Liverpool 1 Arsenal 1 - Player Ratings

[asajoseph]

Almunia - 4 - Lived up to every criticism, completely clueless on high balls, weak at the near post for the goal.

Sagna - 4 - Obviously hasn't bothered practising crossing, must have had 7-10 wasted crosses to nobody in the box, could barely get the ball above knee height.

Vermaelen - 6 - Not a bad overall performance, but completely roasted by Ngog for the Liverpool goal.

Koscielny - 8 - Unlucky to end up sent off (so we will miss him for the Blackpool game after all), and got caught on the wrong side once or twice, but overall a very calm performance. Solid.

Clichy - 4 - Added a bit more to our attack than Sagna, but looked very weak in defence against Kuyt. Caught out far, far too many times.

Diaby - 6 - Reasonably solid in possession, his usual strong self on the ball. However, slowed the game down far too much at times, and barely got above walking pace for a lot of the game.

Wilshere - 5 - His touch was a bit heavy at times, especially around the crucial areas of the field. Not too bad, and got his head up well, but needs to push on in the final third.

Nasri - 7 - Excellent in the first half, vanished in the second. Controlled the game very well for 45 minutes, and was the one player who looked like making things happen. When we went into our shells in the second half, he couldn't get himself back into the game.

Arshavin - 3 - Almost nothing he did came off, couldn't execute basic passes, isolated too often on his flank, dribbled up too many blind alleys. Shouldn't have had 90 minutes.

Eboue - 5 - Involved in one or two positive moments in the first half, but like Nasri disappeared in the second completely, and didn't cause too many problems up the right flank.

Chamakh - 4 - Hiding to nothing, completely isolated a lot of the time, but his touch was really, really poor. Did well to force the goal, and can't blame him for the lack of service, but he needs to be able to put his foot on the ball better than that.

Subs:

Theo - 6 - Managed to buzz around in dangerous positions, and at least gave us more of an option into feet, which we really needed.

Rosicky - 7 - Played pretty well when he came on, made a difference especially when he pushed more central. Good cross to force the goal too, about our only one.

Van Persie - 5 - Didn't really have long enough to exert much influence.

 

[kel varnsen]

thought nasri was poor today. he kept waiting for an opening to play that one, brilliant pass, but in doing so, he constantly slowed down our passing game. waiting endlessly for that one opening/run that never came.

hopefully fabregas is back for the next game, because we are pretty useless without him.

 

[P_Gunner]

Almunia - 5 - Once again good reflex saves but poor at everything else. I think a WC goalkeeper could have saved N'gog's goal.

Sagna - 6 - Good defensively poor offensively

Vermaelen - 7 - Good game

Koscienly - 6.5 - good debut

Clichy - 5 - Very bad defensively

Wilshere - 6 - expected more from him. His first touch let him down on many occasions which was surprising.

Nasri - 8 in the first half, probably about 7 in the second. Very encouraging display from him.

Diaby - 6.5 - His technique looks a bit shabby when compared to last year, but thats probably due to lack of match fitness.

Arshavin - 4 - Worst player of the match. Did nothing after the 25th minute.

Chamakh - 5 - Never got enough support. I liked him running down lost causes, pressing and attacking all balls that he could. Its something we need.

Eboue - 5.5 - Nothing he tried really came off.

Walcott - 6.5 - Looked decent when coming on. Had two pretty good shots.

RVP - N/A - Never did much after coming on.

Rosicky - 7 - Looked good after coming on. Hope he can keep it up.

 

[outlaw_member]

What a ****ing useless forum. Dies everytime we need it.

Almunia 5 - His part in the conceded goal was slightly overblown but continued to flap like a fish.

Sagna 6 - Some decent crosses, but his offensive play makes me cry.

Koscielny 7 - Very happy with his performance today.

Vermaelen 6 - Should have closed down N'Gog alot quicker, but otherwise was steady.

Clichy 4 - Atrocious performance. He looked like a school boy out there. How long will Wenger persist with what's starting to look like another failed project.

Wilshere 4 - Was at fault for the goal and caught in possession a few times. Still, which genius thought that he could play as a DCM?

Diaby 5 - Won some tackles, and generally helped us forget that we were lacking a proper DM. Still underhits passes and looks like the same old player from last season, decent/good but not enough to be a starter.

