The Game

THIS is what I meant whenever I said Abou Diaby is good and has to show it. Man of the match, brilliant game, helping the midfield but most importantly, turning provider and scoring goals in attack.

Hull City tried hard, but they simply are not good enough and this win will make sure we’ll enjoy the Christmas days with a big smile on our faces, as we wait for Aston Villa to pay us a visit, at the Emirates, on Sunday.

Match Video Highlights

Match video highlights are available in the Videos section of our website. If not there yet, rest assured they will be up in a matter of hours.

Player Ratings

Almunia: 7,5 – Apart from the first half crazy decision to leave his goal even if Gallas had it covered, a very good game for Manuel and this will give him a big boost in confidence.

Silvestre: 6 – Did really well to push forward but failed to provide what was really needed when the final pass had to be delivered. The penalty? A soft one, but was there need to hug Craig Fagan like that?

Gallas and Vermaelen: 8 – Rock solid, no wonder Hull City had almost no attempts at goal.

Eboue: 6,5 – Clearly, a much better crosser than Sagna so in a game like today’s where we went so much in the attacking zone, he was very useful. Should however take it easy on silly decisions such as kicking Hunt the way he did.

Diaby: 8 – Brilliant in midfield, phenomenal in attack, turning provider for Eduardo’s goal and scoring one of his own, just like he knows how to do. Keep it up Abou, I know you can.

Song: 7 – As always, used all his physical presence in midfield to provide that extra security the back four needs.

Denilson: 7,5 – Made sure all Hull City’s attack were stopped in their tracks and scored the very important first goal of the game. Just like Diaby, he needs to keep it up.

Nasri: 6,5 – Worked very hard in the first half when we were not finding any gaps in the Hull City defense.

Arshavin: 6 – Not the best of games for the Russian who however still managed to turn provider and give the needed support up front.

Eduardo: 6,5 – So different from last week. I thought he was weeks away from being the player we once knew but apparently I was wrong, and very glad of that.

(Subs)
Vela: 6 – Only ten minutes for the Mexican who took full advantage of them, showing some nice runs and tricks.

Walcott: 5,5 – Some nice runs, but still slow in delivering that final ball.

Ramsey: 6,5 – Did incredibly well after replacing Samir Nasri, glad to know we have such a talented backup on the bench.