Another round of World Cup Qualifying fixtures have come to a close, and there were quite a few Arsenal players playing for their countries. We take a look at how each player performed for his country and rate them based on their performances.
Mesut Ozil
Country: Germany
Qualifier Result: Norway 0 – 3 Germany
The midfielder played the full 90 minutes in Germany’s win and was his usual self, passing the ball around and making runs. However, he did not bag a goal or any assists . However, in general, his presence helped his teams cause.
Rating : 7/10
Alexis Sanchez
Country: Chile
Qualifier Result: Chile 0 – 0 Bolivia
The Arsenal forward cut a frustrated figure as Chile were held at home by a determined Bolivia side. He played the full game but, try as he might, could not find a way through the Bolivia defense. Surprising by his standards.
Rating: 6/10
Laurent Koscielny
Country: France
Qualifier Result: Belarus 0 – 0 France
The defender was not at fault for France being wasteful in front of goal, and when it came to defending, he stood to his task. He was a pillar at the back, and made sure Belarus did not get more than just a point for their efforts.
Rating : 8/10
Olivier Giroud
Country: France
Giroud had a night to forget. He was the most wasteful player on the pitch. Not only did he put a great chance wide, he also hit the crossbar with a header when he really should have scored. Griezmann too was wasteful, but Giroud had the better opportunities. It was a poor performance overall from Les Bleus, but Giroud in particular displayed a poor show.
Rating : 2/10
Theo Walcott
Country: England
Qualifier Result: Slovakia 0 – 1 England
Walcott came on as a substitute in the 71st minute of the match and was repeatedly caught offside. He had just about 20 minutes to make a mark, but never looked like the offensive player he is hailed to be.
Rating: 2/10
David Ospina
Country: Colombia
Qualifier Result: Brazil 2 – 1 Colombia
The goalkeeper was beaten twice against Brazil, though, if truth be told he could not do much about either of those goals. The first one from Miranda was a free header while the second from Neymar was a clinical finish when no defender seemed to close him down. He made two pretty decent saves and on the whole his performance was good, if not great.
Rating : 7/10
Granit Xhaka
Country: Switzerland
Qualifier Result: Switzerland 2 – 0 Portugal
Xhaka made headlines for all the wrong reasons as he was sent off in Switzerland’s impressive win over the European champions. The red card capped a disappointing week for Xhaka, who had hoped to switch national allegiance to Kosovo. However, FIFA have ruled that his appearances at Euro 2016 makes him ineligible. He played almost the whole match though and was strong in midfield, making good runs and covering back when needed. However, two foolish yellow cards for him was the only blot in a noteworthy performance from the Swiss, and it also means that the midfielder will sit out his next match.
