Arsenal vs. Chelsea: Rating the Gunners Players in 0-0 Emirates Draw

Arsenal and Chelsea fought out a 0-0 stalemate at the Emirates Stadium in the Premier League, in a match where defences came out very much on top of attack.

Here we take a look at the Arsenal players and their ratings for the game.

Arsene Wenger started with his speedy Englishmen Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott on either side of Robin van Persie up front, while Mikel Arteta's season-ending injury meant a recall for Aaron Ramsey in midfield.

Yossi Benayoun was ineligible to play as he is currently only on loan at Arsenal from their opposition Chelsea.

Van Persie went closest to breaking the deadlock as he hit the post after a free kick, while defender Laurent Koscielny also struck the woodwork, as neither team's goalkeeper was severely tested with shots on target.

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Goalkeeper: Wojciech Szczesny

Wojciech Szczesny had a pretty good game for Arsenal in goal, though he didn't have to make too many spectacular saves.

His all-around goalkeeping, such as claiming crosses, positioning during Chelsea counter-attacks, and quick distribution, were all impressive as the Pole continues to show he will be a worthy No. 1 for the Gunners for years to come.

Szczesny did make some routine saves when needed, but more impressive was his domination of his penalty area and confidence in taking high balls under pressure.

Wojciech Szczesny: 7 / 10

Full Backs: Bacary Sagna and Keiran Gibbs

Arsenal's fullbacks were not at their usual attacking best against Chelsea, unable to get forward too often to aid the home side's attacks and provide width high up the pitch.

On the right, Bacary Sagna got into a few tangles with Salomon Kalou which might have proved costly with a more generous referee, one or two being in the penalty area as they were.

Sagna also suffered an early clash of heads, though he recovered sufficiently to play on.

He did get forward on occasions but the delivery from wide was never quite right.

On the opposite flank, Keiran Gibbs defended stoutly and supported in attack when he could, but there are still plenty of question marks regarding his positioning and natural defensive instincts.

With a more in-form and confident Daniel Sturridge on the pitch instead of the ponderous one we saw against the Gunners, Gibbs' failure to track the forward may well have seen his team on the end of a defeat instead of finishing with a clean sheet.

Bacary Sagna: 6 / 10

Keiran Gibbs: 6 / 10

Central Defenders: Laurent Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen

We'll begin by asking: how on earth does Laurent Koscielny manage to find himself in such a large amount of space inside the Chelsea penalty area from a set piece?

Arguably, the French defender should have scored, but the other way to look at it is of course that he was unlucky to beat Cech but find the crossbar with his header.

That was the main threat that either defender, Koscielny or his partner Thomas Vermaelen, had in the course of the game, though both were extremely solid when actually defending.

Koscielny was sharp in the challenge and dominant in the air when called upon, while Vermaelen also marked Torres well and covered when Sturridge broke in from the flank.

Laurent Koscielny: 8 / 10, Man of the Match

Thomas Vermaelen: 7 / 10

Central Midfielders: Alex Song, Aaron Ramsey and Tomas Rosicky

Quite frankly, it was a game to forget for Aaron Ramsey, who was overrun in midfield at times, took too long on the ball, passed without any of his usual accuracy and was unable to break into the Chelsea box late on as he likes to do.

Ramsey was caught in possession a number of times in the first half in particular, with the back-tracking Fernando Torres a particular nuisance to him.

Tomas Rosicky started the game brightly and looked a threat when getting the ball midway inside the Chelsea half, and especially down the channels, but he faded towards half time and did not last long in the second period before being substituted.

Alex Song was the Gunners' stand-out performer again in midfield, breaking up play in the middle and launching attacks from deep, but also getting involved further forward.

His link-up play with Robin van Persie has been a feature of Arsenal's season, and this was in evidence again with a great switch pass in the first half which led to a shooting chance for the Dutch forward.

Alex Song: 7 / 10

Tomas Rosicky: 6 / 10

Aaron Ramsey: 5 / 10

Forwards: Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Robin Van Persie

Robin van Persie has more goals this season in all competitions than three teams have managed altogether in the Premier League, but against Chelsea—and for the last six weeks, really—van Persie could not find his shooting boots.

The Arsenal forward played a good all-round game, linking well with the midfield in deeper areas, setting away his wider forwards with clever passes and showing a great first touch at times—but that killer touch which has seen him net 35 goals was missing.

Van Persie hit the post, flashed an effort wide on his right foot, saw a close-range half-volley blocked by Petr Cech and wildly skewed a volley high and wide.

None easy chances on their own, but a striker of the calibre of van Persie would be expected to score at least one, and a few months back he would have scored at least one and probably more.

His supporting cast, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, were largely ineffective and kept quiet by the poor supply from midfield as attack after attack broke down because of poor decision making or a lack of accuracy in passing.

Both players were substituted in the second half, Walcott through injury.

Theo Walcott: 6 / 10

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain: 6 / 10

Robin van Persie: 7 / 10

Substitutes: Gervinho, Abou Diaby and Andre Santos

Arsene Wenger made all three of his substitutions within nine minutes in the second half, throwing on Gervinho for the injured Theo Walcott, Abou Diaby for Tomas Rosicky and finally Andre Santos in place of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Gervinho made plenty of enterprising running and looked a threat initially, but the game more or less petered out without any real chance on goal for the Ivorian.

Diaby was clearly short of match practice and looked off the pace; unsurprising, considering it was just his fourth appearance of the season after plenty of struggles with injuries.

Santos played on the left flank instead of his usual defensive position, but failed to have an impact on the game in any way.

Gervinho: 7 / 10

Abou Diaby: 5 / 10

Andre Santos: 5 / 10

Unused subs: Lukasz Fabianski, Johan Djourou, Francis Coquelin and Marouane Chamakh.