta: 6
Scored a first goal from the spot. Unlucky to be sent off.

Flamini: 5
Started well, but sustained a groin injury and was replaced in the 8th minute. Hope the injury does not sideline him for long because he is such an important player for us.

Özil: 7
Looked tired, but made runs when needed.

Ramsey: 7
Had a shot on target saved. Set up a goal for Giroud.

Cazorla: 6
Quiet game.

Giroud: 8
Scored his fifth league goal of the season.

Subs

Gnabry: 7

8th-minute substitute for Flamini. Earned a penalty and should have been awarded another. Replaced by fellow substitute Wilshere in the 69th minute when pressure piled on.

Wilshere: 7
Replaced Gnabry in the 69th minute. Kept Arsenal ticking in the absence of Arteta. 19 passes with a 100% passing success rate.

Monreal: 7
Came on for Cazorla in the 72th minute on the left flank. Had a dribble and shot, which was saved unlucky not to score, popped up in the centre forward position a couple of times

Arsenal 1 Dortmund 2 (Champions League Group Stage Matchday 3)

The critics said that this would be the first stern test for Arsenal. We had already heard those words before we faced Napoli on the Matchday 2. After the Napoli game, we thought Arsenal's totally different, but equally impressive performances on either side of half time had effectively silenced them. Now those critics are triumphant after just one loss in 13 games against the last season's Champions League runners-up.

Arsene Wenger was unusually critical about his side's performance after the match, which probably reflected his massive disappointment on his 64th birthday. On the strength of the home game and the current form, we were expecting three points from this game, which would have then required only a draw to guarantee our place in the knock-out stage. Although Wenger seemingly didn't give any credit to his side's display, a loss was too harsh a result for the home team. In fact, they deserved at least a point.

Lewandowski, who went on to score the winner, could have been set off if Koscielny had fallen down to the ground and rolled about at the time. Rosicky's shot was cleared off the line in the first half. Ramsey's goal was mysteriously disallowed. One can only guess it was because the whistle was blown a second earlier when the referee adjudged that Koscielny pushed a Dortmund player in the set-piece melee. Santi's curling effort was denied by the woodwork. If we hadn't conceded the second goal at the very time we did, an energetic Dortmund side could have started showing signs of fatigue (because that's how we have won games in the past).

We don't need to cite these potentially game-changing incidents to highlight how delicately balanced the game was. The stats show that the two sides were level in all aspects. Arsenal registered 9 shots, of which 2 were on target, with one hitting the bar and two blocked. On the other hand, Dortmund had 8 shots in total with 3 on target. Other stats indicate that Arsenal were, in fact, a slightly better side, including a 58% possession, a 83% passing success rate against Dortmund's 79%, and 65% aerial duels won vs Dortmund's 35%. In light of these figures, ex-Tottenham Glen Hoddle's remark, "Dortmund were the better side", appears a little feeble.

Wenger lamented naivety and lack of maturity, stating that Arsenal forgot that "when you cannot win the game, you don't lose it". It is disappointing to see some of the positive signs this team started to show disappear in this game. When they struggled to beat an organised and resilient West Brom side, they tried not to lose the game after coming from behind to equalise. Against Swansea, we didn't create many chances, but when we went forward, we scored two goals in a short space of time to win the game. Three days ago, we scored the crucial second goal when Norwich was in the ascendancy. This season, up till this game, we had had no error directly leading to a goal, a major cause behind so many points dropped last season.

We missed Mathieu Flamini in the game. Arteta played well, but the devoted defensive midfielder would have made it sure that we were well covered against any quick counter-attack. Also, the 29-year-old ex-AC Milan player would have reminded his team-mate that not losing this game was as important as winning it. His steel and maturity were sorely missed.

Despite the disappointing result, there are many positives to take from this game. Santi is back. After returning from injury in the last game, the Spaniard started from the bench. When he came on the pitch for Wilshere, he turned the game around. With Özil struggling to find space, doubled or sometimes tripled-up by Dortmund players, Santi's creativity was crucial for us.

It was encouraging to see Arsenal get back into the game and score an equaliser before half-time, after a slow start to the game and conceding the first goal in the 16th minute.

