Luton Town 3–4. Player ratings for Arsenal as Rice wins it in the last seconds
Declan Rice sealed all three points with a winning header in the end
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- A miserable night was spent by David Raya at Kenilworth Road
- Second-half equalization came from Kai Havertz.
Tuesday night, in a thrilling 4-3 thriller against Luton Town, Declan Rice stole all three points for Arsenal.
Early on, the hosts gave the Gunners a lot of trouble, and they were especially strong when they were without the ball. It appeared that a cagey match was ahead of us, but then there were goals on either side of the field.
Gabriel Martinelli gave Arsenal the lead after some quick thinking from Gabriel Jesus created the chance before Gabriel Osho equalised from an outswinging corner.
The visitors continued to huff and puff against Luton’s aggression and sound defensive structure, but they eventually retook the lead just before half-time through a close-range Jesus header.
But the game immediately took a turn for the worst when the hosts took advantage of Arsenal’s inaction at the beginning of the second half. Elijah Adebayo equalized by outmuscling David Raya in the air, and then the Gunners goalkeeper committed another error by allowing Ross Barkley’s shot to slip past him.
For the guests, a prompt answer was essential, and Kai Havertz provided it. After Jesus had done some more excellent job, the German prodded home. Arsenal applied constant pressure after that, and Declan Rice created the crucial moment with the game’s final kick or head!
Luton Town 3-4 Arsenal player ratings
This is Arsenal player ratings from their thrilling win at Luton on Tuesday night.
Goalkeeper & Defenders
David Raya (GK) – 2/10 – Deary, deary me. This was just bad performance from Raya, who was directly responsible for Luton’s second and third goals.
Ben White (RB) – 7/10 – Looked a threat every time he gets involved in the attack. White’s superb run and deft cross teed up Jesus for Arsenal’s second.
William Saliba (CB) – 6/10 – Overzealous at times when competing in the air as Adebayo sought to make life unbearable for the Frenchman.
Gabriel (CB) – 6/10 – Perhaps should’ve won a penalty in the second half. Was a threat in the Luton box and generally proved efficient with the ball. Didn’t duel much.
Jakub Kiwior (LB) – 5/10 – First half performance was quite clumsy and he looked a bit unsettled.
Declan Rice (DM) – 8.5/10 – Distribution into the front men was excellent. Wasn’t dominant on Tuesday night, but this was a display in which there weren’t too many faults (again). THEN HE SCORED THE BLOODY WINNER.
Martin Odegaard (CM) – 7/10 – The captain dropped deeper in order to conduct things, but his influence wasn’t felt until late on (was excellent at the end). Thought he struggled somewhat physically.
Kai Havertz (CM) – 8/10 – His presence was a nuisance in the air, and he reaped the rewards for crashing the box once more by converting Arsenal’s third.
Bukayo Saka (RW) – 8/10 – The goal contribution machine was at it again as he assisted Martinelli’s opener. Saka was spritely on Tuesday, so often creating the necessary space down his flank to work the opening.
Gabriel Jesus (ST) – 8.5/10 – Absolutely brilliant considering just how physical the Luton back three were. Jesus seemingly made every touch count, and he had to role to play in all of the goals. Glad he got on the scoresheet.
Gabriel Martinelli (LW) – 6.5/10 – Quite a frustrating performance despite squirting home the opener. Had a couple of efforts saved in the first half.
Substitutes
- Oleksandr Zinchenko – 6/10
- Leandro Trossard – 4/10
Player of the match: Gabriel Jesus
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