Well that’s that then. As comfortably as the group was for the most part we ended the first stage of the Europa League with a 6-0 win over BATE Borisov.
We weren’t really troubled at any time during the match by the visitors as we were pretty much in cruise control which was reflected in the overall performance of the team.
Here’s how the players got on:
David Ospina – 6.8
Wasn’t tested in goal much but did well to keep a clean sheet.
Mathieu Debuchy – 8.0
Surprisingly it was Debuchy who opened the scoring with a very well-struck finish inside the box, however, he was also very accomplished in defence and hardly put a foot wrong.
Calum Chambers – 7.0
Didn’t have much to do but navigated his way through the game well.
Rob Holding – 7.0
Like his centre back partner, Holding wasn’t tested by the BATE attack but still did well to help keep a clean sheet.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles – 7.6
With Arsene Wenger reverting to a back four, Maitland-Niles was playing deeper as a normal left back last night but still put in an assured performance in defence and going forward.
Mohamed Elneny – 7.7
Didn’t influence the midfield too much other than keeping the ball moving but did well to get himself on the score sheet with a lovely curled effort to cap off the win.
Francis Coquelin – 7.5
Yesterday saw a very comfortable performance for Coquelin in midfield as he was able to keep things moving in midfield and wasn’t needed to break up play as much as usual.
Jack Wilshere – 8.6
Another standout performance from Wilshere saw him end his night with a well taken goal and assist. In typical Wilshere fashion he moved past defenders well and showed some great touches during the match.
Theo Walcott – 8.1
Making his return to the side after illness Walcott did quite well. He was able to fashion himself some chances and possibly should have had more than just the one goal as well as putting the ball in the danger zone for a BATE defender to blast into his own net.
Danny Welbeck – 7.3
Was unlucky not to have a goal of his own but nevertheless had a solid performance.
Olivier Giroud – 7.0
The Frenchman had quite a quiet game but did well to show some bottle when he was made to retake his penalty and score again.
Reiss Nelson – 6.6
Didn’t do too much once on the pitch but was good on the ball.
Eddie Nketiah – 6.3
Once on the pitch, Nketiah wasn’t played centrally but was still a good outlet to get up the pitch.
Joe Willock – 6.2
Wasn’t involved in much of the action once on the pitch.
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