Arsenal are out of the 2024/25 Champions League knockout stages after falling 3-1 to PSG on aggregate, as the Parisians were able to outlast them 2-1 at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday night.
Here are player ratings for every Arsenal starter vs. PSG.
GK David Raya, 7.0
Saved a penalty and stood no chance at saving either goal from PSG. Honestly, he deserves better than the performances he’s been getting from the Arsenal fullbacks this season.
LB Myles Lewis-Skelly, 3.5
Not a serious player. Comes to the matches and seems more intent on trying to master the dark arts with cheap fouls, arguing with other players, and diving rather than actually playing the game. Very limited tactical awareness and technical ability. He can be a decent squad player for Arsenal, but he doesn’t belong in the starting lineup and doesn’t have enough talent to develop into a true star at left back for a team with Arsenal’s aspirations.
CB William Saliba, 7.0
Covered well defensively for his teammates but was stretched too thin by the players around him, especially with the fullbacks more intent on winning duels for themselves than keeping the defensive structure intact.
CB Jakub Kiwior, 6.0
Good defender, but if his ball security and progression don’t improve against top opponents, Arsenal may never be able to make use of him as more than a squad player.
RB Jurrien Timber, 5.0
Although Timber works hard for the team and is good at face-up one-on-ones, his lack of positional discipline is an absolute back-breaker for Arsenal. He will give up goals in transition because he’s too focused on making the tackle rather than making the smart move in reading the winger or forward.
CM Declan Rice, 4.5
Didn’t impose himself enough on the game. His heavy touch helped lead to PSG’s opener, and while he defended the PSG midfield very well, he was too much on the periphery of the game in possession.
CM Thomas Partey, 4.0
Sub-standard player and should be nowhere near the Arsenal starting lineup. Arsenal fans have falsely praised the former Atletico Madrid man for too long, and his mental errors helped doom the Gunners on this night.
AM Martin Odegaard, 3.0
Didn’t play like a captain. Martin Odegaard was almost completely invisible, save for a nice daisy-cutter volley that was saved beautifully by Gianluigi Donnarumma in the game’s opening exchanges.
After Arsenal’s dominance faded in the first 15 minutes, so, too, did Odegaard’s impact. He is not showing the drive, desire, or work rate of a captain, and this was truly a new low for a player who should be leading Arsenal by example. David Raya and William Saliba are more suited to be leaders.
LW Gabriel Martinelli, 6.0
Although Martinelli tried his best to take PSG defenders on and was a handful to stop on the wing in the first half, his impact faded in the second stanza. And for as much talent as the Brazilian international has, his inability to provide end product will always make him a doubt as a sure-fire, long-term solution on the left wing.
CF Mikel Merino, 4.0
Arsenal need a new striker. This farce has to end. Merino is a good enough emergency option to look like a positive against bad teams, but when Arsenal are going up against contenders like PSG, Merino is effectively a zero in this position.
RW Bukayo Saka, 7.5
The only player on Arsenal worth praising. Yes, he missed an open chance, but he also scored a goal and was the only one putting in deliveries that were worth threatening the PSG defense.
Saka works hard defensively, too. But the problem with Saka – and the reason why he is more of a complementary player than someone who can lead a team to the Champions League as that team’s best player – is the fact that he doesn’t have enough juice or explosiveness to beat players and score. He needs someone to play off of or supply; he’s a Robin, not a Batman.
Joe Soriano covers Tottenham for FanSided’s Hotspur HQ and writes about Real Madrid for The Real Champs. He has extensive experience covering world football since 2014. Joe is an editor for The Trivela Effect, where he covers the biggest clubs in European football. He has watched professional sports regularly since 2002 and can be found playing the same sports he covers with his friends.