Eboue 6 - One of the better players on the pitch and that sums up how poor we were. Direct and tried to drive the team forward.

Arshavin 4 - As I suspected prior to the game, he's going to be a very frustrating player this season. Looks like our front three's ability has gone down another notch.

Nasri 5 - Average, as usual. Takes too long on the ball and fails to see things develop in front. If this game is anything to go by, all the recent hype has been misplaced.

Chamakh 4 - Very poor, touch was off, link up play was bad and generally looked out of his depth. Needs more games to get used to PL defending.

 

[Lord Dula]

We missed cesc and bendtner a lot today

 

[gstew]

Almunia - 5

Sagna - 6 Poor crossing, decent defending.

Vermaelen - 7.5 Could do nothing on the goal as we were in possession and Ngog got the ball and turned immediately. Led all over the pitch.

Koscielny - 7.5 Love his speed. First yellow came because of a horrible touch by him, but otherwise was excellent with the ball.

Clichy - 6.5 Got beaten by nutmeg twice.

Diaby - 4 Was awful. Ponderous in possession and very bad passing. Tackling was average.

Wilshere - 4 Goal was completely his fault plus caught in possession too often. His passing was also poor at times. If he wasn't 18 and English the press and commentators would be screaming about him having a howler.

Nasri - 7 First half looked like preseason.....just excellent. Went missing in the second.

Arshavin - 4 If he wasn't fit then Vela should have played. If he was fit, then shame on him.

Eboue - 5.5 Mixture of poor and positive.

Chamakh - 6 Caused the goal. RVP and Bendtner would not have made that play. Otherwise a quiet first game.

Subs:

Theo - 6.5 Did well enough

Rosicky - 7.5 Played well and would have scored if not for an absolutely amazing save by Reina.

Van Persie - 6 Showed a bit of quality, but hardly got involved.

 

[MAK 14]

Almunia: 4 - At fault for the goal, made a few poor decisions.

Sagna: 6 - Good defensively, added nothing offensively. Same old, same old really.

Vermaelen: 6 - Good at the back, probably should have put away his chance though.

Koscielny: 8 - Our best player, looked calm and composed on the ball. Glad he could carry on. Very harsh decision to send him off.

Clichy: 5 - Had a pretty poor game, got beaten by Kuyt far too many times. Added nothing in attack.

Diaby: 6 - Good in possession and under pressure, but he needs to improve off the ball. He's far too static at times.

Wilshere: 5 - Didn't have a great game, really shouldn't have made the mistake that lead to the goal.

Nasri: 7 - Very good under pressure and in tight spaces, but his final ball let him down at times. Kept possession well.

Arshavin: 3 - Unbelievably poor, it really wasn't his day. Gave basic passes away and really added nothing to the team.

Eboue: 6 - Started off well, attacked the full back a lot and tried to make things happen. Disappeared in the second half.

Chamakh: 5 - Had no service whatsoever, but when he did get the ball his touch let him down at times. Credit to him for his part in the goal

Subs:

Theo: 5 - Added obvious pace to our game, but a few of hiw crosses were really poor. If he had cut the ball back to Robin at the end we could have very well won the game.

Rosicky: 7 - Played well when he came on, unlucky not to score. Probably should have done better with his chance.

Van Persie: 5.5 - Played a few nice balls and looked a threat. Should have come on a good 10 minutes before he did.

 

[Dennis10]

thought nasri was poor today. he kept waiting for an opening to play that one, brilliant pass, but in doing so, he constantly slowed down our passing game. waiting endlessly for that one opening/run that never came.

This is spot one. Nasri has so many good first touches, but at the same time fails to pick out his pass quick enough. Poor movement can probably take some of the blame, but dwelled on the ball far to much to deserve a 7 i my opinion.

 

[MDGoonah41]

7 - Koscienly
6 - Vermaelen, Diaby, Rosciky
5 - Nasri, Walcott, Chamakh
4 - Sagna, Eboue
3 - Almunia, Clichy, Wilshere, Arshavin

N/A - RvP

 

[fabo]

Almunia........3....giant at him. Considering he had so little to do aswell. Weak attempt for the goal and the flapping was horrible to watch.