In contrast to Wenger's accusation that the team pushed too hard, some journalists praise Arsenal's bravery. They took the game to Dortmund despite the German side's every effort to stop their opponents playing their football and never gave up looking for an illusive winner.

In a way, we are glad that the team made these mistakes at the group stages and early in the season. All teams lose at some point in the season (unless you are the Invincibles). These are a group of ever-improving players, so hopefully, the boys will learn the lessons and they can only get better.

Two mistakes cost us dearly, but there was very little in it between the two side. Dortmund are underrated because of their slow start to their Champions League campaign after their poor display against Napoli on Matchday 1. However, this game showed how good they are, after all we are in the game's elite competition.

Coupled with Napoli's 2-1 defeat of Marseille in France on the same night, the result opened up the qualifying race in the Group F among the three teams. Now Arsenal, Dortmund and Napoli all sit top of the group with 6 points. It looks a lot tougher now to qualify from this group than three weeks ago, but we think it can be done. Last season we still qualified after we had lost 2-0 at home against Schalke on Matchday 3. Also, it is not impossible to beat a German team in Germany as our victory over Bayern Munich proved. Furthermore, we have the upper hand over Napoli in case the two teams finish on the same point, as the head-to-head results prevail over the goal difference. Having already beaten Napoli once, a draw in Naples will guarantee a place in the knock-out stages if we are on the same points as Napoli going into Matchday 6. That said, it is only half way through the group stage and there are still nine points to play for, it is too early to calculate permutations yet.

Players rating

Szczesny: 6
With Dortmund registering only three shots on target, he had little to do. Couldn't do much about the two goals.

Sagna: 6
He was caught out of position on Dortmund's counter-attack and slow to get back. We understand that in the absence of wide players such as Theo, the Ox, and Poldi, Sagna and Gibbs have a massive task of going forward to help add width to the offence, but the veteran Sagna should be able to cope with that.

Mertesacker: 7
Combined with Koscielny, kept Lewandowski quiet at most of time.

Koscielny: 7
Made 5 interceptions and 6 clearances.

Gibbs: 7
Made a good last-ditch tackle as well as 7 interceptions and 5 clearances.

Arteta: 7
Made 11 tackles and 2 interceptions. 

Ramsey: 6
Entirely guilty for Dortmund's first goal. He was too confident when he tried to dribble through Dortmund players on the edge of the Arsenal box instead of simply clearing the line and subsequently he was robbed of the ball by Reus. The in-form Welsh midfielder was not as sharp as usual. Replaced in the 87th minute.

Özil: 7
Difficult game as he was shackled by two or three Dortmund players throughout the game, but showed a glimpse of quality here and there.

Rosicky: 7
His effort beat the keeper only to be cleared off the line by Hummels.  

Wilshere: 6
Struggled to get behind the Dortmund defence. He was another player who was not as sharp as in the last game. An ankle injury saw his game curtailed in the 59th minute. With hind sight, Cazorla should have replaced him earlier.

Giroud: 7
Scored a goal. One of the differences this season is that he is more aggressive in the box. When you attack the ball, you have a half-chance to score as the keeper or defenders may make mistakes. Sagna's cross was hardly a pin-point delivery, but because Giroud attacked the ball, Dortmund centre-back and keeper made a mix-up, which led to the goal.

 

Subs

Cazorla: 7

Replaced injured Jack Wilshere in the 59th minute. Made an immediate impact and his powerful shot hit the crossbar. 

Bendtner: 5
87th-minute substitute for Ramsey. Only made 1 touch.

Gnabry: 5
90th-minute substitute for Rosicky. Only made 3 touches around the Arsenal box.

Arsenal 4 Norwich 1

After the long two weeks' wait, the Premier League was back. Ever since the transfer dead-line day, the Arsenal fans have been entertaining the thought that Mesut Özil and Santi Cazorla would play in the same team. Santi's ankle injury during the September international break meant that we had to wait for our dream to come true for seven weeks. Then when it was finally going to materialise, Özil suffered a knock on the knee during Germany's 5-3 win over Sweden, which saw the German playmaker limping off the pitch with a few minutes remaining. After a nervous wait, the good news arrived that he was fit to play against Norwich. We were excited with the prospect of the two technically-gifted creative midfielders on the pitch at the same time for the first time. The combination of Santi Cazorla and Mesut Özil was simply mouth-watering for the supporters.

