Arsenal player ratings vs Bournemouth as Declan Rice stands out but three stars disappoint again

Arsenal’s chances of qualifying for the Champions League took a genuine blow as they dropped yet more points in the race for a top five finish. However the game would see serious controversy regarding the VAR.

The Gunners had several chances which went astray before taking the lead through Declan Rice. A perfectly weighted pass from Martin Odegaard found the midfielder, rounding Kepa Arrizabalaga and firing into an empty net.

After more chances came and went for the Gunners, Dean Huijsen punished the misses with a headed goal after a long throw and their first shot on target. Then the controversy, Evanilson scored with what appeared to be a clear elbow which by the letter of the law cannot be considered a goal but here, it did.

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Here is how football.london rated the performances of the Arsenal players:

David Raya – A worryingly frequent fixture of the last month or so, a loose pass from the Spaniard into Martin Odegaard could have proven costly. Beaten with a very good header from Huijsen and could not really be criticised for it. It was his distribution that was in question though throughout. 5

Ben White – More so than Jurrien Timber, White likes to overlap and unsurprisingly he did so and found a number of early balls into the box to threaten. 6

William Saliba – Brilliant sliding tackle on Dango Ouattara to deny a clear goalscoring chance, winning the ball cleanly. Despite the clearance leading to the Bournemouth goal it was a brilliant interception on Antoine Semenyo by the Frenchman too in one of his strongest performances. 8

Jakub Kiwior – Found a beautiful long ball through to Gabriel Martinelli that should have been brought down better. Lost Evanilson in the box in the first half from a cross that could have proven costly were it not for the poor finish that followed. 6

Myles Lewis-Skelly – I love watching those runs from deep that seemingly no one is able to stop, he did so again in the first half driving territory up-field. 6

Thomas Partey – Unsurprisingly rusty as the game began with a few misplaced passes. However, he did grow into the game and found some of his characteristic driving moves and passes which will be vital against PSG. 6

Declan Rice – Had the best chance of the opening stages of the game, making a great run through the middle from the number eight position, sadly he dragged his shot wide. Found the net when given another chance however, rounding the Bournemouth keeper with just one touch to score. 8

Martin Odegaard – Out of form until now but finally got himself an assist in a classic way, the perfectly weighted through ball finding Rice for the opener – more like it! Yet he couldn’t help but cause some frustration in the second half where a great chance to shoot came from outside the box but instead he took a poor extra touch and lost possession to the groans of the Emirates Stadium crowd. Then he was weak in the battle with Evanilson for the goal. 6

Bukayo Saka – Found Gabriel Martinelli in the area in the first half in a chance the Brazilian should have taken. Two headed chances came for the winger in the second half but neither had the right execution. He then had a great chance to score from the left, cutting inside onto his right foot before curling a shot inches wide. 6

Leandro Trossard – Big headed chance in the first half saved by Kepa as Trossard operated again in a false nine position.

Gabriel Martinelli – Created the early chance for Rice with a great one-touch pass and then with a cross for Trossard. Had the biggest chance of the half though which sadly a left-footed scuff rolled wide. 6

Substitutes –

Mikel Merino – Came on late but had very little bearing on the performance. 6

Oleksandr Zinchenko – Came on too late to influence proceedings. n/a

Raheem Sterling – Came on too late to influence proceedings. n/a

Ethan Nwaneri – Came on too late to influence proceedings. n/a