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RATINGS: WBA 1-1 Arsenal: Bendtner Poor But Youngsters Dig Deep

By mac14 on September 25, 2013

A very poor first half, a decent second half and a draining 30 minutes of extra time. But eventually we prevailed on penalties and the youngsters showed some real bottle.

Here are my ratings:

Fabianski 7/10

Made a few decent saves and dealt with crosses well throughout the game. Didn’t get his hand to any penalties but didn’t have to as two were blasted wide.

Monreal 7/10

Made himself a hero scoring the winning penalty and had a pretty solid game at left back. He’s certainly a dependable back-up for Gibbs.

Mertesacker 8/10

The big German held things together at the back and made a crucial interception early in the second half which prevented certain goal before making a last ditch clearance off the line in extra time. MOTM

Vermaelen 6.5/10

Not a bad outing for his first start of the season. His position play was a little suspect early on but he settled in to the game. He was booked for a late tackle in the second half, left Berahino free to head home the equaliser and I was disappointed he didn’t take the opportunity to exercise a few daemons by taking a penalty.

Jenkinson 7.5/10

Very good display from Jenks and he was basically our main attacking threat, despite being a right back. Was always an outlet and used his pace well to cause them problems. He also sent in several dangerous crosses.

Arteta 6/10

Looked like he lacking in match sharpness, which is understandable. Gave away a couple of needless free-kicks on the edge of the box and generally looked a little rusty. Was eventually subbed but got some vital minutes under his belt.

Hayden 6/10

Looked a little nervous early on but settled in to the game. Lucky not to be sent off for a reckless tackle on Mulumbu midway through the first half. Eventually subbed.

Eisfeld 6.5/10

Was anonymous for much of the game but popped up with a lovely goal midway through the second half. His touch was excellent and he dispatched is like a seasoned striker. Looks a little lightweight at the top level though, needs to bulk up a bit as he was constantly bullied off the ball.

Gnabry 5/10

Didn’t take his opportunity to shine, unfortunately. Was pretty poor throughout and capped a disappointing display by missing his penalty. Only positive things of note was he won the ball in midfield in the build up to our goal and sent Bendtner clear with a decent through-ball.

Ryo 6/10

Faired slightly better than Gnabry, but only because he sent a few dangerous crosses into the box and he worked tirelessly throughout the game, getting back to Monreal out in defence.

Bendtner 4/10

You can tell he hasn’t had a pre-season! He was terrible for the majority of the game. He looked unfit and did little until he set up the opener with a neat pass to Eisfeld. Scored his penalty as well but wasted a glorious chance to win it in extra time when he was sent clean through, but he dallied and was eventually tackled before he could even get a shot off. He’s nowhere ready to push Giroud for a starting spot.

Subs:

Akpom – 6.5/10 – Battled hard down the right and cooly slotted home his penalty.

Bellerin – 6.5/10 – Went close with a couple of speculative efforts from the edge of the box.

Olsson – 6/10 – Was clam in possession and also showed guts by dispatching his spot kick.

So we’re through to the fourth round where we’ll play Chelsea at the Emirates. The youngsters showed real bottle, especially those who took penalties ahead of their more senior team mates. However, we’ll have to play a lot better than this if we’re to beat Jose Mourinho’s men in a few weeks time.

If you haven’t seen the game or want to relive it, you can watch highlights here before the video gets removed!

What did you make of the game?

12 Comments

UpTheARSEnal

September 25, 2013 at 11:33 pm

Bit harsh on Bendtner..he wasn’t that bad! His pass was great for Eisfeld, he could be a useful player this season to throw on in case we are losing or drawing towards the end of a game (like Tottenham a few years back when he scored the winner with his first touch)

Reply
- Chris
  
  September 26, 2013 at 5:03 pm
  
  I only heard it on radio but he can’t be unfit if he did 120 minutes when needed and then buried a penalty. He also made the goal. Perhaps it is sharpness he lacked and that is understandable. Yes he has been big headed but has played some 30 times for Denmark who are no mugs. Let’s not forget (a couple of years ago) he was getting 20 minutes on the right wing (!) No wonder he got pissed off. I reckon the author should quickly forget his downer on Bendtner. He could be very important in the next 3-4 months.
  
