A Lucas Perez hat trick and one from Alex Iwobi helped Arsenal to a 4-1 win in Switzerland. The Gunners topped Group A with the win after PSG could only manage a 2-2 draw with Ludogorets in Paris.
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Matchday: Match Preview – Team News – Betting Preview
Match: FC Basel v Arsenal
Stadium: St. Jakob-Park
Kick-Off (GMT): Tue 6 Dec 19:45
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The game started slowly but the Gunners eventually found their feet. Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Özil were stringing passes together and Arsenal got the breakthrough within ten minutes. Özil found Sanchez who put in a great through ball for Kieran Gibbs. The left-back slid it across the box for Lucas Perez to get his first Champions League goal for the Gunners.
Gibbs replaced Nacho Monreal in the team and wasted very little time before he made another big contribution. The full-back shot from the left-hand side which the goalkeeper saved, only for the ball to land at the feet of none other than Luas Perez. The Spaniard tapped it in and doubled the Gunners’ lead.
Half-time came and went but Arsenal didn’t have to wait long to make a mark in the second half. Kieran Gibbs picked up the ball and who would he pick out other than Lucas Perez? Gibbs slid the Spaniard in and Lucas found the far corner.
The floodgates opened after that. Arsenal piled forward and didn’t have to wait long to find the net again. Sanchez and Özil combined again with the German squaring the ball to Alex Iwobi to score yet another tap-in. Alexis Sanchez almost made it 5-0 just after the hour after an incredible effort from a free-kick but his strike cannoned off the crossbar.
The Arsenal defence rocked slightly in the last ten minutes and Basel got a goal back. Rob Holding lost the ball but Seydou Doumbia still had so much to do. The Ivorian dribbled past two and played a one-two with a teammate before lobbing the ball over David Ospina. A lovely goal but probably more than FC Basel deserved on the night.
Here’s how we’ve rated the Arsenal players:
GK) David Ospina – 7.5
He made a number of really good saves in the first-half and could do very little about the Basel goal. David Ospina was pretty much faultless on what was generally a quiet match.
RB) Gabriel Paulista – 6.5
He was the quietest of the four defenders but effective at right-back. It’s not Gabriel Paulista’s favoured position but he’s been impressive during the two matches in the position.
CB) Laurent Koscielny – 7
The defence rocked slightly in the last ten minutes but was generally very good on the night. Laurent Koscielny was solid and shepherded Rob Holding well.
CB)Rob Holding – 7
He gave the ball away for the FC Basel goal but that was the one blip on an impressive performance from Rob Holding. The youngster looks so composed on the ball and improves with every passing game.
LB) Kieran Gibbs – 8.5
An almost unbelievable three assists for Kieran Gibbs on the night, all for Lucas Perez. Gibbs really piled the pressure on Nacho Monreal for the left-back slot with this performance.
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