ARSENAL got back to winning ways in the Premier League with a convincing 5-0 win over struggling Sheffield United.
Eddie Nketiah was the man of the moment as his hat-trick helped the Gunners bounce back from last week’s disappointing 2-2 draw with Chelsea.
It was a dominant performance from Mikel Arteta’s side, with David Raya barely even getting a touch on the ball.
As Arsenal climb back up to second in the table, SunSport’s Emillia Hawkins rates the performance.
David Raya – 7
The Spaniard was back beaming with confidence today.
But that might be because he barely had anything to do.
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His distribution was great whenever he picked up the ball direct from a set-piece and looked to send it straight out to rapid winger Martinelli.
Ben White – 8
White has been one of Arsenal’s most consistent players so far this season.
He put on another strong performance in defence and even left the Sheffield United players stunned at one point with an audacious bit of skill in midfield.
William Saliba – 8
Cool, calm and collected at the heart of the back four.
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He didn’t face too much pressure from the Sheffield United attack throughout the game, but whenever there looked to be the slightest hint of a threat he dealt with it as if he were in a training session.
Jakub Kiwior – 8
He has had limited minutes so far this season, but he certainly made these ones count with a composed performance in defence.
Oleksandr Zinchenko – 8
Another brilliant display from Zinchenko, who barely put a foot wrong all game.
With Arsenal dominating the ball, he regularly moved inside to midfield where he was able to open up play with some clever passes.
Declan Rice – 8
Another top performance from the £105million man.
He controlled the midfield once again and added another assist to his account with an excellent cross to Nketiah in the first half.
Kai Havertz – 6
It was another quiet day for Havertz.
He barely touched the ball in the first half and although he appeared to get more involved during the second half he struggled to create anything.
The midfielder came close to getting Arsenal’s sixth with the last touch of the game, but he hit the side netting.
Emile Smith Rowe – 7
On his first Premier League start for the Gunners in 530 days he didn’t look out of place at all in midfield.
He provided the assist for Nketiah’s third goal.
Bukayo Saka – 8
Saka led his team out for the first time today – and it was a real captain’s performance.
The winger perhaps lacked a bit of sharpness in the first half, but even when he’s not performing at his best he is always able to pop up with something.
This time, it was the assist to Nketiah’s crucial second goal, which certainly helped to ease any pressure on the Gunners.
Eddie Nketiah – 9
Despite a quiet start to the game the striker popped up in the box at just the right moment to break the deadlock.
He controlled Rice’s cross with a perfect first touch, taking the ball around former team-mate Auston Trusty before slotting it past Wes Foderingham.
Nketiah then made the most of a corner from Saka in the second half, once again bringing the ball down with an excellent touch before firing his shot into the top-right corner from close range.
And he sealed his hat-trick with a world-class strike, leaving the Emirates Stadium stunned.
Gabriel Martinelli – 7
Caused several problems for Jayden Bogle on the right, especially in the first half.
However, his end product wasn’t the best.
Substitutes
Takehiro Tomiyasu (for White, 65) – 8
Solid defensively once again and even got on the scoresheet for Arsenal’s fifth – his first goal for the club.
Leandro Trossard (for Martinelli, 65) – 8
The winger made an instant impact as soon as he was introduced, taking the intensity up a level with his explosive runs both on and off the ball.
Reiss Nelson (for Saka, 73) – 7
A positive performance from the substitute, who was introduced to replace Saka.
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Fabio Vieira (for Smith Rowe, 73) – 8
Scored Arsenal’s fourth with a composed penalty after making a run into the box to win the spot-kick.
Mohamed Elneny (for Rice, 89) – 6
Didn’t have enough time to make too much of an impact.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
