Dundalk 2-4 Arsenal: Gunners player ratings as Mikel Arteta's men maintain 100% win record | Europa League 2020-21
Arsenal bounced back from their North London Derby defeat by beating Dundalk 4-2 on Matchday 6 of the UEFA Europa League. The win made it six wins from six for the Gunners as they became only the tenth side to achieve this feat since the conception of the tournament.
Mikel Arteta made eleven changes to the side that started against Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend. Emile Smith-Rowe and Calum Chambers started their first games of the season, while there was also a start for Nicolas Pepe, with the Ivorian still serving his domestic ban for being sent off against Leeds United in November.
Arsenal started off the game strong as they found themselves 2-0 up in the first 18 minutes of the game. Eddie Nketiah latched onto a bouncing ball and did enough to hold off the defender before dinking it over Dundalk's goalkeeper.
Arsenal's second goal was a beauty as Mohamed Elneny unleashed a stunning strike from outside of the box that flew into the top corner.
However, Arsenal's celebrations were cut short as Dundalk midfielder Jordan Flores found himself space in the box after a neat bit of passing and drove the ball across Runar Alex Runarsson in goal and into the bottom-left corner.
The hosts started the second half strong and caused Arsenal a few problems with their direct play, but it was the Gunners who got the next goal.
Youngster Folarin Balogun showed great strength to hold his defender off in the box and laid off Joe Willock who found the back of the net. Willock evaded a challenge in the box before shooting low and hard at the goalkeeper, who couldn't get down quick enough to save the shot.
Arsenal then found themselves 4-1 up in the 80th minute after Pepe played through Balogun in the box, and the striker made no mistake slotting the ball home. This was Flo Balogun's second senior goal and his second goal in the Europa League after scoring against Molde on Matchday 4.
This ended the game as a contest but there was still time for one more goal as in the 85th minute, Flores whipped a free-kick into the Arsenal box which was met by a cheeky flick by Sean Hoare with the back of his head.
The game finished 4-2 in favor of the Gunners and ended Dundalk's Europa campaign as the Irish side finished at the bottom of Group B.
With that being said, here are Arsenal's player ratings against Dundalk.
Arsenal player ratings
Runar Alex Runarsson: 5/10
The Arsenal goalkeeper wasn't particularly troubled on the night but he should have done better with the first goal after getting a hand to Flores' shot.
Cedric Soares: 6/10
Highly involved in the action, Cedric got forward well and was not afraid to try his luck from distance on occasion. The Portuguese full-back linked up with Pepe well but couldn't come up with any end product.
Calum Chambers: 6.5/10
Solid in his first start after 348 days out injured, Chambers made a vital block at the end of the first half when Arsenal were up 2-1. The defender had the ball in the back of the net at the end of the second half but was just offside.
Shkodran Mustafi: 5.5/10
Mustafi captained the side on the night and started in the middle of a back three. The German's distribution out from the back was very good, but he was exposed defensively on more than one occasion throughout the game.
Pablo Mari: 6/10
The Spaniard slotted in as the left-sided centre-back for his second start of the season after getting injured at the end of the previous campaign. Mari didn't miss a beat though as he put in a commanding performance. The defender was strong in the tackle and brought the ball out of defense well.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles: 7/10
The England international bombed up and down the left flank constantly and had some great combination play with Emile Smith-Rowe. Maitland-Niles also covered the midfield when he was asked to and did well to win the ball back for the Gunners multiple times.
Mohamed Elneny: 7/10
Mohamed Elneny had a tidy performance in midfield as he started deeper than his partner Joe Willock. He capped off a solid performance with an absolute piledriver to put Arsenal 2-0 ahead in the 18th minute.
Joe Willock: 7/10
Joe Willock was full of running throughout the game. The young Englishman advanced the ball forward at every opportunity but nothing seemed to come off for him. He took his goal well, although the goalkeeper should've done better.
Nicolas Pepe: 6.5/10
Nicolas Pepe was marked tightly throughout the match as Dundalk did well to keep him quiet for much of the game. The Ivorian, however, looked dangerous whenever he got on the ball as he kept trying to get at the Dundalk defenders. He played a perfectly weighted pass for Flo Balogun to latch on to and finish for Arsenal's fourth goal.
Emile Smith-Rowe: 8/10
This was an impressive performance by Emile Smith-Rowe as he caused havoc down Arsenal's left flank. The winger linked up well with fellow academy graduate Maitland-Niles as the two Englishmen were too much for Dundalk to handle. Smith-Rowe was also accredited with the assist for Elneny's goal.
Eddie Nketiah: 8/10
Nketiah troubled Dundalk's defence all night with his speed and movement. The striker took every opportunity to chase down loose balls and put pressure on defenders when they got on the ball. The Arsenal man took his chance with poise as he lifted the ball over the on-rushing goalkeeper.
Substitutes
Folarin Balogun: 8/10
Folarin Balogun showed great strength and center-forward play after replacing Nketiah in the 62nd minute. He also showed excellent hold-play as he laid the ball off for Willock to score Arsenal's third goal. The striker then displayed his composure as he slotted Pepe's through-ball past Dundalk's goalkeeper into the far corner.
Dani Ceballos: 6/10
Dani Ceballos replaced Elneny in the 62nd minute and kept things ticking in Arsenal's midfield. The Spaniard didn't do anything to stand out but helped to keep up the tempo of Arsenal's play.
Ben Cottrell: 5/10
The youngster was handed his debut after coming on for Emile Smith-Rowe in the 78th minute. However, he wasn't on long enough to have an impact on the game.
Miguel Azeez: 5/10
Another youngster that made his debut on the night, Miguel Azeez replaced Joe Willock in the 83rd minute but could only show glimpses of what he was capable of as he wasn't on long enough either.