Arsenal 2-0 Newcastle: Player ratings as Gunners inch past Magpies in extra time
By Toby Bowles
Arsenal booked their place in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday night with a 2-0 win over Newcastle United, although they needed extra time to get there.
In what was a tepid two hours, Arsenal were never quite at their fluid best, and Newcastle defended stoically to keep them out. Emile Smith Rowe gave them a belated breakthrough though, before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's tap-in eight minutes later secured the victory.
That extended the Magpies' winless run to seven matches, while for Arsenal, it was a fourth successive triumph.
ARSENAL
1. Goalkeeper & Defenders
Bernd Leno (GK) - 6/10 - Barely got his gloves dirty before springing into action to deny Carroll late on.
Kieran Tierney (LB) - 7/10 - Ran Krafth ragged with his explosive bursts of pace, and repeatedly found his teammates with crosses.
Pablo Mari (CB) - 6/10 - Strode out of defence well, looking comfortable on the ball. Didn't have a great deal of defensive work to do.
David Luiz (CB) - 6/10 - Much like Mari, the Brazilian impressed with his distribution but he also seemed a little flustered by the presence of Carroll.
Cedric Soares (RB) - 5/10 - Had the right ideas but just lacked execution at times, both in his passing and crossing.
2. Midfielders
Joe Willock (CDM) - 6/10 - Full of industry but lacked quality in his passing. Had a close-range header tipped round the post by Dubravka.
Mohamed Elneny (CDM) - 7/10 - Back in the side, the Egyptian impressed, picking incisive passes from the base of midfield.
3. Forwards
Reiss Nelson (LW) - 5/10 - Drafted in at the eleventh hour due to Martinelli's injury, he picked up threatening positions but wasn't ruthless enough when the chances came his way. Substituted early in the second half.
Willian (CAM) - 6/10 - Would have liked to have contributed more; looked visibly disappointed as he was taken off midway through the second half. That said, his set-piece deliveries caused havoc.
Nicolas Pepe (RW) - 6/10 - Looked bright and dangerous but lacked end product.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (ST) - 5/10 - Broke free on a couple of occasions but was relatively wasteful, sending one effort wide and having another saved. That was until, in extra time, he tapped home from close range to seal Arsenal's progression into the next round.
4. Substitutes
Emile Smith Rowe - 8/10 - After being shown a red card that was overturned, his accomplished finish in extra time broke the deadlock. Raised the tempo when he came off the bench.
Bukayo Saka - 6/10
Granit Xhaka - 6/10
Alexandre Lacazette - N/A
Ainsley Maitland-Niles - N/A
NEWCASTLE
5. Goalkeeper & Defenders
Martin Dubravka (GK) - 7/10 - Produced three fine stops in his first appearance of the season, thwarting Aubameyang and Willock in normal time and then saving acrobatically from Xhaka in extra-time.
Paul Dummett (LB) - 6/10 - Decent but unspectacular; did the basics well but offered little else.
Jamaal Lascelles (CB) - 5/10 - Got booked after scything down Reiss Nelson and was substituted at half time. An erratic performance.
Ciaran Clark (CB) - 7/10 - Looked confident and assured as he carried out his defensive duties.
Emil Krafth (RB) - 5/10 - Couldn't live with the pace of Tierney down the left flank. Had a tough night.
6. Midfielders
Joelinton (LM) - 4/10 - Looked miles off the pace in what was a very poor performance.
Sean Longstaff (CM) - 6/10 - Stepped up when he needed to but the game passed him by as Newcastle pursued a more direct approach.
Isaac Hayden (CM) - 7/10 - Denied Pepe with an outstretched foot as the Ivorian honed in goal, then slotted into a back three. Looked solid there.
Jeff Hendrick (CM) - 6/10 - Kept the ball moving but couldn't carve open a breakthrough.
Miguel Almiron (RM) - 7/10 - Ran himself into the ground and showed flashes of real quality.
7. Forwards
Andy Carroll (ST) - 7/10 - Put in a real shift, both as a defender in his own box and as a focal point in the opposition's. Chased down lost causes and put his body on the line. However, he did spurn two glorious chances.
8. Substitutes
Matt Ritchie - 6/10
Jacob Murphy - 6/10
DeAndre Yedlin - 5/10
Elliot Anderson - 7/10
Dwight Gayle - N/A