It was an emphatic win by the Gunners on a night which had many points to prove to everybody. The match saw the return of Theo Walcott, it saw the full debuts of Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. It saw the first career hat-trick of Aaron Ramsey. It saw the free-flowing Arsenal side many had been craving for a long time again.
With the Gunners winning 5-1 on the night, it propelled their late challenge on a top-four challenge and sent out a loud and clear message to the rest of the league about the attacking threat of this Arsenal team.
Here are the Arsenal player ratings.
Petr Cech – 7/10
Was dominant at in between the sticks. Unfortunately limped off after a hard clash with Oumar Niasse.
Laurent Koscielny – 7/10
A no-nonsense display by the Frenchman. Did not allow Niasse to settle in the Arsenal half and won a majority of the contested headers.
Shkodran Mustafi – 7/10
Lunged into an ugly tackle near the corner flag but otherwise a solid outing. Very disciplined at the back. Booked.
Hector Bellerin – 6/10
Ran rampant down the right-hand side but was a bit off with his distribution. Still a decent shift.
Nacho Monreal – 6/10
Almost got himself another goal tonight from an open shot inside the penalty box. Subbed.
Granit Xhaka – 5/10
Not the most decisive presence in the midfield and was caught out of possession a couple of times.
Aaron Ramsey – 9/10
The Welshman got himself into the tight pockets of space in the Everton box to score his first career hat trick. Man of the match.
Alex Iwobi – 6/10
He worked hard on the defensive end and linked up well with the front three.
Mesut Ozil – 6/10
The heart of the Arsenal attacks, Ozil put in another tireless shift and worked well with his new teammates.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 8/10
With three assists tonight the Armenian showed us what he is truly capable of.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 7/10
A cheeky lob over Jordan Pickford got him the goal on his debut. He could have scored another from a one-on-one with the Everton keeper but could not convert.
Substitutes
David Ospina – 5/10
Almost allowed Oumar Niasse to grab the second goal for Everton after coming on but stayed composed for the rest of the game.
Sead Kolasinac – 4/10
Completely off the pace of the game after coming on in the second half. Did not contest Dominic Calvert Lewin’s header and allowed the Toffees to get one inside the Arsenal goal.
Jack Wilshere – 5/10
Gave the team some structure late in the second half.
