Arsenal player ratings as Petr Cech earns a 7 and Matteo Guendouzi gets a 3

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  • Manchester City began the defence of their Premier League title with a 2-0 win over Arsenal.

    Goals from Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva ensured new Gunners boss Unai Emery suffered defeat in his first competitive game in charge.

    Here, we rate Arsenal’s players.

    STARTING XI

    Petr Cech – Arguably Arsenal’s best performer. Commanded his box well and made a smart early save to deny Sterling before thwarting Sergio Aguero in a one-on-one. 7

    Hector Bellerin – Good in defence but disappointingly, wasn’t able to join the attack as often as he would’ve liked. When he did, he tested Ederson. 6

    Shkodran Mustafi – Had a torrid time whenever Sterling went on one of slaloming runs in field. Was otherwise decent at the back. 5

    Sokratis Papastathopoulos – Did well to keep the dangerous Aguero quiet for the most part, but did give away a foul against the Argentine on the edge of his area. 5

    Ainsely Maitland-Niles – Struggled to deal with Riyad Mahrez and the overlapping Kyle Walker and picked up a knock which saw him replaced in the first half. 4

    Matteo Guendouzi – Lost possession cheaply on several occasions and his error let Aguero clean through on goal while Sterling cruised past him for his opener. 3

    Granit Xhaka – A nothing performance from the Swiss as the game seemed to pass him by. Couldn’t get a foot in and was dominated by City’s midfielders. 4

    Henrikh Mkhitaryan – A surprisingly dogged display as he made more tackles (five) than any player on the pitch. Set up Alexandre Lacazette for his side’s best chance. 6

    Mesut Ozil – A predictably poor performance from the German against tough opposition. Hardly made an impact in the final third and frequently lost the ball. 4

    Aaron Ramsey – Didn’t look at his sharpest and wasn’t able to support Aubameyang in attack. A largely peripheral figure and was replaced soon after half-time. 4

    Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – Had little to work with up front, but showed some good movement and fashioned a few half chances. 6

    SUBS

    Stephen Lichtsteiner – Came on for the injured Maitland-Niles and made that left side of defence look a lot more sturdy. 6

    Alexandre Lacazette – Instantly lifted his team and got into good positions, but a little selfish in front of goal. 5

    Lucas Torreira – Was a far better presence in midfield than Xhaka and played Aubameyang through but the flag was raised. 5

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