Burnley vs. Arsenal: Winners and Losers from Premier League Game

Arsenal kept the pressure on league leaders Chelsea as they beat Burnley 1-0 at Turf Moor on Saturday.

Aaron Ramsey's first-half strike was the difference between the two sides, as Arsene Wenger's men continued their impressive recent run of form against a team both fighting for their lives and buoyed by their own recent displays.

Burnley's defensive discipline—which enabled them to keep clean sheets against both Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur recently—was once again in evidence, although once Ramsey had broken the deadlock, they never really looked like creating the attacking opportunities to deliver an equaliser.

It was hardly a classic match, and certainly not one that will live too long in the memory, but both sides will take the positives—Arsenal in the fact they added another three points, Burnley in that they managed to make life difficult for another of the Premier League's top sides.

Click on for some of the winners and losers from this game.

Winner: Aaron Ramsey

Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

This was almost a game from last season with midfielder Aaron Ramsey scoring the decisive goal to secure Arsenal another important win.

The Welshman has perhaps not been as influential and important as he was during the first part of last season, when he was a standout contender for player of the season with his all-action, dominant goalscoring displays. But things have picked up for him in recent weeks and months, and this was a continuation of that.

Arsenal needed a moment of clinical finishing to break down an obdurate Burnley defence, and ultimately, it was Ramsey who provided it. As a consequence, they have added to the pressure on Chelsea's shoulders as they prepare to face Queens Park Rangers on Sunday, achieving exactly what they set out to do at the start of this weekend.

"A lot of big teams have dropped points here, and it proved another test that we got through," Ramsey told Sky Sports afterwards. "We looked pretty solid and dealt with their threat—they like to get the ball forward and put crosses in, and we dealt with that ever so well today."

Loser: Olivier Giroud

Dave Thompson/Getty Images

After scoring in seven straight games, perhaps it is somewhat harsh to offer too much criticism of Olivier Giroud when finally fails to find the target.

The Frenchman's travails on Saturday were not entirely his own fault—often his team-mates simply failed to get the ball to him, as Burnley's organised, entrenched defensive unit gave him no real room to move—but nevertheless left Arsenal looking more one-dimensional than they have in recent weeks and certainly far less threatening in the final third.

If anything, it was a surprise how long Giroud remained on the pitch, as he continued to be hounded in his aerial challenges and suffocated whenever he tried to get the ball into feet.

It was just one of those days. As soon as he was replaced, the game opened up and his replacement, Danny Welbeck, had a couple of half-chances to clinch the victory.

Giroud never got such an opening the entire game. But, after scoring in so many successive games recently, perhaps he will brush off the disappointment pretty quickly.

Winner: Burnley's Defensive Unit

Dave Thompson/Getty Images

In front of the television cameras, Sean Dyche and his Burnley side undoubtedly enhanced their reputations with the supremely disciplined, organised nature of their defensive performance.

Arsenal have been a free-flowing, beautifully vibrant attacking unit in recent weeks, yet the Clarets reduced them to plodding, unimaginative individuals for large parts of the contest thanks to the manner of their defending.

Dyche prefers not to rotate his starting XI if at all possible and, while that perhaps resulted in a lack of spark in his attacking unit during this game, the benefits of such familiarity and cohesion were evident in the way his defence played.

Arsenal struggled to find any gaps in the armour, with their one goal coming from a rare mistake from the home side that left the defence unusually out of position.

That will be a huge disappointment for Dyche tonight, as without that one moment, they would have probably taken another point off one of the league's biggest sides. Nevertheless, it was an impressive team effort—and should give the squad additional confidence as they face more important and more winnable games until the end of the campaign.

As Wenger told Sky Sports: "It was a battling performance more than a fluent one, but I'd put that down to the quality of Burnley—they were perfectly organised, fit enough to maintain that organisation and you have to congratulate their manager. I think they deserve to stay in the league."

Their survival remains very much in doubt, but on this evidence, they have the defence to give them a great chance. Whether they can score the goals required is perhaps the issue now.

Winner: Francis Coquelin

Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

There were titters of amusement back in the studio when Sky Sports pundit (and Arsenal legend) Thierry Henry unveiled his nickname for Francis Coquelin: "The police officer: If anyone crosses the red light, he stops them."

Coquelin will not have known about Henry's moniker for him, or indeed the praise his compatriot offered for his qualities during a segment focusing on his importance to the team, but the young Frenchman certainly played like he had. He made a number of vital interceptions throughout the game to prevent the Gunners ever being in serious danger of conceding a goal.

One of those interventions actually resulted in Arsenal opening the scoring, as Ramsey grabbed what would be the winning goal. An attempted Burnley clearance was anticipated by Coquelin, who stole in front of an opponent to win possession high up the pitch. 

With plenty of attacking players beyond him and Burnley's defence for once out of sorts, Coquelin delivered the ball to Sanchez, and eventually, the ball would be back in the net. At half-time, Henry would look like a genius for his pre-match comments, and by the end of the game, Coquelin had continued to enhance his reputation with another impressive and assured all-round display.

"Coquelin has been absolutely consistent in the quality of his defensive work and gives the ball quickly," Wenger added. "He's good technically right and left foot, and he's contributed to the balance of the team. That's difficult to measure, but you need that."