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Benny

September 26, 2013 at 12:14 am

Bit harsh as it was the ‘best game he’s played for arsenal in years’. 😉

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panther

September 26, 2013 at 12:22 am

Giving Bendtner a 4 is stupid and pathetic. Bendtner is nowhere near match fit but he managed to complete 120 minutes and score a penalty in the shoot out..Its so-called ignorant supporters like the author of this article, that fill the Emirates with NEGATIVITY, overtime the team are playing below par. We don’t need idiots like you supporting Arsenal because your to fickle and your negativity is not welcome

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- Chris
  
  September 26, 2013 at 5:06 pm
  
  Furthermore I don’t see what Giroud can do that Bendtner can’t do ? Neither have pace. Bendtner is the better target man. Perhaps Giroud has more presence in the 6 yard box. Both are good footballers without being brilliant.
  
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Max

September 26, 2013 at 12:43 am

Ever get the feeling the author was gonna diss Bendtner whatever?

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rhaz zarim

September 26, 2013 at 1:16 am

TGSTEL is obviously not the best defender either. The goal was his fault not TV5’s. He moved too far out before the cross came back in and missed the header. Watch their goal again and you’ll see what I mean

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Jerry

September 26, 2013 at 8:11 am

The author of this article can’t even kick a ball, b52 nw 23 did well not easy to even play a 45minutes without pre season but he did assist for our goal and score the most important penalty! Appreciate the boy or go and look for another job he will do well as season progress. Good backup for giroud imo, he wasntgiven to walcot eg watch vela is beta than we thougt but was not given the chance, love b52 and fake fans like u wil love him tomorrow just like ramsey’s case

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leirbag

September 26, 2013 at 8:25 am

Bendtner rating at 4? that is totally unfair. I know so many fans don’t like his attitude but i believe he deserves a lot for his contribution on the day. He created an assist, scored the penalty and yet gets less than Gnabry who missed his penalty. What parameters are being used to rate in this article? Is it nationality, height, hair style???? The author is biased or may be he simply lacks knowledge of the game. Had it been Ozil or Giroud in the same position playing just the same, he would have got about 7.5 or 8.

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mac14

September 26, 2013 at 8:50 am

WOW, seems to be a lot of love for Bendtner on here. Obviously you ‘fickle fans’ have short memories.

It’s not my fault he didn’t have a pre-season. The only person to blame is Bendtner himself. He made it clear he didn’t want to play for AFC again but soon returned with his tail between his legs when no other club would pay his crazy wages.

The man was poor last night, simple. I acknowledged his pass for the goal but his is touch was off all night and he fluffed a one-on-one to win the game.

Was he worse than Gnabry? Yes. Gnabry is a young kid learning the game and he got himself on the ball a lot more than Bendtner did. It may not always have worked out for the kid, but at least he was trying to make things happen.

I used to be a big fan of Bendtners but he’s got miles to go before he should be considered for the first team.

Not negativity. Just realistic.

Reply
- leirbag
  
  September 26, 2013 at 9:30 am
  
  Mac14, Gnabry worked so hard, and we all agree but if we judged them only by work rate, most of these players would be starting ahead of Ozil on any day. I also have a problem with Bendtner’s attitude in the past but that shouldn’t be the reason for us to rate him so low in a game. I think the ratings from http://arsenalnews.co/2013/09/26/player-ratings-west-bromwich-albion-1-1-arsenal-3-4-p/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=player-ratings-west-bromwich-albion-1-1-arsenal-3-4-p are more genuine and without bias.
  
  Reply
- Chris
  
  September 26, 2013 at 5:09 pm
  
  Of course his touch was poor 1st time out but Bendtner needs a couple of games and then let’s see. It’s not as though Giroud is a genius.
  
  Reply