ARSENAL beat Barcelona 5-3 after a rollercoaster of a game in Los Angeles.
And the victory had Bukayo Saka‘s fingerprints all over it with the England star putting on a show at SoFi Stadium.
APBukayo Saka starred in Arsenal’s 5-3 win over Barcelona in Los Angeles[/caption]
EPALeandro Trossard added two more goals to secure the victory over Barca in a rollercoaster preseason clash[/caption]
Saka created chance after chance for the Gunners as they had to come back from behind twice before Leandro Trossard finally fired them ahead.
Trossard then netted his second in a bid to secure a spot in Mikel Arteta‘s starting 11 to start the new Premier League season.
Meanwhile, Arsenal‘s new star Jurrien Timber showed off his versatility, thriving on the left wing after being challenged by Arteta to give it a go as a full-back.
Who stood out and who struggled for Arsenal? SunSport rates every single player at SoFi Stadium:
AARON RAMSDALE – 6
Ramsdale couldn’t do much more to prevent Barcelona‘s first goal having saved Raphinha‘s shot before Lewandowski hammered it home. He was probably at fault for letting the bizarre free-kick strike in – although the keeper had the right to be furious at Odegaard for deflecting the ball.
JURRIEN TIMBER – 6
Raphinha outran Timber way too easily in the lead-up to Barcelona’s opening goal. But he showed poise and versatility from then on, doing a good job at stopping Barca’s quick wingers in the left-back slot. A promising performance from the Gunners’ £40million man.
WILLIAM SALIBA – 7
Composed, fast, confident… Mikel Arteta must be over the moon having Saliba back as the anchor of his defensive line.
GABRIEL – 6
Gritty and hard-working as always.
BEN WHITE – 5
A bit of a passive performance from the right-back, who also looked shaky when Barcelona wingers challenged him.
KAI HAVERTZ – 7
Invisible for most of the game, only to draw Arsenal level just before halftime. Havertz might seem clumsy at times, but he tends to deliver in big moments.
THOMAS PARTEY – 5
Looked slow and lethargic in Los Angeles. Partey’s lack of effort in defending Barca’s counter-attack contributed to Lewandowski’s early goal.
MARTIN ODEGAARD – 6
There was a lot of inaccuracy in the Arsenal star’s play early on. Barcelona opened the scoring mainly thanks to Odegaard’s lost possession near the middle of the field. He gained confidence as the play went on and registered a crucial header to set up Havertz’s equaliser.
LEANDRO TROSSARD – 8
A superb effort from the ex-Brighton star. He kept trying to catch Andre ter Stegen off guard with cheeky shots until he finally did it in the second half – firing the Gunners ahead for the first time. He then bagged another one before leaving the pitch. Over to you, Gabriel Martinelli.
BUKAYO SAKA – 8
His penalty miss won’t change the fact Barca’s defenders are likely to have nightmares about Saka bullying them throughout the game. The England star showed some elite awareness when he scored Arsenal’s first equaliser, capitalising on the miscommunication between the Spanish side’s center-backs. His chance creation and ball play were just a joy to watch.
GABRIEL JESUS – 6
The Brazilian striker‘s dribbling and link-up play were pleasant to the eye, but he wasn’t very efficient against Barcelona on Wednesday night.
SUBS:
EMILE SMITH ROWE – 7
Rowe did a great job at revitalizing Arsenal’s attack after replacing Havertz. It didn’t seem like a coincidence that the Gunners took control of the game after Smith Rowe came on.
FABIO VIERA – 7
Mostly invisible after checking in, only to seal Arsenal’s win with a screamer from outside the box.
JORGINHO – 5
Somehow, the Italian midfielder looked nervous despite Arsenal boasting a two-goal lead in a friendly game.
JAKUB KIWIOR – 5
The Pole showed some good ball control and poise after replacing Saliba. However, he seemed lost before Ferran Torres scored late, making it easier for the Spaniard to find the net and keep Barca’s comeback hopes alive.
KIERAN TIERNEY – 7
Tierney looked eager to play from the start, resulting in a quick assist in Trossard’s second goal.
EDDIE NKETIAH – N/A
Didn’t play enough to get a rating.
GABRIEL MARTINELLI – N/A
Didn’t play enough to get a rating.
AMARIO COZIER-DUBERRY – N/A
Didn’t play enough to get a rating.
ROB HOLDING – N/A
Didn’t play enough to get a rating.
