Arsenal 3 (Fabregas 65, 81, Diaby 90+1) – Aston Villa 0
Match Report | Highlights

Manuel Almunia – Sound performance, however I cannot recall any difficult saves that he had to make. Was occasionally tested by the Villa frontline but stood firm. Distribution was solid, and he looked very vocal wearing the captain’s armband. 7

Bacary Sagna – Did have England hopefuls Stewart Downing and James Milner to contend with in the match, however more often than not he was up to the task. Worked very hard in the right back spot, constantly tracking back after a push forward. Tackled well in defense but sometimes lacked the final ball when in posession, however his performance improved with the introduction of Walcott. 7.5

William Gallas – Not really ever tested through the middle. Did have a lot of headers to make as Villa tried the high ball extremely often, however that was it. He was up to the task every time and not once did he buckle under pressure. 7

Thomas Vermaelen – Got a bit more involved than William Gallas at the back, especially dealing with Villa’s aerial maneuvers. This is where he excelled, as while Agbonlahor and Heskey did win the odd header, Vermaelen came out on top more often than not. 7.5

Armand Traore – Solid in defense despite the fact that he had Ashley Young to contend with. Young did get in behind a couple of times and got some good crosses in, but Traore got the better of him more often than not and this was key to minimising Villa’s success. Didn’t get all that involved in attacking moves but his a beautiful long ball to Walcott in the lead up to the third goal. 7

Denilson – Average today, and it was no surprise when he was hauled off before the hour mark in favour of Cesc Fabregas. He offered very little creatively and defensively he simply ‘got by’ – doing the least he had to do to diffuse the situation. Passing was neat and tidy but the drive was missing in a somewhat lacklustre performance. 6

Alex Song – Emerging as one of the most consistent figures in the Arsenal midfield. Song was once again workmanlike today, chasing down every errant ball and constantly pressuring the opposition. He even turned creator at times in the absence of Fabregas, however he did commit a couple of mis-timed tackles. 8

Abou Diaby – May have worked his way ahead of Denilson in the pecking order, offering power, dynamism and drive in the midfield. He offered much-needed penetration and held the ball ell under pressure. His passing was precise and he was always keen to get involved. Diaby worked his socks of today and more than deserved his (well taken) goal. 8.5

Samir Nasri – Average performance on the right of midfield. Showed some nice touches and some neat passing however failed to make an impact at all. Also offered zero protection for Bacary Sagna, leaving his teammate open for exploitation. 6

Andrey Arshavin – Did his best to make an impact today but ultimately failed. Was never going to win a header against the likes of Dunne and Cuellar, and although he admirably kept trying to do his best, he was often outmuscled. He was obviously playing out of position, and although he did show glimpses of class (paticularly in tight areas) it wasn’t his best performance. 6.5

Eduardo – Dreadful for the most part. Struggled to impose himself physically and was constantly pushed off the ball. Supposed to be a cool finisher but missed a sitter from the penalty spot with plenty of time and on his left foot. Obviously lacking confidence. 5

SUBSTITUTES
Cesc Fabregas – To say his introduction changed the landscape of the game is an understatement. As soon as he was brought on, he was involved in every single Arsenal move and immediately piled the pressure on Villa. Then he curled an amazing free kick into the top corner. The masterful display continued when he finished of a Walcott cross top put the Gunners 2-0 up, before a recurrance of his hamstring strain forced him off at 84 minutes. 9

Theo Walcott – Needs to come in off the touchline a bit and get more involved. His pace caused danger and he looked sharper than he has in recent weeks, however he needs more games under his belt. Nice cross for the second goal.7

Aaron Ramsey – N/A.

This entry was posted on Monday, December 28th, 2009 at 1:41 AM and is filed under Arsenal, Player Ratings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.