Arsenal come from behind to beat Leeds 2-1 at Emirates Stadium
Arsenal beat Leeds United 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium on 10 October 2026, recovering after falling behind to claim the win.
It was a close match in which James Justin opened the scoring for Leeds before Riccardo Calafiori levelled for Arsenal, and Bruno Guimaraes — introduced from the bench — struck the decisive goal. The following are BBC Sport's player ratings and observations from the game.
Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya was given a 6 after making a smart save from Jayden Bogle and a stronger stop from Gabriel Gudmundsson soon after, though the cross for Leeds' goal eluded him. Ben White (6) assisted Calafiori's equaliser with a header, was caught offside several times and was on the side down which Leeds scored. Ezri Konsa (6) was involved in the physical duel with Dominic Calvert-Lewin, while Gabriel Magalhaes (6) produced what the report described as an unconvincing display from the back four.
Riccardo Calafiori received a 7 for scoring Arsenal's equaliser and for his adventurous forward runs, and Declan Rice was rated 7 for injecting energy and providing the clever assist for Bruno Guimaraes' winner. Myles Lewis-Skelly (6) returned to the starting line-up after previously being dropped for Bruno and was assessed as not having his best day.
Martin Odegaard was given a 6 after attempting to influence the game and having a tame effort saved by James Trafford; Bukayo Saka (6) troubled Gabriel Gudmundsson early but failed to convert chances and missed a late opportunity to make it 3-1. Noni Madueke (6) started on the left in place of the injured Christos Tzolis, delivering some good crosses without becoming a major threat, and Kai Havertz (6) started despite recent hamstring problems and appeared short of full match sharpness.
Arsenal substitutes included Viktor Gyokeres (on 63 for Havertz) rated 6 for adding physicality, Bruno Guimaraes (on 63 for Lewis-Skelly) rated 8 who came on and scored the winner, Jurrien Timber (on 63 for White) rated 7 for calming the backline, Piero Hincapie (on 82 for Calafiori) rated 6 to help see out the win, and Merino (on 90 for Odegaard) rated 5 with no time to influence the match; unused subs were Arrizabalaga, Zubimendi, Eze and Dowman.
Leeds goalkeeper James Trafford was rated 6 and was noted as likely disappointed by the way he conceded the equaliser while showing passing range when attempting to find target man Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Jayden Bogle (6) forced Raya into a save and provided an attacking outlet, and James Justin (7) scored the well-worked opener, made important clearances and linked well with Bogle. Centre-back Tarik Muharemovic earned a 7 for dealing with most threats, with Nico Elvedi on 6 as part of a backline that nearly produced an upset.
Gabriel Gudmundsson was rated 7 for providing the assist for Justin's goal and for handling the threat of Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz; midfielders Ao Tanaka (7) and Ethan Ampadu (6) were credited with strong work in possession and effort, while Anton Stach received a 6 for his physical presence. Noah Okafor (6) went close in the first half but overhit a pass at a key moment, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin (6) offered a physical challenge for Arsenal's centre-halves.
Leeds substitutes were Harry Wilson (on 71 for Tanaka) rated 6 and Brenden Aaronson (on 71 for Okafor) rated 6 as the side chased an equaliser, with Jean-Matteo Bahoya (on 86 for Bogle) and Jaka Bijol (on 86 for Elvedi) both rated 5 after limited time; unused substitutes were Zetterer, Bard, Gruev, Nmecha and Longstaff.
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users. Play BBC Sport's Match of the Day Predictor game and follow your club with BBC Sport.
