Euro 2012: Ranking Arsenal FC's Players so Far

Euro 2012 is down to the final four teams now—Germany, Portugal, Spain and Italy—and that means that Arsenal's tournament contingent is down to just one player for the final week.

Several representatives of Arsène Wenger's squad will have had high hopes going into the tournament, with Holland and France in particular, amongst some of the pre-competition favourites. The Gunners also provided the first choice goalkeeper for the co-hosts Poland.

Arsenal saw nine of their players enter the tournament from the beginning; here we take a look at exactly how each of them fared—or in the case of the last man standing, Per Mertesacker, how he continues to fare.

Wojciech Szczęsny, Goalkeeper, Poland

It was meant to be the crowning achievement of his short-to-date career, but Wojciech Szczęsny's Euro 2012 campaign quickly descended into a nightmare.

Having been selected as Poland's No. 1 goalkeeper for the tournament in his home country, Szczęsny made his first competitive start for his nation in the opening match of Euro 2012. The young stopper lasted little more than an hour as he was dismissed, shown a straight red card for tripping Dimitris Salpingidis inside the penalty area.

Before that, the Arsenal keeper had hardly covered himself in glory, flapping unconvincingly at a ball into his area, which was eventually turned in for the equaliser by Salpingidis.

Suspended for game two against Russia, Szczęsny had to watch from the sidelines as Przemysław Tytoń proved an impressive deputy in the 1-1 draw.

The final moment of a desperate couple of weeks came in the final match when, despite being available for selection again having served his suspension, Szczęsny was overlooked in favour of retaining Tytoń in goal for the all-or-nothing clash against the Czech Republic. Poland lost 1-0, and thus finished bottom of Group A.

Szczęsny Euro 2012 rating: 3/10.

Huge disappointment for a player who wanted to have a major impact, but at just 22 years of age, he will have plenty of time to add to his 11 caps. Whether or not he will get another chance to compete at a major tournament, though, is another question.

Tomáš Rosický, Attacking Midfielder, Czech Republic

TomአRosický's Euro 2012 tournament may well end up being his swansong at international level. He will have mixed feelings after he helped his nation get through the group stages to the quarter finals, but also only managed to play one-and-a-half games because of injury.

Rosický's only 90-minute performance of the tournament came on the opening day, as his Czech side were dismantled by a rampant Russia outfit, who ran out 4-1 winners.

At that point, few would have predicted the Czechs topping Group A—and Russia not even making it through at all.

The playmaker, playing centrally in midfield behind the lone striker, was far more effective in his half-game against the Greeks and was instrumental in the build-up to the second goal, scored early on in the game by Václav Pilař.

Rosický was a major reason the Czechs exerted a measure of control in the game, completing 31 of his 32 passes in the first half, but had to replaced at half time because of injury. Sadly for Arsenal's midfielder, that was his last involvement in the tournament.

The 87 times capped player had to sit out the win over Poland and the quarterfinal defeat by Portugal, where they exited thanks to a late 1-0 defeat.

Rosický Euro 2012 ranking: 6/10.

Rosický showed against the Greeks that he still has the talent at this level to pull the strings in close matches, but injury unfortunately curtailed his involvement. Had he been playing in the quarterfinals, maybe he would have provided the extra quality for his side that Cristiano Ronaldo ultimately did for Portugal.

Andrei Arshavin, Attacking Midfielder, Russia (Out on Loan from Arsenal)

The player who delighted neutrals at Euro 2008 and who Arsenal originally signed, but had been conspicuously missing in action at Premier League level for 12 months or so, reared his head again over in Poland/Ukraine.

Andrei Arshavin was a major player for Russia, captaining his country in the absence of Igor Akinfeev during the group stages of the competition.

A 4-1 rout of Czech Republic saw Arshavin and teammate Alan Dzagoev rip through the Czech defence time and time again with their clever off-the-ball movement, great link-up play with the more withdrawn midfielders and their willingness to attack the box and move into spaces that were afforded to them by the hard-working Alex Kerzhakov.