Arsene Wenger made two changes from the side that started in the 1-1 draw with West Brom two weeks ago. The team welcomed back the fit-again Bacary Sagna in place of Carl Jenkinson. The omission of in-form Aaron Ramsey from the starting line-up came as a surprise, but considering that the number of games the Welshman has played for the Club and the country so far this season and the fixture list ahead of us, it made sense. Santi Cazorla made his first appearance since September 1 in the Welshman's place.

Arsenal started brightly with some good moves, but Cazorla's shot was not powerful enough to test John Ruddy. However, in the 18th minute, the hosts strung together ingenious one-touch interplay, which Wilshere started and finished coolly. The team effort took some technical quality, quick moves, and improvisation, involving Cazorla and Giroud as well as the English midfielder. Arsene Wenger described it as one of the best Arsenal goals he had seen.

Norwich had their moments on either side of half time. Arsenal's second goal came against the run of play. Giroud's lofted delivery was met with Özil's header. It was the French striker's fourth assist this season, already one more than the whole of last season. He hasn't found the net for the last few league games, but his contribution to the team has been tremendous.

12 minutes later, Norwich got a goal back as Howson took full advantage of Mertesacker's half-clearance and blasted the ball into the bottom corner of the Arsenal goal. It was also a fine goal, which Szczesny could do nothing about.

A couple of season ago, this could have put an enormous pressure on Arsenal defence and they could have caved in. However, we had confidence in this team and couldn't see any other result but a home win. The team responded positively as Arsene Wenger brought Nicklas Bendtner on for Giroud instead of making a more defensive change in order to protect the now narrow lead.

Aaron Ramsey's exquisite solo goal in the 83rd minute put the game to bed, followed by Özil's second goal at the end of a beautifully worked-out movement in the 88th minute.

It was not as comfortable a win as the scoreline might suggest, but we played some good football. Some of the moves were breathtaking, especially the build-up to the first goal and finish. It was a delightful afternoon for us Gooners. The team have belief in the quality within the team and are enjoying playing football at the moment. If they can keep playing in that way, their attractive football should entice world-class attacking players from all over the world in the future.

Players rating

Szczesny: 7
Wasn't tested too much, but made a couple of good saves when needed.

Sagna: 7
Joined attack often. Solid defensively.

Mertesacker: 7
His inadequate clearance led to Norwich goal.

Koscielny: 7
Kept the opponents at bay.

Gibbs: 7
Made a great run and nearly set up a goal for Giroud with a perfect low cross. Made 5 tackles, one of which was a crucial last-man tackle.

Flamini: 6
Had a good game until he suffered a concussion and double-vision through the collision with Tettey. The head injury may explain some of his wayward passes after the incident (still an impressive 94% completion rate, though).  The rules governing concussion injuries (5 day break) will sideline him against Dortmund on Tuesday night.

Arteta: 7
Had a couple of shots from outside the box. Made 94 passes with a 95% success rate. 


Özil: 9
Scored two goals.

Cazorla: 7
He was heavily involved in Arsenal's good attacking moves, but some of his decisions indicated his lack of match-fitness. Substituted in the 59th minute, which was probably planned.  

Wilshere: 8
Scored his second goal in two consecutive games and first league goal at the Emirates. Improved performance as his decision-making was a lot quicker and didn't hold onto the ball too long.

Giroud: 8
Provided two assists through brilliant flicks for the first and perfectly-weighed cross for the second goal. Unlucky not to get on the scoresheet himself when his one-touch finish at the near post was denied by Ruddy's superb save.

 

Subs

Ramsey: 9

He was initially meant to be rested, but came on the pitch in the 38th minute in the wake of Flamini's injury. Scored a great solo goal with composure, after waltzing through Norwich defence in the box. Set up a goal for Özil with a fine cut-back. Made 5 tackles as well. 

