Arsenal were dominated by their London rivals at the Emirates on Sunday, deservedly going down by two goals to nil. The result has heaped pressure onto manager Mikel Arteta, who was met with boos from the home crowd at both half-time and full-time.
Chelsea, meanwhile, looked ominous as they handed a second debut to new signing Romelu Lukaku. Continuing their 100% start to the season, manager Thomas Tuchel was still somewhat disappointed with their first-half performance, a sign of the standards being set by the club.
With that in mind, it is time to rate the players.
Arsenal
Bernd Leno – 7
If not for Leno, Arsenal would surely have lost by a greater margin. The German could do nothing about the two goals, also producing several quality saves as he kept his team in the game. The pick of them was tipping Romelu Lukaku’s powerful header onto the bar, without doubt one of the saves of the season, even at this early stage. Performances like this show why Leno will remain Arsenal’s number 1, despite the club spending £24m on Aaron Ramsdale last Friday.
Cedric Soares – 5
Most of Chelsea’s threat came down their right-hand side, meaning Cedric Soares had the least to do of all the Arsenal defenders. What he did have to do, however, he did not do very well, with the move for the second goal starting down his side as he allowed Kai Havertz to pass down the line too easily.
Rob Holding – 5
Rob Holding had a golden chance to pull one goal back for his team at the start of the second half but headed wide. He was somewhat spared defensively, Lukaku choosing to pin his defensive partner instead of him. Still not a great afternoon for the Englishman, given a chance because of new signing Ben White testing positive for Covid before kick-off.
Pablo Mari – 4
Pablo Mari is probably still having nightmares about Romelu Lukaku. Thrown to the ground like a ragdoll for the Belgian’s goal, the Spaniard was bullied all throughout the first half. Such was Lukaku’s dominance, Mari decided to go through the back of him before half-time, earning himself a booking. He dealt with the Belgian better in the second half, but by that time the damage had already done.
Kieran Tierney – 3
Kieran Tierney was all over the place defensively on Sunday in what was probably his worst performance in an Arsenal shirt. He afforded Reece James far too much time and space, allowing the Englishman to first cross for Lukaku, and then to score himself. Still, being one of the club’s best performers last season, it was a worry to see him replaced by Nuno Tavares after seemingly picking up a knock.
Albert Sambi Lokonga – 5
It was a difficult home debut for the Belgian who, along with Granit Xhaka, made it far too easy for Chelsea to pass the ball into Lukaku’s feet. Still, the 21-year-old looked comfortable when in possession under pressure, one positive to take at least.
Granit Xhaka – 4
Without the ball for large periods of time, Granit Xhaka’s lack of mobility really exposed Arsenal’s back four. The Suisse has to take some of the blame, but some also deserves to go to his manager for starting a player in a system that was not suited to his strengths.
Nicolas Pepe – 5
Nicolas Pepe showed some flashes of quality, for example winning a 50-50 with Jorginho before releasing Bukayo Saka to go one-on-one with Cesar Azpilicueta. Nonetheless, the Ivorian was (and usually is) too predictable to play against, wanting to cut onto his left at every opportunity. His third season in English football, Pepe really needs to start delivering if he is to ever live up to the £72m price tag.
Emile Smith-Rowe – 5
Emile Smith-Rowe’s shot in the opening minutes was about as good as it got for the Englishman. He showed some good touches here and there, also having a great chance snuffed out by some brilliant defending from Azpilicueta, but for most of the game he was starved of the ball.
Bukayo Saka – 5
His first start of the season after coming back late because of his involvement in England’s Euros campaign, Bukayo Saka inevitably showed a little bit of rust. He had a great opportunity to get a shot off when one-on-one with Azpilicueta, but a poor touch allowed the Spaniard to get a tackle in. He probably should also have had a penalty after being tripped by Reece James.
Gabriel Martinelli – 5
Just like Folarin Balogun last week at Brentford, the Brazilian was starved of service. Martinelli nonetheless showed his usual endeavour and effort, running around attempting to press Chelsea’s defenders at every opportunity.
Subs:
Nuno Tavares – 5
Coming on for his home debut after Tierney picked up a knock, Nuno Tavares didn’t make much of an impression on the game. He will probably start in the midweek Carabao Cup game against West Brom, though, giving Arsenal fans a much better look at their new left back.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 5
Given 30 minutes to try and get his team back into the game, Aubameyang was starved of service, just like the rest of his attacking teammates. It was nonetheless a welcome sight for Arsenal fans to see their best player on the pitch. He will need to recapture his form of two seasons ago if they are to have anything to cheer this season.
