Tottenham Hotspur snatched back the bragging rights in North London, as they took revenge for their 2-0 defeat at the Emirates earlier in the season, with a 1-0 victory at Wembley today. Arsenal failed to create enough chances to trouble Spurs, who went ahead through Harry Kane early in the second half, after an eventless first half in the game.
Alli missed a sitter not long later, which saw Arsenal pile some pressure on the hosts late in the game. But most of their attackers were not at their best, as they failed to get back into the game, and surrendered all three points. They are now seven points off Spurs, who could fall to 5th by the end of the round. Here are the player ratings for Arsenal in this frustrating loss:
Petr Cech (5):
Made one superb save to keep Arsenal in the game but was too wasteful with his distribution, inviting pressure on to his backline.
Hector Bellerin (5):
Was a constant presence in the final third for Arsenal but was often caught out at the back, leaving his backline without much cover.
Shkodran Mustafi (4):
Had a solid first half, where he won everything thrown at him but lost the plot in the second, giving away needless fouls and losing possession far too easily.
Laurent Koscielny (4):
Had far too much to do at the back on a number of occasions and was also beaten too easily by Kane, in the air for his winner.
Nacho Monreal (5):
Did everything asked of him in the defensive third of the game but was hardly ever available in the attack, leaving Arsenal a bit short in front of goal.
Granit Xhaka (4):
Was absent far too often, leaving his backline exposed to some immense pressure by Spurs after the break.
Mohamed Elneny (6):
Did nothing fancy and stuck to his task, adding numbers to the backline and frustrating Spurs in and around the box for most of the game.
Jack Wilshere (6):
Arsenal’s most creative outlet, Wilshere had his moments and almost scored. Set up a couple of half chances but did not do enough to steal even a point.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan (3):
Was largely strolling on the field, waiting for the ball to arrive and not looking to make things happen. Failed to create even a single chance of note.
Mesut Ozil (4):
Was too wayward with his passing, gifting the ball to Spurs on more than one occasion as he failed to test their backline.
Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang (4):
Got little service from his midfielders and barely had a sight at goal on a frustrating night.
Substitutes:
Alexandre Lacazette (4):
Came on and helped Arsenal add some pressure and should have equalized when he missed a couple of glorious chances in stoppage time.
Alex Iwobi (4):
Failed to even get his foot in the game and had to do more defensive work than he was brought on for.
Danny Welbeck (N/A)
