Reds leave much to be desired in Emirates shellacking - Player ratings

Player ratings by Joel Tracy

Simon Mignolet - 7 - Two alert saves early on from Cazorla and Ramsey saved Liverpool from an early deficit. Poor positioning and a false hitch to his left allowed Ozil to curl a free kick past the Belgian to double Arsenal's lead, and he could perhaps have done better to keep out Sanchez's blast before half. A fine save from Giroud's header early in the second prevented what could have been an even uglier scoreline.

Alberto Moreno - 4 - For all his athleticism, it has become clear the Spaniard currently offers next to nothing going forward. While he might have made an impact had Coutinho spotted his run down the left flank early on, the youngster has proven unable or unwilling to take on his man or offer any threat in attack. His passive making of Bellerin left his compatriot far too much space to punish Liverpool for Arsenal's opener. Fortunate to not be substituted at half.

Mamadou Sakho - 6 - The Frenchman missed the stability of the suspended Martin Skrtel to his right early on, thanks to a combination of stellar Arsenal pressing and the incompetence of Kolo Toure at the centre of defence. Sakho won a few headers against the aerial threat of Giroud, and did well in possession after the early flurry of pressure from Arsenal's attackers. A clumsy, unnecessary first half foul, however, set up Ozil's strike.

Kolo Toure - 3 - The former Gunner started the match abysmally, routinely conceding possession in the worst of areas - although he did save his own blushes with a timely clearance of the rebound after a fine save from Mignolet on Ramsey. The Ivorian was repeatedly exposed for his lack of pace by Arsenal's array of crafty attackers, as he was made to look like a training cone for both Sanchez's and Giroud's goals. After such a shambolic performance, the defender may find himself out of the lineup against Blackburn, despite yet another suspension on the backline.

Emre Can - 6 - The young German put in a solid shift, winning possession with a series of strong challenges and getting forward down the right with some surging runs-including one that drew a strong save out of Ospina at the keeper's near post. However, a cynical, naive and unnecessary challenge late on marred an otherwise strong outing, and leaves the Liverpool defence woefully undermanned heading into Wednesday's FA Cup replay at Blackburn.

Jordan Henderson - 5 - Played out of position at right wingback, and later at right midfield, the skipper was presumably shifted to limit the threat of Sanchez along Arsenal's left flank, but at what cost? Liverpool sorely missed his work rate and composure in midfield, and despite the support of Can's attacking forays, Henderson failed to make much of an impact going forward, with his uncharacteristically errant distribution exacerbating Liverpool's lack of possession. Bolstered a relatively non-existent penalty record with a well-placed - albeit ultimately meaningless - strike, after the damage had been done.

Lucas Leiva - 4 - Spent the first half locked in a heated competition with Toure to commit the most costly turnovers, with the Brazilian's giveaway leading directly to Sanchez's match-killing strike just before half. His best contribution was a first-time pass off an interception inside Arsenal's half, which set up Raheem Sterling for a threatening chance, but the midfielder struggled to cope with the pace and movement of Arsenal's attack, and was clearly out of his depth on his return from injury.

Joe Allen - 5 - The Welshman was uncharacteristically poor in possession and found himself exposed for a lack of pace and overrun by Arsenal's attacking onslaught. He was done no favors by the struggling Lucas and Toure next to and behind him, respectively, his willingness to show for the ball while under pressure perhaps leaving him holding the bag for others' errors. Still, with Henderson shifted out wide, more was needed from Allen in the engine room.

Lazar Markovic - 5 - Given a surprise start in the front three, the young Serb failed to register much of an impact. His best opportunity came when out through on goal by Coutinho, but the youngster spurned the shooting chance, only to over hit a pass to a wide open Sterling at the back post. Unfortunate to be hauled off at the half, given the abysmal performances of others in the side.

Philippe Coutinho - 6 - With Lallana and Sturridge out of the XI, and with Henderson shunted out wide, the onus was on the Brazilian to stir the drink of the Liverpool attack. He wasn't helped by a lack of possession, nor by the lack of movement from those around him. Still, the little magician could have done much better in exposing Arsenal's high line on the break, and outside of a few pinpoint passes to spread play out wide, he failed to supply either the killer ball or a clinical finish in more settled situations.

Raheem Sterling - 6 - All eyes were on the diminutive attacker, who appeared keen to prove a point on the heels of his pot-stirring interview earlier in the week. His single-minded approach proved costly, however, as the stand-in frontman thoughtlessly dribbled into trouble throughout the first half, squandering rare spells of possession. He was unlucky not to be found streaking towards the back post by Markovic, but he perked up afterwards, dragging just wide of the post after a nifty move at the top of the box and narrowly missing a surging Henderson with a chipped pass across the face of goal. Worked hard at the tip of Liverpool's press and did well to win a penalty late on, but overall a disappointing performance from a player with much to prove.

Daniel Sturridge - 5 - Was unable to influence the match after his halftime introduction, as he was often isolated as the lone frontman. The striker was perhaps hampered by yet another injury, but he continues to look worryingly slow in both his movement and his decision making.

Brendan Rodgers - 4 - Put in a tough position by the absence of Skrtel through suspension, his understandable faith in Toure against the alternatives of Dejan Lovren and Glen Johnson went wholly unrewarded. Less forgivable was the introduction of Lucas, shifting Henderson out wide. While the presence of Sanchez on Arsenal's left demanded attention, even Johnson or the underused Manquillo would have been preferable to pushing Liverpool's best midfielder out of the engine room against a side with as strong an array of attacking options as Arsenal's.

At halftime, a strong argument could have been made for dropping Markovic back to right wingback and replacing the woeful Lucas with Henderson in midfield, with Sturridge introduced alongside Sterling up front. Alternatively, Rodgers could have switched to a diamond midfield, with Alberto giving way to Sturridge, with Sterling and Markovic out wide in a front three. Instead both Lucas and Moreno were kept on at the expense of Markovic, while Henderson remained marginalized out wide. His players did him no favours, but in a match Liverpool had to at least draw, their manager got it all wrong.

Joel Tracy

@RambleOnReds