West Brom 0 Arsenal 4 - Player ratings

Sam Johnstone

Arguably the only Albion player to come off the pitch having done his job properly, Johnstone kept the score down with smart stops to deny Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Hector Bellerín.

Ever-reliable 6

Darnell Furlong

A disappointing afternoon for the full-back who was alarmingly exposed at times despite Albion playing in what should have been a compact 5-3-2 system. Furlong will be really disappointed with Arsenal’s opener after Kieran Tierney tricked his way past him not once, but twice.

Exposed 4

Semi Ajayi

Ajayi has, overall, had a decent season but he had a shocker here. His evening was probably best summed up when he slammed a Bukayo Saka cross against his own post – with the ball then falling for Alexandre Lacazette who fired in.

Calamitous 3

Branislav Ivanovic

Restored to the side but it’s actually sad to see a once great player perform so badly. It appears Ivanovic no longer has the speed of thought or athleticism needed to play in the Premier League.

Way off the pace 3

Dara O’Shea

The left of three centre-backs, Arsenal got a lot of joy down that side. But O’Shea did his best to stop them and made some decent interceptions and blocks. He also played some good balls forward.

Okay 5

Grady Diangana

Deployed a left wing-back for the first time, Diangana didn’t seem to understand the role and continued to look lost until subbed.

Lost 3

Matt Phillips

Had Albion’s best chance with a shot that Bernd Leno saved. But other than that Phillips was anonymous – which simply isn’t good enough when you’ve got the armband.

Anonymous 3

Romaine Sawyers

Another midfielder who simply saw the game pass him by. Sawyers looks bereft of confidence and isn’t suited to the holding midfield role.

Ineffective 4

Conor Gallagher

Such an exciting talent, Gallagher – as always – ran his socks off for the cause. But, so far, he hasn’t been as effective under Sam Allardyce as he was under Slaven Bilic.

High energy 5

Matheus Pereira

Produced a wonderful chipped pass for the Phillips opportunity and had other bright moments on the ball. Pereira’s work rate, however, was nowhere near good enough.

Lacked fight 4

Callum Robinson

Put the ball in the net but the flag went up for an earlier offside, Robinson worked hard and tried to make things happen. But with little support, next to nothing did.

Frustrated 4

Substitutes

Charlie Austin (for Diangana 46) 4; Kyle Bartley (for Ivanovic 66)5; Rekeem Harper (for Phillips 81).

Subs not used: Button, Gibbs, Peltier, Krovinovic, Grosicki, Diaby.