Folarin Balogun – N/A
Not on the pitch long enough to rate.
Chelsea
Eduoard Mendy – 7
Mendy didn’t really have much to do on Sunday, his team’s dominance restricting Arsenal’s chances. What he did have to do, however, he did well, saving from Saka and then reading the game well to prevent Lokonga’s pass reaching Aubameyang.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 8
Cesar Azpilicueta epitomised Chelsea’s defensive steel, fist-pumping at the winning of a goal kick. Consistent as ever, he marshalled the threat of Saka expertly and then prevented a sure goal with an excellent piece of defending, adjusting his body position to prevent Emile Smith-Rowe getting his shot off inside the six-yard box.
Andreas Christensen – 7
It speaks volumes about Chelsea’s defensive strength that Thiago Silva has yet to make an appearance this season. Christensen, who deputised for the Brazilian in the second half of last term after he picked up an injury, is a large reason as to why that is. The Danish international produced another assured performance as he and his teammates kept up their second consecutive clean sheet. A remarkable turnaround for a player that had been left out in the cold by previous manager Frank Lampard
Antonio Rudiger – 8
Like Christensen, it has been an astonishing turnaround for Antonio Rudiger under Thomas Tuchel, the German going from being a liability to one of the best defenders in the league. He is also a wind-up merchant on the pitch, getting in the face of opposition players when he can, just as he did after Rob Holding’s late challenge on Marcos Alonso.
Reece James – 9
Given the freedom of the Emirates Stadium, Reece James did not disappoint. He caused problems for Arsenal all game, marauding forwards at every opportunity. Indeed, he perhaps might be a bit disappointed at leaving with just a superbly taken goal and an assist, turning down the opportunity to cross to Lukaku when the Belgian was in acres of space. Given this was only their first time playing together, however, that relationship will develop, a scary thought for the rest of the league.
Jorginho – 8
Just as he always does, Jorginho kept everything ticking over in midfield, stemming Arsenal’s attacks and starting Chelsea’s. Contributing to Chelsea enjoying 65% possession, the Italian was nominated in midweek alongside teammate N’Golo Kante and Manchester City’s Kevin de Bruyne for the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award. With performances like these, it is easy to see why.
Mateo Kovacic – 8
Slightly more progressive than his Italian partner, Mateo Kovacic was instrumental in creating the first goal, finding Reece James with a lovely pass before the Englishman crossed to Lukaku. With N’Golo Kante returning from injury, Kovacic’s performance certainly showed to his manager that he is deserving of an extended run in the starting eleven.
Marcos Alonso – 7
Another of the players who has been brought in from the cold by Tuchel, Marcos Alonso put in a good performance after last week’s goal against Crystal Palace. Not as effective nor used as much as James, the Spaniard was nonetheless always an outlet down the left flank. It will be interesting to see whether he starts next week against Liverpool, or whether Tuchel will opt for the more defensively sound Ben Chilwell.
Mason Mount – 7
It was a relatively quiet afternoon for Mason Mount, at least by his high standards. Yet the Englishman still came away with an assist after finding James in acres of space inside the Arsenal penalty area. He would have had another one as well had Leno not saved brilliantly from Lukaku’s header.
Kai Havertz – 8
After a tough first six months in English football, Kai Havertz is really starting to show exactly why Chelsea paid £70m for him. He played an important role in their second goal, taking two Arsenal players out of the game by somehow finding a pass down the line to Marcos Alonso. He also went close to adding a third at the end, another of the Chelsea players denied by Leno.
Romelu Lukaku – 9
“Dominant.” That is how Lukaku described his performance post-match. And that is exactly what he was, bullying the Arsenal defence with his excellent link up play. Attention now turns to Liverpool and what will be a monumental battle with Virgil van Dijk.
Subs:
N’Golo Kante – 6
He didn’t really do much when he came on, but then again, he didn’t really need to – the game was already won. It was still good for the Frenchman to get some minutes in his legs after picking up a knock in the Super Cup final eleven days ago, especially with the huge game at Liverpool up next.
Hakim Ziyech – N/A
Not on the pitch long enough to rate. It was good to see him back this soon though after what looked a nasty looking shoulder injury sustained in the Super Cup final.
Timo Werner – N/A
Not on the pitch long enough to rate.
Featured image by Damian Tierney, all rights reserved (permission to use the photo received); no changes made.
