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Mohamed Elneny has explained why he was absent from Arsenal 's squad for Sunday's game against Bournemouth , revealing shortly before the game that his partner had given birth.
When it emerged that the January signing was not in the squad for the game on the south coast, it led to some speculation that perhaps the Egyptian wasn't being considered because he had failed to make an impact since his arrival from FC Basel.
Since joining the club in a £7m deal the defensive midfielder has played just once, in the FA Cup win over Burnley. He was not in the squad for the midweek draw with Southampton and was an unused sub against Stoke and Chelsea.
Elneny cleared up any confusion a couple of hours before Arsenal's 2-0 win over Bournemouth by tweeting: "New baby thanks allah".
Arsenal's win over Bournemouth took them up to third in the league table, level on points with Tottenham.
Show all 22 1 /22Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Artur Boruc, Bournemouth: 6 out of 10 Could have done more about the first goal but did well to keep the score at 2-0 in the first half.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Adam Smith, Bournemouth: 5 out of 10 A threat going forward but struggled to deal with Oxlade-Chamberlain at times.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Simon Francis, Bournemouth: 6 out of 10 Coped well under pressure and even got forward at times but will be annoyed about the first goal.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Steve Cook, Bournemouth: 6 out of 10 Similar performance to Francis. Did well to keep his composure after conceding two quick goals.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Charlie Daniels, Bournemouth: 7 out of 10 Strong going forward down the wing and kept Sanchez under wraps for most of the game.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Andrew Surman, Bournemouth: 5 out of 10 Struggled in the first half protecting his back four. An underwhelming performance.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Matt Ritchie, Bournemouth: 7 out of 10 Bournemouth’s main threat. Enjoyed a number of close shots on goals.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Dan Gosling, Bournemouth: 6 out of 10 Very influential at times creating plenty of chances for himself and those around him.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Harry Arter, Bournemouth: 5 out of 10 Did a job going forward but not clinical enough with his chances.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Marc Pugh, Bournemouth: 6 out of 10 A livelier first half performance from the winger but quietened down in the second 45 minutes.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Benik Afobe, Bournemouth: 5 out of 10 Saw far too little of the ball but did perk up in the final 20 minutes. As a whole though, too quiet a game for him.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Petr Cech, Arsenal: 7 out of 10 A busy game for him. Pulled off a series of fantastic saves to keep Arsenal on top.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Hector Bellerin, Arsenal: 6 out of 10 Solid defensive performance and managed to get forward with his pace.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Gabriel, Arsenal: 6 out of 10 Far from convincing but he’ll be happy with the clean sheet.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Laurent Koscielny, Arsenal: 6 out of 10 A bit shaky at times but did well to hold off late Bournemouth pressure.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Nacho Monreal, Arsenal: 5 out of 10 Struggled to keep Ritchie and Stanislas under wraps. Gave them far too much space.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Mathieu Flamini, Arsenal: 6 out of 10 Another quiet game for him in which he went under the radar.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Aaron Ramsey, Arsenal: 8 out of 10 Pulled the strings in the middle of the park and bagged himself an assist. Impressive performance.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Arsenal: 7 out of 10 Scored a fantastic goal to make it 2-0 and proved what a menace he can be.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Mesut Ozil, Arsenal: 6 out of 10 An unusually quiet performance but he took his goal well.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Alexis Sanchez, Arsenal: 5 out of 10 Threatened with his pace at times but he’s still a long way off his best form.
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Bournemouth vs Arsenal player ratings Olivier Giroud, Arsenal: 6 out of 10 Assisted Ozil’s goal but overall he wasn’t threatening enough.
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They are next in action on Sunday, when they play table-toppers Leicester.
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