Both Mathieu Debuchy and Kieran Gibbs shone against Newcastle.
All the talk ahead of Arsenal’s clash with in-form Newcastle was about their injury crisis – particularly in defence.
Yet as they ran out comfortable 4-1 winners, any predicted frailties failed to show as the makeshift defence stood strong.
There was no clean sheet thanks to a consolation goal from Ayoze Perez, but Arsenal’s defenders matched up well to their opponents. Here’s a look at how the individual performed.
| Match | Won Tackles | Interceptions | Aerial Duels Won | Accurate Crosses | Shots Blocked | Assists | Goals | Total | Mins Played | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathieu Debuchy | Arsenal vs Newcastle | 2 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 90 |
| Kieran Gibbs | Arsenal vs Newcastle | 2 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 90 |
| Héctor Bellerín | Arsenal vs Newcastle | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 90 |
| Per Mertesacker | Arsenal vs Newcastle | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 90 |
Adding up the number of key performance statistics, two players rank the highest – Mathieu Debuchy and Kieran Gibbs, both reaching a total of 11.
Yet having to choose one of the two as Arsenal’s best defender was easy – Debuchy was playing outside of his comfort zone at full-back, making his first ever centre-back appearance in the Premier League, and against his former club.
The Frenchman was dominant in the air winning twice the number of aerial duels as team Per Mertesacker, and like the German, blocked a shot on goal.
Hector Bellerin also impressed particularly going forward, and unlike fellow full-back Gibbs, managed to deliver a successful cross into the box.
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