Napoli v Arsenal - player ratings

Mikel Arteta: 5 - His positional awareness and the ability to see and receive a pass made him an important pivot for a Gunners side under the cosh at times. A harsh second yellow, but a player of his experience should know better.

Tomas Rosicky: 6 - Worked hard, covered ground well and was a creative threat at times with deft touches. Influence diminished as the game became increasingly fraught for the North Londoners.

Santi Cazorla: 6 - Quick feet and a willingness to get involved in defensive work early on but impact lessened as the game wore on. Subbed for Ramsey.  

Mesut Ozil: 5 - Quiet night for Arsenal’s record signing who struggled to be decisive. Will need to be back to his best for a potentially difficult first knockout stage.   

Olivier Giroud: 6 - Powerful first half left foot shot palmed away by Rafael. An unsung hero leading the line well and a willing outlet for his teammates on a tense night. Arsenal’s joint highest passing combination in the first half was Szczesny to Giroud. Booked.

Arsenal subs

Nacho Monreal: 5 - for Rosicky 75 minute. Unable to get into the game as Napoli scored a late second.

Aaron Ramsey: 6 - for Cazorla, 69 minute. As busy and energetic as ever. Harsh booking.

Napoli

Rafael Cabral: 6 - In for the injured ex-Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina. Good save from Giroud in the first half. Quick, effective distribution which allowed his team to build from the back.

Christian Maggio: 5 - The Napoli captain’s first touch at times left a lot to be desired, especially at this level. Will be desperately unhappy with his team’s late exit despite the win. 

Federico Fernández: 6 – Tidied up efficiently, but should have shown more urgency in moving the ball forward during the crucial period which followed the opening goal. Booked.

Raul Albiol: 6 - Looked to push on but was confined to more prosaic defensive duties as the Gunners moved the ball around well.

Pablo Armero: 7 - The 27-year-old Columbian left-back showcased his pace well when running onto a through-ball down the left and later when one-on-one with Szczesny - but a meek shot was easily saved. Solid defensively and always a threat.

Blerim Džemaili: 6 – Tried to prompt his team forward but booked to complete an unhappy night for him. Certainly compounded by the fact Napoli become the first Champions League team to be eliminated on 12 points.

Valon Behrami: 6 - Ineffectual and anonymous for long periods of the game. Will be disappointed with his effort on a night that saw his team eliminated from the Champions League. Booked.

José Callejón: 7 - Ambitious attempt from 25 yards on the half-hour but fired well over. Hit a low shot across the face of goal in the second period. An impressive late lob for the second goal.

Goran Pandev: 5 - Intelligent play from Macedonia’s all-time record goalscorer. A threat with his flicks and off-the-ball movement even if he was not as influential as Napoli fans would have liked. Faded before being subbed early in the second half. 

Dries Mertens: 6 - Busy-looking early on with a slick through-ball for Pandev to race onto but the shot came to nothing. Booked in the 36 minute for hooking Rosicky.

Gonzalo Higuaín: 6 - The £34 million striker who spurned Arsenal’s advances in the summer missed a good chance in the first half when he saw a header fly wide. Great left foot finish marked his first goal against an English team in the Champions League - though his efforts were ultimately fruitless in salvaging qualification.   

Napoli subs

Lorenzo Insigne: 6 - for Pandev 56 minutes. The 22 year-old Neapolitan-born left-winger prompted a late surge and provided an assist as the Italians narrowly missed out.