Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Brentford: Concerning Gunners Issue Laid Bare

Mikel Arteta’s team were under pressure to get a result after watching Manchester City win 24 hours earlier.

Arsenal leave west London with only a point. | Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside/Getty Images

Arsenal failed an important test of their Premier League title credentials on Thursday night, held to a 1–1 draw by Brentford after not creating enough to deserve anything more.

The Gunners were poor in the first half and looked short on ideas. The start to the second half was at least briefly better, paving the way for Noni Madueke to head Mikel Arteta’s team into the lead.

But that period of Arsenal dominance did not last and Brentford responded well to falling behind. The Bees drew level 10 minutes later, calling on their long-throw prowess as Keane Lewis-Potter scored a header of his own following a flick-on.

In the end, it was like Arsenal were hanging on for a point, rather than chasing a winner, and Brentford may consider this two dropped given their late pressure.

The lead atop the Premier League table has been cut from six points to four since the weekend.

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One Thing We Can’t Ignore

Eberechi Eze underwhelmed. | David Price/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

With Bukayo Saka and Martin Ødegaard both beginning the game on the bench after late fitness assessments, Kai Havertz ruld out altogether and Mikel Merino out long-term, the lack of general creativity from Arsenal was alarming.

The Gunners committed around £120 million ($163.5 million) to sign Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke last summer and, until the latter popped up with an unlikely breakthrough header, neither player offered the attacking spark expected for that level of investment.

Neither created a single chance in the first half, accruing 0.05 in expected assists (xA) between them, with no shots on or off target. The knock-on effect was Viktor Gyökeres being starved of service in open play, with the Swede also failing to register an attempt.

Eze was hooked at half-time as Arteta turned to Ødegaard instead. The club captain knitted things together far better and it was only after a much-improved start to the second half that Arsenal went ahead. Still, Madueke’s goal perhaps masks his otherwise limited impact as well.

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Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Brentford (4-2-3-1)

Piero Hincapié impressed at left back. | David Price/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

*Ratings provided by Fotmob*

GK: David Raya—7.9: Needed to be sharp to keep out Igor Thiago’s first-half header.

RB: Jurriën Timber—6.6: Saw plenty of the ball but Hincapié on the other side did more with it.

CB: Cristhian Mosquera—7.2: Made several clearances when Brentford started the aerial bombardment in the second half. A brilliant recovery in stoppage time prevented Thiago winning it.

CB: Gabriel (c)—7.6: Made a shaky start to the game with a wayward back pass, then got booked just 20 minutes in for a late tackle. He settled down and led the defence well.

LB: Piero Hincapié—8.1: Strong performance up and down the left flank. Always ready to get forward and had his reward by setting up the breakthrough goal, but defensively strong as well.

CM: Martín Zubimendi—6.6: Didn’t have as much control as might be expected. Saw considerably less of the ball than his midfield partner.

CM: Declan Rice—7.8: Found himself locked in a battle with Brentford’s Yehor Yarmolyuk that was fun to watch. As usual, strong on both sides of the ball.

RM: Noni Madueke—7.9: Very hit and miss in his first season as an Arsenal player. It looked like it was going to be the latter until coming out for the second half with a little more about him. Deserves credit for working hard out of possession.

AM: Eberechi Eze—6.0: Fans will be scratching their heads as to how his impact was so limited. Didn’t return for the second half and needs to be doing much more.

LM: Leandro Trossard—7.2: Felt like a more natural threat than any of Arsenal’s other front four.

ST: Viktor Gyökeres—6.4: Didn’t have a lot to feed off. Finished the game without a single shot.

SUB: Martin Ødegaard (46’ for Eze) —6.4: On at half time for his first appearance since January. His presence briefly seemed to spark something Arsenal had been missing. Lacking match sharpness?

SUB: Bukayo Saka (70’ for Madueke) —6.0: Hardly involved, which may be a question of fitness.

SUB: Riccardo Calafiori (81’ for Hincapié) —N/A: Like for like swap at left back.

SUB: Gabriel Martinelli (81’ for Trossard) —N/A: Squandered a late chance with a poor touch

Subs not used: Kepa Arrizabalaga (GK), Ben White, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Christian Nørgaard, Gabriel Jesus.

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What the Ratings Tell Us

Arsenal’s two creators weren’t fit enough to start. | Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

• Arsenal’s overall performance was rather disjointed, particularly until half time, but the team at least appeared to be more cohesive on their left-hand side of the pitch. Gabriel, Hincapié, Rice and Trossard played better, than their right-sided counterparts.
• Ødegaard and Saka didn’t start the game because of fitness doubts and their impact after coming on reflected that. The latter only touched the ball five times in 20 minutes, plus seven of stoppage time.

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The Numbers That Explain Arsenal’s Lack of Output

• Brentford did more and created more to win this game, beating Arsenal on xG, total shots, shots on target and big chances. The visitors might even be lucky not to lose.
• The Gunners also fell behind on their great strength: corners, so there was not even a fallback position to go to from a lack of natural creativity in open play.

Statistic	Brentford	Arsenal
Possession	40%	60%
Expected Goals (xG)	1.34	0.60
Total Shots	12	7
Shots on Target	3	2
Big Chances	3	1
Passing Accuracy	75%	85%
Fouls Committed	12	11
Corners	6	4

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