Arsenal managed to grind out a victory over Cardiff City on Tuesday night, but it wasn’t as easy as it should’ve been for Unai Emery’s side.
Arsenal really struggled in the first half of their Premier League clash, and either team could have been in the lead at the break. Though things did improve after that, with a change in formation and the introduction of a couple of substitutes, it still wasn’t vintage Arsenal in the second half either.
Nonetheless, The Gunners got the job done, scoring twice before Cardiff pulled one back with a very late consolation goal.
Let’s have a look at our individual player ratings for the match.
4Substitutes
Alex Iwobi 8
Iwobi came on for the second half and had exactly the impact he needed to have. His pass to Kolasinac to win the penalty was probably the pass of the match, and it changed the whole dynamic of the game. Other than that, he didn’t do too much of note.
Carl Jenkinson 7
Jenkinson was solid after coming on, which made him a big improvement on Lichtsteiner. He played one or two lazy passes, presumably as a result of the fact this was his first Premier League game of the season. Still, the 26-year-old made more tackles than the man he was replacing in significantly fewer minutes, and he worked hard for the team.
Aaron Ramsey 7
Ramsey had a typically energetic cameo appearance, creating one chance and having a couple of shots of his own. He should have scored a header after being well set up by Lacazette.