Nagoya provided the most intense competition we’ve seen so far this pre-season, but Arsenal were still able to win comfortably.
Wenger will be pleased by the level shown by his team, particularly in the first half, when they looked quite sharp and focused. The Gunners have one more game in Japan this Friday before they return to England to continue their preparations for the coming year.
Player Ratings:
Lukasz Fabianski 7. Fabianski played the entire game and made a couple of decent saves. Will be certainly hoping to take advantage of Szczesny’s recent injury.
Carl Jenkinson 7. A good outing for Jenkinson who managed to get forward a lot during the game.
Kieran Gibbs 8. I thought Gibbs looked particularly dangerous going forward on a number of occasions. Had a goal scoring chance he narrowly missed.
Per Mertesacker 7. Had a solid game, although he was beaten in the first half once and he perhaps could have been stronger on Nagoya’s goal.
Bacary Sagna 7. Sagna gave another good performance as a centre back. This could become a more regular gig if Wenger fails to buy anyone.
Ignasi Miquel 6. Came on for Gibbs and had another good outing. Wenger must find a way for him to get significant playing time this season (such as a loan), rather than keeping him around for emergencies.
Mikel Arteta 7. Bossed the game during the first half, where his command of the midfield prevented Nagoya from gaining a foothold in the game.
Aaron Ramsey 8. Another good game from Ramsey this pre-season. He looks more confident than in previous years.
Tomas Rosicky 8. Set up the first goal with a lovely cross. Always willing to run at Nagoya’s defence and cause trouble. If he stays healthy this year he could be a big asset.
Jack Wilshere 6. Jack had a decent second half, but the game lost some of its tidiness and he didn’t dominate as he can. He did make a couple of physical challenges and he received a couple as well.
Gedion Zelalem 7. Again contributed a couple of sublime passes, one of which set up Walcott’s second half goal. A couple of giveaways showed he is human, but he has shown that he has the class to tempt Wenger into including him in the first team squad this year.
Chuks Aneke 6. Aneke finally got to play about thirty minutes as a midfielder and not a defender. Had a tidy outing.
Ryo Miyaichi 7. This was a big game for Ryo and he delivered a good performance. A shot early in the first half narrowly missed the far post, but he delivered later in the half with a well struck penalty. I’m still not convinced he’s ready to play for the Arsenal.
Olivier Giroud 7. Giroud scored his sixth pre-season goal with a beautiful header into the top corner from Rosicky’s cross. He also “earned” the penalty kick and he was a handful for the Nagoya defenders most of the first half.
Theo Walcott 8. Theo delivered a performance where he scored once in the second half, but should have had three more goals, a performance typical of him. Nagoya constantly had trouble matching his speed and he was able to get open time and again.
Lukas Podolski 6. Podolski wasn’t able to really get into the game and be as effective as he can.
Serge Gnabry 7. Gnabry had a few moments in his second half outing, coming close one time. He has a confident swagger that most of the other young players lack.
Chuba Akpom 6. Chuba came close once, but still needs a little more polish to his game.
Overall I would give the team a 7. A good game, especially in the first half, but they lost a little cohesion in the second half as the team mainly consisted of second string younger players. Ryo Miyaichi will be happy with his performance in front of his hometown fans and Arsene Wenger will also be happy his return to Nagoya ended in victory for the Gunners.