Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal: Player ratings as Emery picks up three points

It ended up being another three points for Arsenal, but how did the players fare at St. James’ Park?

Arsenal came up against Newcastle United at St. James’ Park this afternoon. It was never going to be an easy task, given Arsenal’s away record in recent history, and Newcastle’s unpredictability. However, the Gunners saw themselves out of Newcastle with all three points.

Goals from unexpected sources are what got them through. Granit Xhaka scored a fantastic free kick, while Mesut Ozil coolly slotted home, both goals came in the second half. But we already know that, let’s get into the player ratings!

GK: Petr Cech – 6/10

He wasn’t tested much, yet he still let in a goal. You can pin that on the quality of the header if you wish, but it certainly doesn’t look good for Petr Cech. He didn’t look the most composed either, which doesn’t come as a surprise. There was a moment in the first half where he was forced to put the ball out of play, following a calm pass from Mustafi.

The calls to start Bernd Leno have never been louder. It’s important Emery listens to this, as the last thing Cech would want is to have his legacy tarnished. As Emery looks to deploy a style of playing out from the back, Leno is undeniably much more able to achieve this task than Cech, so it certainly makes sense.

Still, that was the only negative of the day, let’s lighten the mood…