Arsenal ended their tour of the US with a convincing 5-3 win over La Liga giants Barcelona.
The Gunners fell behind twice in the first half but responded well with Saka and Havertz making it 2-2 at the break. Saka also missed a first-half penalty at 1-1.
In the second half Arsenal came out strong and went 3 and then 4-2 up through a Leandro Trossard brace. Barcelona scored a late third through a Rob Holding mistake but Arsenal restored their two-goal lead when Fabio Vieira struck late on.
Here’s how I rated the players:
Ramsdale – 5 – Couldn’t do a lot for the goals, but his distribution was poor.
White – 6 – Good on the ball but looked a little off it in his demeanor off the ball and gave away a few silly fouls. Not at his best.
Timber – 7 – Played inverted on the left side, a-la Zinchenko. Did really well defensively in shutting down Raphinha. Again looked really sharp. He probably didn’t invert and get on the ball as much as Arteta may have wanted.
Saliba – 6.5 – Assured, a flashy defensive moment in the first half, couldn’t block the cross for Barcelona’s opener but not a lot to do otherwise.
Gabriel – 6.5 – Did what he needed to do.
Partey – 6.5 – Some really lovely moments to remind us how good he is, but equally he was a little lazy in possession, giving the ball away in some scenarios where it wouldn’t be expected.
Odegaard – 5 – Poor game by his standards. Lost the ball for the first Barcelona goal and then turned his back in the wall for their second.
Havertz – 7.5 – Looked comfortable in the role, a few more deeper touches and another goal for him. Get used to this man scoring at the back post.
Saka – 7 – Good goal, threat as always on the right. Missed a penalty and a good chance at the start of the second half. Will hopefully sharpen up a bit more before the season kicks off.
Trossard – 9 – Leo was magnificent in this game. Some classy touches throughout, combination play was top. He dropped in central areas, rotating with Havertz and Jesus throughout. Two excellently taken goals. He’s very much in line to start the season.
Gabriel Jesus – 8 – No goal, but a brilliant performance from Jesus. So strong, holding the ball up, a world of difference to when Nketiah has led the line. He looked on the edge of his best form again.
Subs:
Smith Rowe (on 45 for Havertz) – 7 – Some really nice touches from Emile. He looked physically sharp and fit and lets hope he can stay that way and really make a difference for us this season.
Other subs had less than 30 minutes to make an impact.