Sagna.......5......gone backwards it seems.
Koscielny.........7......did pretty well. Many tough tests ahead for him.
TV.......6......OK.
Clichy.......4....embarassing. Gibbs is not far away.

Diaby.......6.....used his strength well but passing is too casual.
Nasri.......6....so much for his great form. Decent first half but failed in the second. Lots of nice touches but nothing comes of his work.
Wilshere........5

Eboue.......5.......runs and runs and then nothing. He's a f**king RB Wenger.
Chamakh......5....feeding off scraps really. Sloppy on the ball aswell.
Arshavin........3.....like Clichy, embarassing stuff. Fat f**k. Turning into a joke player.

Rosicky......6...thought Rosicky did OK. More offensive play in his cameo than Nasri in the whole game. Tried a nice through-ball which was close and dangerous ball for the leveller. Missed a sitter though.
Theo......4....garbage. Can't control the ball.
RVP.....5....touch looked rusty. Nice lay-off for Rosicky though.

 

[arsmile]

Al-5-andy gray et al were blaming al for the goal before it even happened. Not an unsavable shot but hardly a howler, not really ‘one you expect your keeper to be saving’ but that kind of shot is one almunia has had difficulties with in the past. - Couple of decent saves, couple of flaps, good distribution..but not a great display overall..if a new keeper comes in...fair enough...but he’s currently still the best at the club by a long shot...far from the most culpable player today....and in the end put in the best goalkeeping performance on the pitch

Sagna-6- alright all round

Kos-8- great debut, really strong and quick- got hit hard but played on, no way he should have got red

Verm-7- good, like the look of this partnership

Clichy-1- picked up where he left off last season, all our problems came down his side, continually raped, nothing offensively gets too tight and sucked out of position, gave away silly fowls, done time and tiem again in the first half and second. Give gibbs a chance

Diaby-4- decent first half really really rubbish second

Nasri-7- very good

Wilshere-4- good first half, really stupid and sloppy for the goal- I’d say it was primarily his fault

Eboue-5- good first half rubbish second

Arshavin-4- a bit below average all round

Chamakh-6- solid enough, good work for the goal

Rosicky-7- big positive impact

Theo-6- came on upfront and was rubbish, created some openings out wide

Robin-6- why did we leave it so late, opened them up a couple of times when on


Basically, good first half where we didn’t create enough chances, poor second half where we got lucky. But we fought for our point and we’ve got to be happy with that overall having gone one down. But we did not do enough to take advantage of Liverpool when they had 9/10 men.

That’s not the first time we’ve conceded straight after half time like hat- makes you wonder about the state of mind the players were in when they returned to the pitch after their half time team talk.

Positives- kos+verm partnership/nasri/rosicky
Negatives- clichy (massively incompetent display)/wilshere

 

[-Shaun-]

Starting 11:

Almunia - 5 - Should have saved N'Gogs goal IMO. Apart from that he was okay, apart from being dodgy at a few corners.

Sagna - 6 - Terrible going forward, crosses were shocking. Defensively he was decent though.

Vermaelen - 6 - Mainly at fault for their goal, should have blocked the shot. Apart from that alright I guess.

Koscielny - MOTM - 8.5 - Very impressed today. Can't be faulted for their goal whatsoever, extremely solid. Played on through an injury and it payed off for us. Unlucky to get sent off at the end.

Clichy - 5 - Wasn't very good defensively at all against Kuyt. Slightly worrying about that, but was good attacking-wise.

Diaby - 7 - Good game from him IMO. Was assured in possession and controlled in dribbling going forward. Didn't do anything magnificent, but a good defensive-midfielder performance from the big lad.

Wilshere - 5 - His touch was a bit heavy at times, especially around the crucial areas of the field. Not too bad, and got his head up well, but needs to push on in the final third.

Nasri - 7.5 - Showed some great touches, especially in the first-half. Was very hard to knock off the ball. Thought his final ball let him down slightly though, apart from that he was good.

Arshavin - 4 - Awful.

Eboue - 6.5 - Didn't do anything right or wrong. Too ineffective for a right-winger. Looked upset when he got subbed off as well, wouldn't stop shaking his head at Arsène's decision.

Chamakh - 5 - Quite isolated and didn't have much at all to feed off. Showed some good touches though and did well to pressure Reina into making that vital mistake at the end. Looking for more from him though in next games to come.

