Aaron Ramsey, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have been named in the BBC’s team of the week.

Arsenal had a number of excellent performers during their 5-1 win over Everton last Saturday.

Ramsey scored the first hat-trick of his professional career, Mkhitaryan set-up three goals throughout the game and Aubameyang scored his first goal for the club.

The three were picked by Garth Crooks to be in his team of the week.

In his column for the BBC, Crooks was full of praise for one of them, but was incapable of commenting on the other two without being back-handed.

4 feb bbc totw
via BBC

On Mkhitaryan, he said: “I liked Henrikh Mkhitaryan at Borussia Dortmund, I liked him at Manchester United and I adored what he did for Arsenal against Everton.

“Mkhitaryan was used and abused at United but, under more of an ‘artistic director’, the Armenia captain looks as if going to be a big hit for the Gunners.”

On Ramsey, the man who scored a hat-trick and had a very fine game, he said: “Arsenal’s 3-1 defeat at Swansea last Tuesday was a joke. Everton’s first-half performance against Arsenal four days later was even worse.

“Just when I was expecting a sweet toffee, I got a sour taste.

“Meanwhile, Wales international Aaron Ramsey would not have enjoyed being humiliated by the Swans but at least his hat-trick against a very poor Everton might make travelling home to the Valleys a little more bearable.”

I’m sure that Ramsey’s first thought after the game was that he’d be spared some embarrassment whenever he visits Swansea.

Crooks was even more snide about Aubameyang, wondering if the Arsenal fans or Arsene Wenger were going to ruin another player.

“The finish by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang against Everton on Saturday was pure class. But are the Arsenal fans or manager Arsene Wenger, for that matter, going to destroy another top-class player in order to play in a particular manner?

“Alexandre Lacazette looks as if he has now become surplus to requirements because of Wenger’s insistence that two up front cannot work. Correction – two up front does not work for him.

“Meanwhile, he is destroying strikers with every stroke of his Montblanc – ask Olivier Giroud. Let’s hope Aubameyang survives Wenger’s blame game.”

This column seems less a celebration of the best performers over the weekend and more an excuse to rag on the club.

I guess we should expect nothing less from a former Stoke, Tottenham and Manchester United man.