Sunderland Vs Arsenal: Player Ratings

Simon Mignolet - 8

Our Belgian Keeper was simply faultless in the first half, making terrific saves from Walcott, Giroud and Ramsey. After keeping us in the game, he had little to do in the second half, but did what he had to when called upon.

Craig Gardner - 5

While Gardner was defensively solid and got into some good attacking positions, his final delivery was simply awful. It speaks volumes about his competition that Gardner's probably the best right-back in the squad, so this is a position we really need to address in the summer.

John O'Shea - 8

The Irishman continues his pattern of one bad game followed by one good game, with a much improved performance than in last week's match against Reading. While Arsenal looked very dangerous going forward, O'Shea did well to limit their talented attack.

Titus Bramble - 7

Titus, like O'Shea, was much better than against Reading. Did very well in the first half to help restrict Arsenal to just one goal, but spurned a glorious chance to equalise in the second. He loses an extra mark for that.

Danny Rose - 6

Solid, if unspectacular return for Rose. Made a superb interception to stop Arsenal doubling their lead in the first half but, like Gardner, his final ball was lacking. Worryingly came off with hamstring trouble in the second half, and we can only hope that it's not as bad as it looked.

Lee Cattermole - 5

O'Neill took a big risk in playing Cattermole today and it didn't work out with the skipper going off at half time with an injury. Got booked just 80 seconds into his comeback, almost as if he wanted to show everyone it was definitely him playing and not just an imposter in an elaborate Lee Cattermole disguise. Never really looked comfortable after that.

Jack Colback - 6

Colback worked very hard in the middle of the park, and popped up in the box a couple of time, even if he didn't have a huge impact on the game. Did force Carl Jenkinson to make the challenge that earned the Arsenal man his first booking though.

Alfred N'Diaye - 6

N'Diaye started the game in a more advanced position and looked a big threat early on. His runs caused Arsenal problems in the early stages, but faded as the game wore on, especially when he was moved deeper in the second half.

Adam Johnson - 5

Again Johnson produced a lot of effort, but really struggled to make any impact on the game. Looked a little more dangerous when he was moved onto the right-hand side, but his delivery, especially from set-pieces, was largely poor. It's pretty clear that he isn't suited to playing down the left, so hopefully it's not something we'll not see much more of.

Stephane Sessegnon - 8

Sessegnon's performance works as a good indicator of Sunderland's in the game itself. Largely poor in the first half, but came roaring into life in the second half as soon as he was switched onto the left hand side. It was his run that led Jenkinson to bring him down for the Arsenal defender's second booking, and was an absolute pest for the rest of the game. Sunderland's biggest attacking threat.

Steven Fletcher - 6

Had a hatful of chances, but it proved not the be the big man's day as he came up against an Arsenal keeper in fine form. Largely isolated in the first half, he worked hard all day, but in the second half wasted one great chance and then forced a breath taking save from The Chesmeister with a header.

Seb Larsson - 7

After a run of poor games, Larsson had to make do with an appearance off the bench today. Luckily when he came on, he looked a real threat from crosses and set-pieces. Might have just done enough to play his way back into the first XI.

Danny Graham - 6

Graham didn't quite have the same impact as he did when he came on at Reading, but he still offered a significant threat in the Arsenal box. Proved to be a handful for the Gunners defenders, and certainly showed that he's a credible option up front with Fletcher.

David Vaughan - 5

Passed the ball about a bit.

Man Of The Match - Simon Mignolet

At the end of the first half, I didn't think this would prove to be a difficult decision, but an excellent second half performance from Sessegnon made this a hard one to call. Ultimately though, Ah Mignolet kept us in the match with a superb first half display. His save from Ramsey is one of his best this season, and Arsenal would have been out of sight if it wasn't for the terrific Belgian.

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