Well that could’ve definitely been easier.

The 2-1 scoreline against Crystal Palace is rather deceiving and I’m still not entirely sure how we won the game.

Although we had our moments of attacking brilliance, overall we seemed quite disorganized, languid and just not sharp enough. Our passes were all over the place and we couldn’t seem to keep hold of the ball for more than a few seconds.

Saying that, the attacks we did manage to stage were slick and, as the two goals and three points suggest, reasonably successful.

David Ospina 7.5

In contrast to many of the games we’ve played him in, Ospina actually had quite a bit to do today and although he didn’t pull off any gravity-defying saves, he didn’t really need to. What was thrown (or kicked) his way, he managed to scoop up neatly.

Calum Chambers 7

Although he looked a bit vulnerable at points and gave away some freekicks in key areas, he also made some good interceptions.

Per Mertesacker 7

The BFG made some good headed clearances and seemed the most secure out of our back four.

Laurent Koscielny 6.5

Had one of his rare not-so-great games. He gave away the ball in dangerous areas and made a few wayward passes. However, towards the end he also used his speed to get back and prevent Palace from going one-on-one with Ospina.

Nacho Monreal 6

Monreal just didn’t have a good game today. It happens. Early on he was slipping over (as were a few of our players), getting out-skilled and overtaken by Wilfried Zaha. In the second half he managed to switch on a bit more but still wasn’t the Monreal we’ve grown used to this season. However, having an off game once in a while is completely normal and I doubt it’s anything to worry about.

Francis Coquelin 7

When he went in with that high foot early on I was just about ready to put money on him getting sent off. The fact that he didn’t, shows he’s learned to settle down. He also made some important clearances in the second half.

Santi Cazorla 8

Although he didn’t have an excellent game, he was still one of our best players and still a lot better than most.

Danny Welbeck 7.5

I don’t think he had too bad a game; he seemed a lot sharper than on the ball than other games and his passing was better than a lot of our team. He managed a couple of cheeky passes in and around the area as well, which I grinned manically at and got two assists.

Mesut Ozil 8.5

I could watch him play all day. In my opinion, he was our best player today. He even managed to stage a one man attack at one point (which Alexis failed to finish). He makes back heels look easy.

Alexis 7.5

Not his best game in an Arsenal shirt and he seemed to be falling over a lot. He also failed to put away a couple of goals from wonderful passes, which would have definitely put the game to bed.

Olivier Giroud 7.5

Another who didn’t have an excellent game but was perhaps one of our better players. His size and strength makes his hold up play look easy. He also scored, which is nice.

SUBS

Keiran Gibbs  6

He gave away a few freekicks but was generally solid when he game on, despite the nervy last minute.

Tomas Rosicky 6.5

He always excites me when he comes on. He never hides and always looks like he wants to do something meaningful.

Gabriel N/A

Only had minutes on the pitch.