Wanted! A Board With A Clue About Football + Ratings From Bayern Game

Arsenal have it all to do in order to qualify for the quarter finals of the Champions League after losing 3-1 to Bayern Munich in the first leg of their last 16 tie at the Emirates on Tuesday night. Arsenal fan ‘Lloyd the Gooner’ gives his thoughts and ratings from the game.

This is not a game to criticise players who gave their all. The fact that some are totally ill equipped to do what they were asked to do, were limited by their physical capabilities and put in a side that was set up wrongly and completely unbalanced.

So then you turn to the manager and he made all of those mistakes. Just as an example. Giroud has huge shortcomings as a player but why wait so long to bring him on when we struggled to break through their midfield all evening? Look at the space Jack in particular had had late on.

And as for the board…! If any of them gets any remuneration this year… I mean they may as well put on a black mask, stripy shirt and carry the money out in a bag marked ‘swag’. Here are my ratings from the game:

Szczesny 4. Usual flapping about when it mattered. The odd stop but nothing extraordinary. Valdes?

Sagna 7. Ok his crossing wasn’t all that but he fought, tackled covered and battled. That will do for me in a full back.

Mertesacker 2. One enormous liability. He certainly was no Bould, Keown or Adams when he cowered for the first goal. Bye bye.

Koscielny 6. His pace is an asset. He played alongside a man who causes problems for his own team as much as any opponent. I would stick with him and get him a decent partner. Possibly Vermaelen but …

Vermaelen 4. No full back at this level. That said he was given precious little cover by those in front of him. Jack Wilshere was the leader on the pitch but let’s not burden him with that yet!

Arteta 6. Classic example of a good pro doing his best and being exposed buy his manager. Not a defensive midfielder on this or any other planet. It is in games like this that you see what class there is in your team and he is as honest as the day is long but a little bit short at this level.

Wilshere 8. His class showed. I thought he edged it as best player on the pitch. Particularly for driving the game in the second half. The club MUST NOT let this man down by not buying or developing players good enough to play alongside him.

Cazorla 5. I like the player and he has done well for us. Last night he was a little wanting. He was another though that was let down by the system and lack of pace and power around him. He is never going to provide that so Wenger has to find those that can.

Ramsey 1. If you watch carefully he is a cop out merchant. He passes to players who are in a worse position than him so that HE doesn’t lose possession, fouls to cover up an almost comical lack of pace and hardly ever passes forward incisively. He is at Norwich’s level at best. Sorry Aaron but the injury was a long time ago now and you haven’t got what it takes.

Podolski 4. He won’t build the play. He is on the end of things. When there is no supply…he struggles. We must build the base upon which he could flourish.

Walcott 5. Wrongly selected up front. Couldn’t do anything on his own and had little or no service. He is not a lone front man he is (broken record) a Michael Owen type and needs a partner. If not he has to play wide.

Subs

Rosicky. A lively cameo.

Giroud. I place him as better that Bendtner and Chamakh but only just!

What were your thoughts on the game? Get involved in the comments section below.