Bournemouth v The Arsenal, 30 September 2023 - player ratings etc
Not the most difficult opposition but we’d still moan if we couldn’t beat them comprehensively so a good day for the lads, with Arsenal exhibiting total control over the game and defending well when we needed to
Raya – 6.5 – one or two good stops but distribution was poor at times and no more a safe pair of hands than RAM IMO - still it’s clear Arteta’s made him mind up and if I was Ram I’d be starting to look elsewhere.
White – 7.5 – did his job well, provided attacking options and good to see him get the goal
Saliba – 8.5 solid as a rock
Gabriel – 8.5 - see Saliba
Zin – 4 - the weak point as usual but Bournemouth didn’t have enough about them to exploit it
Rice – 7.5 good game
Havertz – 6.5 – a better performance and not just because of the pel (which was well taken) he’s gradually learning to interact with the team better and get involved and while I remain far from comfortable with the signing, we all know we’re stuck with him, so we may as well be glad to see any improvement
Odegaard – 7.5 - back to better form and did well to score a pel and win another
Saka – 8 – shouldn’t have been playing but did well
Jesus – 8 - typically industrious and kept Bournemouth busy up the other end of the pitch
Eddie – 7.5 - similar to Jesus
Subs – all seemed ok
Arteta – 5 – he has to learn to trust his wider squad plus make subs earlier - Saka shouldn’t have been on the coach yet alone on the pitch, and then should have been off at half time - stupid decision which could well cost us given Saka looked crocked at the end of the game