Rosicky: 7
59th-minute substitute for Cazorla. His cross from the left to Ramsey at the far post led to Özil's second goal.

Bendtner: 7
78th-minute substitute for Giroud. Had a decent game, involved in the build-up for Özil's second goal.

West Brom 1 Arsenal 1

Arsenal went into this game as favourites to win on the back of their stunning performance against Napoli on Tuesday night, looking to extend their winning streak to 11 games and set a new club record of 13 straight away wins. However, their opponents were also enjoying a surge in form since a 3-0 win over Sunderland at home, followed  by their shock defeat of Manchester United at Old Trafford last weekend. The two teams were full of confidence, both making an amazing turnaround from their disappointing opening of the season.

Arsenal made only two changes from the side which started in their comprehensive victory over Napoli, one of which was a forced one. Carl Jenkinson deputised for Bacary Sagna at  right-back. The French defender picked up a hamstring injury during the Champions League game on Tuesday night, which is expected to keep him on the sidelines for three weeks (hopefully, he will be back as soon as the international break is over, although "three weeks" include the next Premier League game against Norwich). In the midfield which tore apart a Napoli side five days go, Jack Wilshere replaced Tomas Rosicky. Considering the fact that the Czech played 63 minutes after just one day of full training following his return from an injury, the change appeared reasonable. Flamini and Arteta kept their places in the deeper midfield, with Ramsey once again starting on the right wing.

The same formation worked well against Napoli, but West Brom had the better idea about how to keep Ozil quiet. The Midland club crowded the central midfield, leaving virtually no space for the German playmaker nor the two wide players who prefer playing in the middle. In fact, West Brom were well organised defensively, while posing a constant threat going forward. Overall, the Premier League mid-table club mounted a bigger challenge than the 2nd-placed Serie A side.

A 1-1 draw looked a fair result in light of the fact that the both teams had chances to win. We were lucky not to lose as Anelka had two clear-cut chances to double their lead before Jack Wilshere scored the equaliser. On the other hand, we were disappointed we couldn't find a winner in the last 15 minutes when we were mounting pressure, while we also felt that we did well to fend off the counter-attack threat West Brom posed in the same period.

Conceding a first goal was a new experience this season and was a test for the team. They showed character to come from behind to earn a point, but the bench highlighted that Arsenal were still lacking game changers. Asked about being light on the bench after the match, Wenger stressed the quality of the bench, but Monreal and Vermaelen are defensive options when we are wrapping up a win and neither of Bendtner or Gnabry is capable of changing the game. On the other hand, Rosicky actually came off the bench and made an impact as soon as he had come on the pitch, but it was not enough to win the game. Incidentally, Miyaichi was also on the bench, but Wenger didn't mention his name.

There were two talking points in this game: one was the referee's decisions, the other Wilshere's mixed performance. First of all, we think Lee Mason did OK. He may have been a little too lenient on fouls, but he was at least consistent throughout the game. Some say that Koscielny was lucky to stay on the pitch for his push on the back of a West Brom player in the box and we agree. We have seen penalties given on similar occasions. On the other hand, we had a legitimate penalty shout for Billy Jones' foul on Jack Wilshere. (No, not the one against Mulumbu. Replays proved the ref made a correct decision, hence no complaint from us). Although Wilshere shot it high, Jones did not make a contact with the ball, but with the Englishman. That could have been a penalty on another day. As for other fouls outside the box, our players were lucky to get away with some heavy tackles, while West Brom players were let off for so many physical challenges on Wilshere without giving away free-kicks. If they call it "letting the game flow", Lee Mason did a good job as it was a good game between the two good sides. As long as his decisions are consistent, we have no problem with the referee.

The second point is Wilshere's performance. Even before the game was kicked off, all eyes were on the 21-year-old for the wrong reason. He was caught smoking outside a night club by camera. After the match, Wilshere admitted that he made a mistake and had spoken to the boss and they sorted it out. Jack Wilshere's inclusion in the team confirmed that the issue was solved between them. The boss also showed his faith in the England midfielder by sticking to him throughout the game, even when he had had a poor first 45 minutes. He lost 11 duels in the first half. He was even given a yellow card after frustration got the better of him. Wenger's faith seemed to have been repaid when Jack scored. Having said that Wilshere is being played out of position and it doesn't suite his game.