Subs:

Theo - 6 - Was okay when he came on. Had one decent free-kick which Reina saved quite comfortably. Another of his curling shots went fairly high and wide. Would be nice to see him start at Blackpool.

Rosicky - 7.5 - Very impressed for the half an hour or so he was on. Made a big influence, put some great crosses in their box. The one for our goal was fantastic, made it very hard for Reina to deal with.

Van Persie - 6 - Didn't have a great deal of time to make a big difference to the game. Just sprayed a few passes around and helped bringing the midfielders forward.

 

[Kroket]

Almunia 4

Sagna 5
Koscielny 8 - Very, very impressive
Vermaelen 7
Clichy 4

Wilshere 5 - Should be played further up field until he matures
Diaby 5
Nasri 6

Eboue 4
Chamakh 5
Arshavin 3 - Dreadful

Rosicky 7
Walcott 5
RVP -

 

[jay-d]

Almunia - 4 - Not good enough for Arsenal.

Sagna - 5 - Decent defensivley , useless going forward.

Vermaelen - 6 - Partly to blame for the goal.

Koscielny - 7 - Decent debut- Harsh sending off.

Clichy - 3 - Defensivley hasnt got a clue and hasnt had for a while, time to play gibbs who is a least a threat going forward.

Diaby - 6 - Rusty due to lack of match time but was steady.

Wilshere - 4 - Occasion got to him but played far to deep, touch was off and passing was also.

Nasri - 7.5 - Excellent in the first half, man of the match even though he faded like the whole team in the 2nd half.

Arshavin - 2 - Awful, Inept, disinterested. I could go on. Quickly turning into my least favourite player.

Eboue - 5 - Average

Chamakh - 4 - Horrible touch, horrible performance. Made a nuicance of himself for the goal.

Subs:

Theo - 6.5 - Tried to make things happen and was a change to the walking pace the rest had.

Rosicky - 7 - Well played. Made things happen.

Van Persie - 5 - No influence.

 

[mo50]

Almunia 5 - I don't think there was much he could've done about the goal. At least he didn't **** up

Sagna 6 - Solid defensively.

Koscielny 7 - Had a very good debut. I felt the red card was harsh. Atkinson just wanted to even things up and send one of ours off.

Vermaelen 6 - Typical Vermaelen performance, although he should've done better for the goal.

Clichy 3- This man's severely deteriorated. Johnson was beating him for fun, and he looked clueless defensively. I think it's a matter of time before Gibbs overtakes him.

Wilshere 5- Kept things neat and tidy. He had a spastic moment for the 'Pool goal though.

Diaby 6- I thought Diaby did pretty well.

Eboue 5- He was involved with a lot of the action early on, but did nothing of note.

Arshavin 2 - I thought he was the worst player on the pitch. Didn't contribute to anything going forward and looked too overweight.

Nasri 6- Looked very good early on in the first half, but his influenced waned as the game went on.

Chamakh 5 - He wasn't really a factor in the game today. He won a few headers and kept it clean, but his touch was slightly off and he didn't have any goalscoring opportunities.

Rosicky 7- I thought he was a bright spark when he came on. Nearly managed to score a beauty and kept things ticking. He made an impact when he was on.

Theo 5- Besides the decent freekick, he was anonymous. Never have I seen a player run ahead of the ball more times than Walcott.

 

[giuliob]

Almunia - 4.5 I cringe everytime there is a set piece/free kick
Sagna - 5.5 Solid, workmanlike performance
Kos - 6.5 An excellent debut apart from the red, otherwise a higher mark
TV - 5.5 Did okay but the Pool kid ran him ragged
Clichy 5 At least he didn't putz around with the ball near his goal
Diaby - 6 Played his defensive position well, surprised there were no stand out stupid plays on his part
Nasri - 6 Excellent 1st half, but couldn't get his mojo working the 2nd, seemed lost
Jack - 5 Showed glimpses of his talent, major error on the Pool goal
Eboue - 5.5
AA - 3.5 Embarassing
Chammy - 5 Given it was his debut in the PL, I'll go easy. He was another player who seemed lost or unaware of his surroundings at times. Hopefully, this test against a physical Pool will do him some good

Rozicky - 6.5
Theo - 5.5
RVP - 5.5

 

[outlaw_member]

This is spot one. Nasri has so many good first touches, but at the same time fails to pick out his pass quick enough. Poor movement can probably take some of the blame, but dwelled on the ball far to much to deserve a 7 i my opinion.

