[Player Ratings] Arsenal 2-2 Hull: Sanchez A Rare Shining Light On Dark Day

Arsenal were held to a disappointing 2-2 draw by Hull City at the Emirates on Saturday afternoon. Here are player ratings from Gooner Mac:

We took a deserved lead in the 13th minute when Alexis Sanchez skipped into the box before firing low past Harper for 1-0. The lead didn’t last long though as Mohamed Diame was fortunate to get away with a foul on Flamini before bursting into the area and chipping Szczesny for 1-1.

The visitors then stunned the Emirates when Hernandez rose above Mertesacker to head home just seconds after half time and it took until the 91st minute before we could find a way through with Sanchez providing a bit of magic to set-up Welbeck who made no mistake for 2-2.

We couldn’t find a last minute winner so it ended 2-2 and it’s another two points dropped. We had plenty of the ball but failed to create clear-cut chances and there was no real urgency in the second half.

These are my ratings:

Szczesny 6/10 | Chipped by a fine Diame finish for the first Hull goal and just about got a finger-tip on the Hernandez header, but otherwise had nothing to do.

Bellerin 6.5/10 | A bright display and one of the few players who really gave his all for the shirt.

Monreal 6/10 | Poor defending allowed Diame to waltz through the defence for the equaliser. Otherwise he did OK.

Mertesacker 5.5/10 | Awful defending for Hull’s second goal as he failed to attack the ball. Made some decent interceptions during the game though.

Gibbs 6/10 | Almost grabbed a last gasp winner but otherwise fairly quiet from him going forwards.

Flamini 5/10 | Another error has cost us points. Sure he was fouled but he should have been much stronger to hold off Diame or at least gone down to win the free kick. He just gave up and threw his arms in the air.

Wilshere 6.5/10 | Was having a decent game and he was looking like the one most likely to create an opening until he stupidly injured himself making a foul in frustration. Hopefully it’s not a serious knee injury.

Cazorla 6/10 | Very frustrating at times as he got in to good positions but chose to pass instead of shooting too often.

Sanchez 8/10 | Superb goal and saved us with a piece of late magic to set up Welbeck. Worked his socks off too. Felt sorry for him playing with players who clearly didn’t care as much as he did.

The Ox 4/10 | Really, really disappointing from Ox. With Ozil out this was his chance to stake a real claim but he fluffed it.

Welbeck 6.5/10 | Worked hard but things didn’t really go his way until the last minute when he cooly slotted home the equaliser.

Subs:

Ramsey 5/10 | A surprise inclusion on the bench and although he put the effort in when he came on, he clearly wasn’t fit.

Campbell 6/10 | Still looks a little raw but showed some real promise too.

So another hugely disappointing result and it’s safe to say any slim hopes of the title are now over for another season. Let’s enjoy the Champions League and our annual push for the fourth-placed trophy come May.