Arsenal’s winning run ended at four matches as they were held to a 0-0 draw by an extremely resolute and organized Crystal Palace at the Emirates. A pre-match injury to the in-form Kieran Tierney did not help matters, and Arsenal dearly missed the marauding left back’s forward runs in this one. Mikel Arteta fielded a lineup full of attacking intent, but credit must be given to Crystal Palace, whose perfect defensive shape never broke in an all-around strong team performance. Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang’s barren run continued while starlet Emile Smith Rowe was finally brought back down to earth a bit after a blistering start to Premier League life. Below are the player ratings for Arsenal.
Player Ratings (1 – 10)
G – Bernd Leno – 8 (MOTM)
Immense today. Arsenal lose this match if not for the excellence of the German shot-stopper. His most important moment came with a tremendous sprawling save of a Christian Benteke header to his left. Distributed well and now has four consecutive clean sheets. He has officially silenced all critics who preferred Emi Martinez.
DF – Ainsley Maitland-Niles – 5
This was a huge opportunity for Maitland-Niles, and he, unfortunately, did not take it. He hasn’t had a lot of minutes recently, and it showed as he looked extremely rusty in possession. Far too loose with his passing on numerous occasions and just couldn’t replicate the attacking intent of Tierney. Did contribute to a clean sheet, however.
DF – Rob Holding – 6.5
Fresh off receiving a new contract, Holding continued his good run of form. Positionally sound and strong in the air, and his distribution also continues to improve with each match. Added bonus that he seems to perform well no matter who is lined up next to him.
DF – David Luiz- 6.5
Inserted into the starting eleven with Pablo Mari missing through injury, Luiz acquitted himself well in this one. The veteran will always lean on his excellent array of passing, but he also did his job well defensively in this one. Solid positionally and won his aerial duels while not being afraid to stick in on Benteke.
DF – Hector Bellerin – 5.5
Hector’s up and down season continues. He just didn’t look sharp going forward and found himself lacking in confidence in the final third. He had the unenviable task of seeing Wilfried Zaha and Eberechi Eze on Crystal Palace’s left for the majority of the match, so credit where credit is due for keeping them out of the goal.
MF – Dani Ceballos – 7.5
Arsenal’s best creative presence on the evening, you could tell from the opening whistle that Ceballos was in the mood in this one. Hit a bunch of beautiful cross-field passes and was always looking to spring the attack with eagerness. He helped play his forward line in behind on a few occasions and looked the best bet to unlock Palace until he was strangely substituted a bit after the hour mark.
MF – Granit Xhaka – 6.5
A tale of two performances from Xhaka. Defensively he was absolutely terrific as he bailed Arsenal out multiple times in the penalty area with perfectly timed challenges. Offensively he struggled with the pace of the game, slowing things down far too often instead of driving forward like his partner in central midfield. Overall though, the good outweighed the bad.
MF – Emile Smith Rowe – 6
There is no doubt that Roy Hodgson and Palace had watched film of Smith Rowe’s string of brilliant performances because they made it their mission to totally limit the space of the youngster. Worked hard and did his best to find pockets of space, but the overall defensive solidity from the opposition was too much to break down. Just a tough day, but ESR is still trending in the right direction.
RW – Bukayo Saka – 6
The same goes for Palace’s work on limiting Saka’s impact from the wing in this one. He simply wasn’t afforded the time or space to work into the dangerous areas that he has been accustomed to finding. Had one excellent run that led to a shot directly at the keeper and was eventually shifted to left back to replace the ineffective Maitland-Niles.
LW – Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 5.5
You could see how badly he wanted to score as he was constantly making runs in behind and floating into strong attacking positions, but the end product continues to elude him. We keep thinking the drought will eventually break, and the goals will flow, but it is seriously time to consider resting Aubameyang for a match or two, so he can mentally reset. Just not working for him at the moment.
ST – Alexandre Lacazette – 6
Arsenal’s in-form goalscorer was starved of service in this one. Did his usual pressing and tried to get into good areas, but the final ball never came. With Smith Rowe limited, Laca’s linkup play suffered as well. Again, credit to Crystal Palace for a perfect defensive performance.
Substitutes
RW – Nicolas Pepe – 5
A huge opportunity to impress and stake his claim was wasted. In a match that was crying out for a player who could drive at the Palace backline, Pepe couldn’t generate anything on his favored left foot. His massive price tag continues to hover over him, especially as everyone watched the man Pepe was chosen over, Wilfried Zaha, have an excellent game for the opposition.
MF – Thomas Partey – 6.5
He’s finally back, and he showed in his brief cameo exactly what Arsenal have been missing. He is just so smooth on the ball and seems to do everything effortlessly. A trio of Partey, Xhaka/Ceballos, and Smith Rowe should finally provide Arteta with some midfield stability.
ST – Eddie Nketiah – N/A
He came on for the last 10 minutes but could not get himself involved much. Eddie will continue to lack minutes with Lacazette in form.
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