Declan Rice celebrates with his Arsenal teammates after beating Bournemouth (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
Arsenal extended their lead over Manchester City at the top of the Premier League with a hard fought 3-2 win against Bournemouth.
The Gunners found themselves 1-0 down early on, but fought back to make it 3-1 in the second half thanks to Declan Rice’s goal.
However, the home side made it a miserable end as they pulled one back, although Arsenal were still strong enough to hold on to their lead with all three points.
Read on for our full Arsenal player ratings…
Arsenal vs Bournemouth player ratings
David Raya – 6 – Two goals conceded, so Raya is not very happy this season, although to be fair Bournemouth’s second goal was quite a shout, so not many goalkeepers would have had a chance with that.
Jurrien Timber – 7 – Perhaps Arsenal’s best full-back in most of the game, Timber did his job well against the threat of Antoine Semenyo, and brought the ball forward as he often does.
Piero Hincapie – 6.5 – Still getting used to English football, Hincapie was solid enough today, even if he wasn’t always 100% confident against a strong Cherries side.
Gabriel Magalhaes – 6.5 – Hard work to summarize! Gabriel made a bad mistake in the 10th minute to give Bournemouth the lead, but six minutes later he fired home a well-taken equalizer and it was tight and tight after that.
William Saliba – 6.5 – Decent for Arsenal, if not the best as Arsenal conceded two goals, which is rare for them when their first choice defenders are both perfect.
Martin Zubimendi – 7 – Organized in football, Zubimendi was in good control of the game as he usually does.
Declan Rice – 9 – Two superbly taken goals, this was Declan Rice at his best, with this fine effort below making it 2-1 to the Gunners at the start of the second half…
Arsenal have converted!
Declan Rice is hot at home! ? pic.twitter.com/yohVWA8Crj
– Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 3, 2026
Martin Odegaard – 8 – Silky and talented, Martin Odegaard was a joy to watch again tonight as he continued his recent revival, producing a brilliant assist for Rice’s first goal.
Noni Madueke – 7.5 – Got a rare start over Bukayo Saka, and looked happy on the right, especially with some excellent skill to help set up Gabriel’s equalizer.
Gabriel Martinelli – 6 – Frustratingly, this was one of Gabriel Martinelli’s worst games, where the Brazilian defender could not influence things or make the right decisions at important moments.
Viktor Gyokeres – 6 – A hard worker, but Gyokeres still seems to lack that quality and scoring touch that Arsenal need from him.
Subscribers: Gabriel Jesus 6, Bukayo Saka 7, Leandro Trossard 6, Mikel Merino 6