Arshavin was in fine creative form, claiming three assists in the first two group games as Russia took four points from them.

The shock 1-0 defeat in the final match against Greece saw Russia exit the competition, though even that performance was good in terms of the football and approach—Greece simply took their chance, Russia missed several of their own.

Arshavin Euro 2012 ranking: 7/10.

A fine individual performance in the group stages would have merited a higher ranking had he helped his team progress—but Russia ultimately fell short.

Per Mertesacker, Central Defender, Germany

Arsenal's giant centre-back, Per Mertesacker, is the only one of the Gunners' representatives at Euro 2012 not to have played any part in the tournament.

With Mats Hummels and Holger Badstuber the first-choice pairing for Germany and Benedikt Höwedes also in the frame—not to mention right-back Jérôme Boateng a natural central player, competition is fierce for that particular role in the squad. Mertesacker will likely have to watch on from the sidelines for the entirety of Germany's participation.

Germany topped Group B with three wins from three and dispatched of Greece in the quarterfinals, so there is unlikely to be too much tampering with on the defensive side for the upcoming semifinal against Italy.

Mertesacker Euro 2012 rating: 5/10.

Nothing to grade on the pitch, but experience in long summer tournaments is a good thing to have and Mertesacker's influence on the training ground and in free time with the younger members of the squad is not something to be under-estimated, especially with Germany having the youngest average age in the tournament.

Robin Van Persie, Striker, Holland

After an outstanding 18 months at club level, Robin van Persie had the hopes of a nation on his shoulders going into Euro 2012, as the 2010 World Cup finalists Holland painted him as the man to shoot them one step further.

Three defeats in three games later, it was fair to say that things did not pan out the way Bert van Marwijk and his team had hoped.

Not that the bottom-of-the-group finish was all van Persie's fault; posturing and bruised egos from some of his teammates contributed every bit as much to the Dutch downfall as van Persie's wayward shooting, as did some horrific (or comic, depending on your stance) defending at times.

Out of eight shots against Denmark, four against Germany and three against Portugal, van Persie managed to score just once; a 6% chance conversion ratio in stark contrast to his 21% conversion rate in the Premier League last season.

van Persie Euro 2012 ranking: 5/10.

Wayward shooting, from RvP and his team mates, cost the Dutch in the first game, but attitude and tactics were arguably at fault from there on in. Van Persie will be hugely disappointed not to have made a bigger impact, though he at least holds his head high in fighting for the cause until the last possible moment. Not something all his team mates can say.

Nicklas Bendtner, Striker, Denmark (Out on Loan from Arsenal)

Two goals from Nicklas Bendtner in the second group stage game against Portugal almost gave Denmark a real chance of making the knock-out stages—but a late winning goal in that game for the Portuguese ultimately did for them.

Bendtner cuts a solitary figure at times for the defence-first Danes, playing in the lone role up front, but he held the ball up well and worked the channels against Holland in the opening game, giving his attacking midfield team mates a chance to make up the ground and get close to him whenever possible.

His heroics against Portugal, dragging them from 2-0 down to 2-2 with 10 minutes remaining, reinforced his status as the top forward of his nation and took his tally to 20 goals in 52 caps at the international level.

The on-loan forward was again isolated for stretches of the final game against Germany but caused plenty of problems with his strength, and almost got in for a late goal which would have taken Denmark through.

Bendtner Euro 2012 ranking: 7/10.

Denmark was ultimately a little unlucky not to get through the group stages of the competition and they can be justifiably proud of their efforts. Bendtner doesn't play a pretty game all the time but he is effective in this role, even if his shooting is still suspect. His two goals kept the dream alive, but ultimately didn't count for anything.

Laurent Koscielny, Central Defender, France

Like club mate Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny went into the tournament knowing he would be on the bench for his country, as Adil Rami and Philippe Mexès were the established partnership.

