This was a big game for the Gunners today. They wanted to prove themselves against a Stoke side who ran riot on them a month ago. It was also a chance to vault ahead of Spurs in the league.

Ospina -6- Very quiet game for Ospina, did everything that was asked of him, even though it was simple. Clean sheet is always nice to see.

Debuchy - n/a - Looked promising at the start of the match. Covered well and looks dangerous attacking. Hopefully his injury isn’t too serious.

Mertesacker -6- Steady game from the big German. Didn’t have much to do but kept Crouchy quiet which can be tricky to do.

Koscielny -7- Good goal from the French defender. Not much asked of him defensively, but dealt with what he needed to. Two tackles and three interceptions. Nice to see him back fully fit.

Monreal- 7- Strong performance today from Monreal. Was strong defensively and closed down the area fast. Head injury had little to no effect on his performance, professional display. Five interceptions is outstanding.

Coquelin-7- Much improved from Coquelin. Commanded the area in front of the defence today. Passing much crisper than last week against Hull. Two tackles and two clearances. Great performance

Rosicky-7- Great game from our mini-Mozart. Another assist for Rosicky. Passed the ball well and wasn’t afraid to get stuck in defensively. 69 passes today, very busy indeed.

Cazorla -8- Fantastic display from the Spaniard. Very nice link up play and was key to our ball movement. 93% pass accuracy says a lot about his performance.

Oxlade-Chmberlain-7- Great day for the Ox. Great link up play and was a pain for the Stoke defence.

Alexis -9- Masterclass form Sanchez. Scored two great goals and had an assist. Absolutely unstoppable today, didn’t poot a foot wrong. Five key passes too, brilliant.

Giroud- 6- Good day for Giroud. Hold up play was nice as well as his link up play with Alexis and Cazorla. Finishing was fairly poor today however. Only one shot on target, but nothing some shooting practice won’t fix.

Subs

Bellerin-7 Great game from Hector. Made Arnautovic look silly at times today. Put in two dangerous crosses into the box. Three tackles and three interceptions, this guy looks the real deal.

Walcott-6 Nice from Walcott today. Made some great runs but just lacked that match fitness. He was about a yard off his normal pace and missed an absolute sitter but that is just a little bit of ring-rust.

Ozil-6 Delighted to see this guy back. Looked hungry and fresh when he came on. Moved the ball with ease and made a nice chance for himself in the process.

Great display from the Gunners today, probably their best exhibition of ball movement this season. Tough defensively, covering was superb and looked ever so dangerous going forward. If they play like this against City, who knows what could happen.