Arsenal pull off a stunning victory against a strong Liverpool side to go 5 points clear at the top of the table. The Gunners extend their impressive run of form in the league and this has been their best start to a season since the 07-08 season and not to forget the fact that they have secured 10 points more than they got last season around the same time.
So here are the player ratings:
Szczesny: 7.5/10
Was comfortable all through the first half but was troubled a bit in the second. Although he saved a couple of decent shots, had a worrying moment when he gifted the ball to Sturridge but the Liverpool man failed to capitalize on it.
Bacary Sagna: 7/0
Was responsible for Arsenal’s first goal and had a decent game throughout the 90 minutes. Picked up a yellow card for his cynical challenge on Suarez but otherwise managed to contribute well for the cause.
Laurent Koscielny: 8/10
Kept the SAS combination from creating much trouble. Was rock solid throughout the game and kept close quarters on Suarez especially.
Per Mertesacker: 8/10
As effective as his defensive partner was. Although there was a sense of fear when he came up against the Pacey Liverpool striker force, the German managed to stand tall and did the job with utmost perfection.
Kieran Gibbs: 7.5/10
The classic Kieran Gibbs performance. Was tirelessly making forward runs though not very effective and did his defensive duties well apart from a few times when he was caught out of position.
Aaron Ramsey: 8.5/10
The Welsh man scored his 12th goal of the season for club and county today and what a strike it was. After some excellent work from Ozil, Ramsey received the ball which was thunderously struck on the volley by the midfielder. Overall his link play with Cazorla and Ozil was beautiful to watch right from the first half.
Mikel Arteta: 7.5/10
A steady performance from the Arsenal captain linking up the defence and the midfield quite well. However, he was beaten for pace and strength by Sturridge a couple of times which showed why Arsenal need someone like Flamini during high profile clashes.
Mesut Özil: 7.0/10
After running into four games without an assist, the German International gets his name again in the assist books. However, it was not his day and a breathtaking performance for the fans liking.
Santi Cazorla: 8.5/10
The Spaniard was subject to some ridiculous chants by the Chelsea fans during their Capital One Clash but it was a different ball game all together today. Should have got a goal from his exceptional header from almost outside of the box, but it hit the post and fell perfectly to score past an empty net to give the gunners a 1-0 lead.
Thomas Rosicky: 7.5/10
His presence in Arsenal’s midfield gives the team a real sense of urgency and this is certainly the reason why Arsene Wenger likes to play him in big matches.
Olivier Giroud: 7.5/10
You will not see a better striker in the entire league who holds up the ball as good as Giroud. Although not your perfect 30 goals a season/title winning striker, Giroud is a good option to have in your lineup. His little layoffs for his midfielders to exploit and his work rate did the trick for the Gunners today.