When Rosicky came on for Ramsey in the 58th minute, Wilshere was subsequently moved to the right wing, a switch that seemed to have improved his performance. He clearly struggles every time he plays on the left wing. Wenger hoped that playing in the wide position would get best out of him, making most of his "burst", which is only possible from the deeper midfield or wide positions, not the number 10 role. In our opinion, Jack Wilshere holds on to the ball too long, which invites tackles. If he releases the ball quickly like the passer-type Arsenal players do, he can stay free from those heavy tackles and challenges he often gets.

Hopefully, Cazorla's return should solve these problems. Although he also has inclination to cut inside, Santi is better suited to the left-wing position as he is comfortable with both feet. Santi had the same problem as Ozil had this day, when he played the central midfield role last season. However, moved to the left flank, the Spaniard found more space to operate. In the game like this, it will be very difficult to contain both Santi and Ozil at the same time. The Spanish midfielder's return cannot come soon enough for us.

The hard-fought point sent us back to the top of the league, ahead of Liverpool by the number of goals scored. A few years ago Arsenal would have lost this kind of games immediately following an exhilarating win in the Champions League. Wilshere's comments in the post-match interview suggested that our players had realised that there is no easy game in the Premier League. They know that they cannot simply turn up and win a game. Hopefully, they will retain their focus on the next league game against Norwich at the Emirates and get back to winning ways.

Players rating

Szczesny: 7
Made a brilliant save when Berahino's shot was heavily deflected by Flamini.

Jenkinson: 6
He was always the weak link in the defence West Brom were likely to exploit. Although he coped relatively well, there is a lot room for improvement. That said, Sagna's absence is a good chance for him to gain some much-needed playing time. Hopefully, he will make most of it.

Mertesacker: 7
Not his best performance.

Koscielny: 7
He has to cut out those mindless fouls inside the box.

Gibbs: 7
Did OK. Blasted a shot over the bar on a very good chance. Maybe he should have crossed to Giroud who made a run at the near post.

Flamini: 7
Worked hard as usual. Given a yellow card.

Arteta: 7
Made 73 passes with a 97% passing success rate. Had a shot blocked by Giroud.

Ozil: 7
Quiet game, but he did very well to battle for the ball, keep it in play on the right flank and found Giroud with a superb long ball in the build-up to Wilshere's goal.

Ramsey: 6
Unlucky not to score. His goal-bound low shot from outside the box drew a fine reflex save from Myhill.  

Wilshere: 7
Mixed performance. Scored his first league goal in nearly three years. He had three more brilliant chances to score, which he failed to convert. 

Giroud: 7
Worked hard for the team. In the build-up to the goal, he held the ball well until other players arrived. Had a great chance to score late, but couldn't beat the keeper. Probably he made a wrong decision, should have taken a shot immediately.

Subs

Rosicky: 7
58th-minute substitute for Ramsey. Made an immediate impact and provided an assist for Wilshere's goal.

Bendtner: 5
Replaced Giroud in the 85th minute. Only had 3 touches.

Arsenal 2 Napoli 0 (Champions League Group Stage Matchday 2)

For those who were yet to be convinced by Arsenal's win over Swansea, this game was supposed to be an acid test as to whether Arsenal are genuine title contenders. Their opponents are currently top of the Serie A table, having not lost a game, enjoying a fantastic run of form just like the north London club. An open, but tight game was expected with many predicting high-scoring draws. However, it turned out to be a comfortable win by the Premier League leaders. Arsenal's convincing defeat of a Napoli side seemed to have finally silenced the doubters.

