Wigan looked on course for a stunning upset against Arsenal but instead, they collapsed spectacularly in the second half, conceding four soft goals. Goal.com rates the performers on the pitch.
ARSENAL
Fabianski – 6: Looked very uncomfortable dealing with crosses and high balls. Grew in confidence as the game wore on and as his defenders started to tighten up at the back.
Sagna – 6.5: His poor headed clearance set up Mido for the opener. Made a few crucial interceptions later on in the game, especially from Wigan’s bombardment of crosses.
Djourou – 5: Lasted only half an hour before being stretchered off with a knee injury. Didn’t look very secure in the time he was on.
Toure – 7: Completely went missing in the first half and allowed Mido and Rodallega plenty of space inside the box. Marshalled his rearguard better after the break to shut the door on the Latics' attack.
Gibbs – 6.5: Very lucky to stay on the pitch after a clumsy last-man tackle on Valencia right at the end of the first half. He was the one who cleared Mido’s goal-bound effort… one that inevitably led to the remarkable fightback.
Walcott – 7: Showed plenty of pace but found firm resistance in the form of Figueroa and Boyce. Capitalised on sloppy defending to finish clinically to score the equaliser.
Denilson – 6: Had to drift over to the left flank to help Gibbs, leaving gaps in the centre of the park. Not one of his better games.
Song – 7: Sluggish. Lost too many challenges and gave the ball away too often. But all that was forgotten when he easily waltzed past three defenders to score the fourth goal and put the icing on the cake.
Arshavin – 8: Despite not playing in midweek, he didn’t look any fresher than his team-mates and he didn’t show any initiative to lead the team’s attack. Improved immensely in the second half and he set-up the equaliser, initiated the second, and scored the third.
Fabregas – 7: Like the rest of his colleagues, he absolutely found no way into the game in the first 45. Assisted the second goal with a precise centre and his persistence to hassle Koumas led to the third goal.
Bendtner – 5: Had the best of Arsenal’s chances in the first half but did not test Kirkland at all. Had at least two more opportunities in the second period but none were on target.
Substitutes:
Silvestre – 6.5: Caught ball watching and almost gave away a second goal. Made amends with Arsena's second goal, probably one the easiest he’ll ever score.
Van Persie – 5.5: Got into some dangerous open spaces but he couldn’t finish any of his chances. Did have the ball in the back of the net on one occasion but he was offside.
Adebayor – 7: Extremely lively after coming on for Walcott with 20 minutes to go. A real handful for the tiring Wigan defence. Initiated the counter-attack which produced the third goal.
No comments:
Post a Comment