Koscielny therefore saw no action during the group stages, but came into the side for the quarterfinal tie against Spain after Mexès accrued two yellow cards and a suspension.

Just his fourth cap for his country, Koscielny nonetheless put in an assured performance for much of the game, though the runners from deep for the holders caused early problems for the France defence as a whole.

The 2-0 defeat ended Koscielny's and France's involvement in the competition.

Koscielny Euro 2012 ranking: 6/10.

Not much he could do about the goals from Xabi Alonso, and performed to a good level in his one match. Could go on to make the spot his own as France looked decidedly uneven at the back at times. A good experience for the defender who will target World Cup 2014 as his biggest chance to make an impression on the international stage.

Theo Walcott, Winger, England

After being handed the No. 7 shirt for England, Theo Walcott might have expected to be involved from the start more often, but Roy Hodgson opted for the more reliable James Milner on the right side of midfield and to use Walcott as an impact substitute.

Walcott made only a brief appearance in the tournament opener against France, but came on to great effect against Sweden.

With England trailing by a goal, Walcott scored the equaliser with a fine finish from the edge of the area which befuddled goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson, before sprinting between two defenders and crossing for Danny Welbeck to score the winner.

That was as good as it got for Walcott though who returned to his disappointing state of non-event for his final two sub appearances.

Walcott Euro 2012 ranking: 7/10.

A cameo, a super-sub act and two no-shows off the bench; par for the course for Walcott some might say. Showed his undoubted talent against Sweden but really struggled to find any sort of rhythm when it mattered against Italy, to the extent that he floundered when faced with a rare opportunity to utilise his pace and run at the defence late on in the game when he was fit and fresh.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Attacking Midfielder, England

After performing well for 77 minutes against France in the opening game of England's Euro 2012 campaign, perhaps it was a surprise that Oxlade-Chamberlain barely featured in the next three matches, playing a total of just four more minutes.

The young flyer played left midfield against the French and was involved in some of England's more promising and enterprising approach play; his burst through the centre of the park one of few individual moments of talent which brightened England's relatively turgid tournament.

Oxlade-Chamberlain did not feature in the quarterfinal game against Italy, with Hodgson opting for club teammate Theo Walcott as the one wide substitute in the second half.

Oxlade-Chamberlain Euro 2012 ranking: 7/10. 

A different "7" to Walcott; Oxlade-Chamberlain started the tournament well and had no real reason to be left out, especially for the indifferent—or perhaps that should be mind-bogglingly awful—performances of Ashley Young. Cameo appearances off the bench will whet his appetite for future involvement and there can be no doubt he will be part of England's preparations for World Cup 2014 qualifiers.

Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud: The New Wave of Arsenal's Attack

Not yet officially part of the Gunners squad but, for all intents and purposes, certainly on their way; Lukas Podolski of Germany and Olivier Giroud of France have had contrasting tournaments up until now.

Giroud was essentially the French alternative to Karim Benzema, but despite the Real Madrid man failing to find the net in any of his four starts, Giroud managed to make just three appearances off the bench, totaling only 33 minutes.

His attacking impact was minimal with the French failing to score a single goal while he was on the pitch, though their dismal performance against Spain can hardly be classified as a chance for him to change that statistic.

Podolski on the other hand, is an integral part of the Germany side playing from the left side of the attack, and during the tournament became the youngest ever European player to reach the 100-cap mark for his country.

The Polish-born forward scored his 44th international goal with a thunderous effort against Denmark and, though he was rested from the start for the quarterfinal match-up against Greece, will fully expect to be restored to the starting line-up for the semifinal against Italy.

His tournament is far from over and could yet end with Euro 2012 glory.

Giroud Euro 2012 ranking: 4/10. 

Bit-part player in a squad full of egos, poor attitude and a lack of direction.

Podolski Euro 2012 ranking: 8/10. 

Completely the opposite; a key individual in an efficient and attack-minded outfit who are favourites to reach the Euro 2012 final. Don't bet against him scoring the winning goal next Sunday in Kyiv.

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