Arsenal: Full Report Card for Every Position for November
Believe it or not, it's already December. Arsenal's season began more than three months ago and the club has certainly experienced highs and lows since then.
November alone was a bipolar month. It started with so much promise as the Gunners beat Burnley 3-0, but the team collapsed in typical Arsenal fashion against Anderlecht, Swansea and Manchester United. Recent wins against Borussia Dortmund and West Brom have restored hope and confidence, though.
Let's take a look back and grade every player who appeared in at least four games for the club this month. As always, feel free to respectfully disagree in the comments or on Twitter.
Wojciech Szczesny: B
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Wojciech Szczesny tends to get an unreasonable amount of hate from Arsenal fans. I'm not quite sure why; he has not been outstanding but has not been egregiously bad either.
Szczesny did, however, concede six goals in three appearances this month. That's mostly down to the porousness of the defense, but he definitely could have done better immediately before Kieran Gibbs' own goal against Manchester United.
He injured himself during that goal and will probably be out for a couple more games. He has missed the last two with a bum ankle.
Kieran Gibbs: A-
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Kieran Gibbs continued his excellent campaign during an injury-free November, in which he repeatedly carried the attacking load while locking down the left wing.
Nacho Monreal's shift to the center of defense meant Gibbs had no competition for his place. But it also made his continued excellence on the left side of defense, where Monreal was stationed, all the more important.
Gibbs continues to run for miles and miles during every match, putting in crosses and reading the game well when he tracks back.
He turned in a stellar performance against Borussia Dortmund in both defense and attack, making a number of crucial clearances to help Arsenal keep a clean sheet.
Calum Chambers: C+
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Calum Chambers improved in Arsenal's last two November games, against Borussia Dortmund and West Brom. But he also endured the worst performance of his Arsenal career (and potentially his professional career) during the Gunners' 2-1 loss to Swansea.
Jefferson Montero repeatedly and ruthlessly left Chambers in the dust in that match, and Arsene Wenger never provided him with any support. He just did not have the pace or the guile to deal with his opponent.
But Chambers has been better since, and doesn't appear to be timid. That's a good sign for a young player. He'll have an easier time now with Laurent Koscielny stabilizing the defense.
Nacho Monreal: C-
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One cannot fault Nacho Monreal too much for having as torrid a month as he did. He was repeatedly deployed as a center-back in the absence of Laurent Koscielny (and the backup Arsenal should have).
The 5'10" left back is clearly not suited to the role. He grew into it a little as the month progressed, but Arsenal's defense looked dangerously unstable the entire month with him in the middle of it.
Monreal did play a large part in Arsenal's clean sheet against Dortmund, though. And he looked solid at left back against West Brom before being forced off with an injury.
Per Mertesacker: C-
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Per Mertesacker's last performance against West Brom is the only thing that salvages his grade for this month. Other than that, he has been abject.
It's not entirely his fault, though. In the absence of Laurent Koscielny, he was forced to play in a role for which he was not at all suited; namely, that of a proactive and advanced center-back snuffing out attacks in midfield.
Mertesacker does not have the pace required to track back when such forays don't work. As a result, Arsenal were repeatedly slaughtered on the counterattack.
Here's hoping for better performances now that Koscielny is back. West Brom was a good omen.
Mikel Arteta: B
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November was merely an interlude between calf strains for Mikel Arteta, who has been plagued by the same injury multiple times this season.
He appeared in four of Arsenal's six games, missing Swansea with a knock and succumbing to another calf strain against Borussia Dortmund that kept him out for West Brom and will sideline him for a couple more weeks at least.
It's terribly unfortunate for Arsenal that Arteta keeps missing out. He is the team's foremost leader on the pitch and plays a crucial role in distributing the ball for the forwards.
The team just does not play as fluidly without him.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain: B+
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Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain saw his best month of the season in November, starting five of Arsenal's six games and appearing in all of them.
His best moment of his most consistent period came against Anderlecht a few weeks ago, when he picked up the ball in midfield and ran down the left wing straight past the Belgians' defense before deliciously finishing into the bottom corner.
Excluding Alexis Sanchez, he has been Arsenal's best forward.
In a tepid team that has struggled to produce much of anything in attack, Oxlade-Chamberlain has shown he is capable of producing something out of nothing.
Mathieu Flamini: B-
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Mikel Arteta's repeated injuries continue to give Mathieu Flamini playing time, and the Frenchman has not used it entirely well.
Flamini has a distinctive style that rarely changes. He charges around the pitch aggressively, sometimes too aggressively to adequately protect the back four, and usually confronts the referee once or twice a game.
He was much better against West Brom, though. He completed almost every pass he attempted, did not commit a single foul and was overall the sort of metronomic midfielder Arteta usually is.
Aaron Ramsey: C
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There is probably no one on Arsenal's roster who is more of a lightning rod than Aaron Ramsey.
Some of the criticism of his often lackluster performances in November was warranted. He did try to force the ball into other players too much and go for glory when he should not have.
But he still received flak on social media after West Brom, when he effectively created at least one clear goalscoring chance and came within inches of opening the scoring himself.
Ramsey needs to improve, but he is not terribly far from form.
Santi Cazorla: B
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No Arsenal player had a more bipolar month than Santi Cazorla.
The Spaniard endured an awful run of form until the last two games, when he showed why Arsene Wenger has so much faith in him. He still cannot seem to shoot effectively, but he danced out of tight spaces against Dortmund and West Brom as effectively as Lionel Messi.
He looks reinvigorated and back to his old form. That's vital in the absence of Mesut Ozil, and a good portent for the busiest period of the season.
Alexis Sanchez: A+
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What other grade could the Chilean maestro possibly get?
Alexis scored a total of five goals in Arsenal's six November games, including a brace against Burnley and a delightful goal from outside the box against Borussia Dortmund.
He continues to be the one man in this Arsenal team who can make something out of nothing. Despite looking a bit jaded at the end of the Manchester United match, he has continued to run as tirelessly as ever.
He'll need a rest eventually, but it is difficult to determine when. Arsenal are exponentially better with him in the team, but this is the busiest part of the entire season and Alexis has not been rested in weeks.
Danny Welbeck: B+
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Danny Welbeck had a fairly pedestrian month, but at least he finished it out with a bang.
Before West Brom, he had not scored once all month, despite appearing in four of five games. He did his job up front well but did not provide the goalscoring threat one expects from a lone striker.
But Welbeck appeared to thrive in a two-striker system against West Brom, swapping wings with Alexis Sanchez and occasionally taking Olivier Giroud's place up front.
His headed goal shows how dynamic a striker he is. If he can use it to build a bit of confidence, Arsenal's attack will become substantially more dynamic.
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