The crazy week of FA Cup football continued with Arsenal playing away at Brighton. The Seagulls had a right old go at their more illustrious opponents and almost came back to secure an unlikely draw. The match ended 3-2 in the favour of the Gunners who took an early lead thanks to Theo Walcott before another returning star player, Mesut Ozil made it 2-0.
Brighton & Hove Albion then started to get a grip of the game and pulled a goal back from O’Grady in the 50th minute but Rosicky scored in the 59th minute to make it 3-1 to the Gunners before a goal from Baldock in the 75th minute gave the home team some hope but it was too little too late as Arsenal held on to claim a victory.
We look at the Arsenal player ratings from the game.
Wojciech Szczesny: 6/10
Didn’t really have to do much during the game but was beaten by a couple of cracking finishes during the game.
Kieran Gibbs: 6/10
Gibbs had a solid game for Arsenal, he didn’t really blow anyone away from this performance but was always a willing runner to provide some attacking options down the left hand side.
Nacho Monreal: 5/10
Not really the best game for Arsenal, he was to blame for the Baldock goal and it is a surprise as to why Arsenal play him as a centre back.
Laurent Koscielny: 6/10
Couldn’t really do much to stop the 2 goals. Koscielny was good throughout the game.
Calum Chambers: 4/10
He helped create Arsenal’s first goal but was also culpable for the first goal Arsenal conceded due to an error in judgement.
Mathieu Flamini: 3/10
Didn’t really impress anyone and was pushed off the ball easily for the first goal they conceded.
Aaron Ramsey: 5/10
Ramsey looks a little rusty and although he did do well with the ball, he still needs a few more games to get back to the old Ramsey from last season.
Tomas Rosicky: 8/10
Man of the match without any doubt. His magical display shows he is still a world class midfielder. He drove Arsenal forward and took his goal with super finish. This is the Rosicky that everyone loves and hopefully he can continue this style of play for future games.
Mesut Ozil: 8/10
Looked good in the game and even scored a nice goal, he seemed comfortable on the ball and linked up well with the rest of the midfield.
Theo Walcott: 7/10
Gave Arsenal the perfect start with an early goal, his pace was a problem for the Brighton defence but could not add to his tally in the game.
Olivier Giroud: 7/10
Giroud put in a tough shift today, he might not have scored a goal but he kept the defence busy which helped the other players do so well in the attacking third.
Substitutes:
Francis Coquelin: 5/10
Was brought on to replace Flamini to finish the game off. Coquelin seems to be growing in his stature and position in the club.
Alexis Sanchez: 5/10
Was a surprise substitute brought into the game, while he could have been rested, Sanchez did make a couple of brilliant runs and was deadly with free kicks, though he couldn’t score during this game.
Chuba Akpon: 5/10
Brought on in the 2nd half in place of Giroud, Akpon looked bright and bubbly during the game and did cause a bit of a headache to the Brighton defenders.