Nasri takes alot of great technical touches, but he doesn't see a picture, then turns back and loads a short pass out to nowhere. A perfect example was when he was on the edge of the box, Arshavin gave him the ball who then made a run on the outside of the CB, there was sufficient space to play him in, but Nasri took the ball, done a few swivels and passed it backwards.

 

[Armor for Sleep]

Almunia 5 - Lacked authority as usual and beaten at the near post as usual.

Sagna 7 - Good defensively and I thought he was decent going forward contrary to popular opinion. Put in some decent crosses - not his fault that they were cleared.

Koscielny 6 - Not as impressed as some. Not great in the second half, some rash moments. Decent debut though.

Vermaelen 6.5 - Should have done better for the goal.

Clichy 6 - Caught out at times, not great in possession.

Diaby 6.5 - Decent considering he had no pre-season and was playing in a deeper role.

Wilshere 6 - A little bit out of his depth but promising none the less. Didn't shirk responsibility one bit.

Nasri 6.5 - Tidy but didn't really do anything of note either.

Eboue 6 - Not good, not bad.

Chamakh 5 - Disappointing start.

Arshavin 3 - I thought he was looking sharp and fit at first. Turns out he's still fat and not much use.

Walcott 6 - Did OK.

Rosicky 7.5 - Injected life into the team and was our creative force when we needed it. Not surised to see him play well, seeing as he was in a central role. Still a quality player in that position IMO.

Van Persie - N/A.

 

[Lukazan]

Almunia - 4 Not sure a lot of other goalkeepers would have saved NGog's shot tbh but he was a wreck from set-pieces.

Sagna - 5 Defensively sound but offensively he is dire and his crossing is pathetic.

Vermalean - 5 Reasonably solid but at fault for the goal.

Koscielny - 6 Encouraging debut.

Clichy - 4 All over the place defensively.

Diaby - 4 Typical Diaby. One or two bright moments, a load of horrible ones too.

Wilshere - 4 Also at fault for Liverpool's goal and lost the ball too easily at times.

Eboue - 5 Bright first 20 minutes or so but then faded.

Nasri - 6 Got on the ball a lot and tried to make things happen but it just wasn't his day.

Arshavin - 3 Woeful.

Chamakh - 5 Not sure he could have done much else to be honest.. very isolated. As Asa said, his first touch was poor. Credit to him for the pressure on Reina which lead to our goal though.


Walcott - 6 Positive, and definitely livened us up when he came on but failed to spot 3 Arsenal players free in the box with a break late on and instead tossed a blind ball in to the box.

RVP - 5 No real impact.

Rosicky - 7 After how poor Rosicky was last season this was definitely encouraging. Carried the ball well, and unlucky not to grab an equaliser. More of the same please.

 

[Raider]

Almunia - 3 - The amateur performances continue.

Sagna - 4 - standard.

Vermaelen - 6 - Not a bad overall performance, with the chances he got attacking liverpools goal, I expected him to score at least one.

Koscielny - 7 - Seems like a confidance type player. Didn't like the way he was holding his leg during the cole incident, but came through it.

Clichy - 5 - Decent

Diaby - 5 - Dopey

Wilshere - 5 - Seemed frightened and didn't really want the ball. rushed his passing, and didn't sprint back on 2 occasions , possibly more, when Liverpool players were bombing past him.

Nasri - 7 - A few neat touches, but failed to have any sort of killer ball to creat a chance let alone a goal scoring opportunity. Seems to slow our play too.

Arshavin - 3 - Was he even playing? He gets very lethargic when lesser players are around him. Stars seem to bring the best out of this guy.

Eboue - 4 - Can't remember him doing anything except lose the ball, and continually collapse in a heap on the ground.

Chamakh - 4 - I though his first touch was poor, passing was heavy and didn't move around as much as I'd like him too. Didn't attack the ball when we crossed it either. Skrtel did a job on him.

Subs:

Theo - 6 - Meh

Rosicky - 6 - Played pretty well. Should have burried his chance.

Van Persie - 5 - Didn't really have long enough to exert much influence.