Preston 0-3 Arsenal Player Ratings as the Gunners comfortably cruise into the EFL quarterfinals

Arsenal breezed into the quarterfinals of the EFL Carabao Cup with a victory over Preston North End. In all honesty, the game was quite one-sided and the Preston players seemed well out of their depth at times. However, the home side was cheered on by their fans at the Deepdale stadium from start to end, as they welcomed one of the Premier League’s best sides. On the night, the Championship team was unable to get going and failed to give a good account of themselves. 

As for Arsenal, they played much more freely, with a certain fluidity that has rarely been seen from them in the League this season. For once it was good to see the team have the majority of the possession and play their way into well-crafted attacks. All in all, it was a solid performance from the Gunners, who were able to rotate out a lot of their injured and tired players from the weekend and before.

Preston Player Ratings vs Arsenal

Goalkeeper

Freddie Woodman: 6/10- Grew into the game gradually and improved his distribution. Did well, despite the scoreline, to keep the scoreline from becoming ridiculous or anything too embarrassing. 

Defenders

Andrew Hughes: 6/10- Did alright to keep Sterling in check in the first half and won most of his duels. Could have done well to keep his composure at times, which eventually saw him pick up a card. 

Liam Lindsay: 6/10- Shaky in possession at times but did well in terms of winning ground and aerial duels. Had a couple of opportunities at the opponent’s goal but was unable to really trouble the keeper.

Jack Whatmough: 5.5/10- Had a very difficult game and was outdone on a few occasions. Although he was better than his partner playing out, his defensive frailties were too much to overlook.

Kaine Kesler-Hayden: 5/10- Had a pretty rough time trying to keep up with Martinelli and even picked up a card pretty early for an unnecessarily rash challenge. Could not do much to help his winger moving forward either.

Midfielders

Ryan Ledson: 5.5/10- Couldn’t really get into the game and had a tough time keeping up with the Arsenal midfielders. That said, the skipper did his best to try and get stuck in defensively but could have contributed more throughout the game. 

Stefán Teitur Þórðarson: 6/10- Fared slightly better than his fellow midfield partners, putting himself about and trying to win the ball. Unfortunately, faded quite quickly during the second half and was not able to keep up with the pace of the game. 

Duane Holmes: 6/10- Struggled to keep up with the opponent players and had to resort to lunging into tackles to try and regain possession. Was better in the second half when his team saw more of the ball. 

Attackers

Jeppe Okkels: 6/10- Got stuck in defensively to help out his teammates as much as he could. With the game being one-way traffic for its majority, Okkels did not have much of a chance to impose himself in attack.

Josh Bowler: 5/10- Quite poor considering that he was one of the team’s key outlets and a way to get out of their own half. Was bullied off the ball too easily and failed to really make anything happen with the ball.

Sam Greenwood: 6/10- Became a bit of a bystander for the majority of the first half, but did well to run at the defense when he had the opportunity and at least gave the opposite side something to be wary of. Delivered a couple of very useful dead balls as well.

Substitutes

Mads Frøkjær-Jensen: 5/10- Wasteful on the break and too moody whilst doing his defensive duties. The manager would perhaps have liked more from a creative player like him.

Brad Potts: 6.5/10– Defended well and truly solidified the backline with his presence. His last-man goal line save was probably the most impressive action from any of the defenders on the day. 

Emil Riis Jacobsen: N/A

Kian Best: N/A

Jordan Storey: N/A

Manager

Paul Heckingbottom: 6/10- Despite knowing how the game would mostly pan out, the manager failed to identify and implement a way to get his side further up the field and alleviate the incredible amounts of pressure that the Arsenal players put his team in.

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Arsenal Player Ratings vs Preston

Goalkeeper

Tommy Setford: 6/10- Did not have too much to do and was never really called into action. Was composed in possession, but could have taken up better positions during set pieces as he was at times too far off his line. 

Defenders

Oleksandr Zinchenko: 6/10- Saw a lot of the ball, often drifting inside, playing alongside Jorginho at the base of the midfield. Distributed the ball well and helped his side retain possession. 

Jakub Kiwior: 8/10- Played on the front foot from the very first whistle and did not hesitate to venture further up the pitch either. Chipped in with a tidy assist for Jesus in the first half and found Havertz in the second half with a perfectly weighted pass into the penalty area.

William Saliba: 6.5/10- Calm and collected as always, and seemed comfortable carrying the ball infield. Was able to easily deal with any breakaways and had things well under control, except losing the odd aerial duel here and there.

Jurriën Timber: 6.5/10- Played well, but seemed a little leggy in his movements, which could indicate that he may not be fully fit yet. Was quite quick to get up and down the flank and had a few nice deliveries into the box as well.

Midfielders

Mikel Merino: 6.5/10- Took up a more advanced role, closer to the opponent’s box, trying to link play. Did well to rotate possession, playing a teammate in whenever possible. Could have tried to pose more of a threat himself though.

Jorginho: 6/10 Sat back and dictated play from deep, somehow seeming more agile and pacy than his usual self. Did well to read the play at times, especially defensively, popping up with a tackle or a block. 

Ethan Nwaneri: 7.5/10- Found himself in pockets of space to try and make something happen. Despite a few fumbled touches, the 17-year-old showed his true quality when he wrapped one with his left foot and sent it top bins. 

Attackers

Gabriel Martinelli: 6.5/10 Was energetic and caused his man a lot of problems from the get-go. That said, he didn’t really get into dangerous positions or pose any real threat at any given moment during the game.

Raheem Sterling: 6/10- Not the most productive performance from the Chelsea loanee. Did well to link up with his surrounding teammates but couldn’t create or get on the end of anything special himself.

Gabriel Jesus: 7.5/10 Stayed busy throughout and made his presence felt across the frontline. Put himself in a good position to score and could have grabbed yet another on the night. 

Substitutes

Thomas Partey: 6/10- Is growing into the makeshift right-back role quite well. Showed great bursts of energy late on to venture forward down the flanks.

Myles-Lewis Skelly: 5.5/10- Was unable to show his best, finding himself under siege at a very inopportune moment. Regardless, the youngster held his nerve and wasn’t too hassled. 

Bukayo Saka: 6.5/10- Very skillful and direct with his approach, tried to set up his teammates more than go for glory himself, very fitting of the star man and Arsenal captain.

Kai Havertz: 6.5/10- Played in a more withdrawn role in midfield, yet was given the license to bomb into the box. Did well to catch Kiwior’s ball into the box and quite possibly could have nabbed a second later on as well.

Ayden Heaven: N/A

Manager

Mikel Arteta: 8.5/10- Put out a stronger squad than expected, however, did well to rotate out after the game was set in their favor.

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