Arsenal made two changes from the side who started in the 2-1 win at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday. Rosicky came in for Wilshere, recovering from a hamstring injury, while Arteta started next to Flamini in the central midfield. The central midfield partnership looked too defensive, but it reflected Wenger's cautious attitude towards Napoli's counter-attack. Flamini was assigned for a special mission to keep Hamsik quiet and did a superb job of it. Ramsey started on the right wing in place of Saturday's fellow goal scorer, Serge Gnabry, who was left on the bench. The Welshman's poor performances as the right-back, except the one against Manchester City last September, made us sceptical about his position. In fact, he didn't find his form until he started playing alongside with Arteta in the central midfield. Despite our concern, our advanced midfield trio, Rosicky, Ozil, and Ramsey, kept swapping their positions, which made it hard for Napoli to contain them. Walcott's injury has opened the door to Gnabry, which is a like for like option. In addition to that, this night's display confirmed that Ramsey on the right wing was a more than feasible option.

Arsenal's first-half performance was outstanding. Their passing was quick and crisp, with their movements on and off the ball at their fluent best. We thought we hadn't seen Arsenal play like that for a long time. After the match, both Wenger and Szczesny expressed the same view. It was their best display for a long time. Ozil grabbed the headlines for his vision and skills, but Ramsey and Giroud were equally impressive.

However, many praised their second-half display even more for their professionalism. We wanted the team to go for a third goal to kill off the game completely because one goal conceded could immediately turn a comfortable game into a difficult one as we saw  against Swansea. Instead, the team had decided to keep a clean sheet and focused on their defence. Credit to them, Napoli showed some attacking intent in the second half which was really their only option, having gone 2-0 down as early as  the opening 15 minutes, but we didn't allow them to get into our box and they tended to be restricted to long range shots which Szczesney coped with easily

Some may say that the brilliant performance was only against an underperforming Napoli side. However, there is no doubt that Arsenal's outstanding display made the Serie A leaders look average. They were reduced to just a bunch of haircuts under the Premier League leaders' authority. The Italian side may have missed Higuain's quality, (we were also missing a few players) but even if he had been on the pitch, Arsenal's defence would probably have cut off supplies to him like they did.

Six points out of the first two games in the group stage put Arsenal in a strong position to qualify for the knock-out stage. It's still early days, with 12 points remaining to play for, but when the draw was made, who would have thought we would be in this position. Wenger reckons that 10 points will secure the qualification (more precisely 10.2 points). With a win out of the forthcoming double header against Dortmund, we could secure our place in the knockout stage as early as on 22 October, provided other results go our way.



Players rating

Szczesny: 7
As he said that he was bored in the first half, he had little to do in this game. However, he came off the line to claim the ball more often in this game. A good sign of improvement.

Sagna: 7
Reliable defensively, helped attack. Picked up a hamstring injury, which is expected to keep him sidelined for three weeks. Would this be an excuse to exempt him from the international duty? It is a blow as the Frenchman seemed to have come back to his best before the double ankle breaks, but it will give Jenkinson a chance. The Englishman should be capable enough against West Brom and hopefully, Sagna will return after the international break.

Mertesacker: 8
Top passer of the team, making 80 passes with a 96% accuracy.

Koscielny: 8
Unlucky not to score. 

Gibbs: 7
Didn't put foot wrong.

Flamini: 9
Outstanding. He even tried a couple of shots, one of which was on target, but what makes him so special is his determination and fighting spirit.

Arteta: 7
As well as Rosicky, he also looked a little short of sharpness. On the other hand, his passing rates got back to his standard, making 75 passes with a 95% success rate.

Ozil: 9
Opened his account with a sublime goal in the 8th minute and set up a goal for Giroud by cutting back from the by-line.

Ramsey: 9
Set up a goal for Ozil with a pin-point pass, after making an overlapping run to receive the ball from Giroud on the right flank.  

Rosicky: 7
He looked understandably rusty as he only had one day of training after recovering from a hamstring injury.

Giroud: 9
His hold-up play and movement on and off the ball were excellent throughout the game. Scored his sixth goal of the season.

Subs

Wilshire: 7
63rd-minute substitute for Rosicky. Nearly set up a goal for Giroud in stoppage time. When Gibbs laid the ball for him to get behind the defence line, he failed to make a run. If he feels his goal-scoring stats "embarrassing", he shouldn't miss this kind of chances.

Monreal: 6
Replaced Ramsey in the 88th minute to see out the victory.