Arsenal finally ended their Goodison Park curse with a narrow 1-0 win over Everton on Sunday. This was The Gunners’ first win on the blue side of Merseyside in six years, and their first under former Toffee Mikel Arteta.
In a match that was dominated by the visitors in terms of possession, the telling blow came in the second half through substitute Leandro Trossard.
Arteta made two changes to the side that beat Manchester United 3-1 before the international break, bringing in Fabio Vieira in place of Kai Havertz in midfield. He also gave David Raya his debut in goal, replacing Aaron Ramsdale.
Arsenal were very much the dominant side in the first half, and thought they had taken the lead in the 19th minute through Gabriel Martinelli. However, after a VAR review, Eddie Nketiah was adjudged to be in an offside position in the buildup to the goal. That was Martinelli’s last meaningful contribution to the game, as he picked up an injury five minutes later, and was replaced by Trossard.
Everton were hardly creating anything telling in the Arsenal half, but the midfield trio of Amadou Onana, Abdoulaye Doucoure and Idrissa Gana Gueye were making it difficult for The Gunners to find space to progress play centrally.
Early after the restart, Jordan Pickford had to be at his best to palm away an effort from Martin Odegaard.
The pressure from the visitors finally told in the 69th minute, when an intricate passing move found Bukayo Saka in the right half-space inside the penalty box. The winger cut the ball back to Trossard, who angled a beautifully-timed finish into the far corner.
Sean Dyche brought on Dominic Calvert-Lewin in place of Beto, with the Englishman looking to provide an aerial threat up front. Everton had a couple of set-pieces which were met by James Tarkwoski, but Arsenal were first to the second ball and managed to clear it away.
For Arteta’s men, this victory takes them to 13 points after five games played, level with Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool for second place. Arsenal host their North London neighbours at the Emirates next Sunday, a game which is definitely one to not miss.
Everton, on the other hand, are still looking for their first win of the season, and will end the weekend in the relegation zone with just one point to their name so far.
Player Ratings
Everton
Jordan Pickford – 7
Ashley Young – 6
James Tarkowski – 6
Jarrad Branthwaite – 7
Vitali Mykolenko – 6
Arnaut Danjuma – 5
Idrissa Gana Gueye – 6
Amadou Onana – 6
Abdoulaye Doucoure – 7
Dwight McNeil – 5
Beto – 6
Substitutes
Dominic Calvert-Lewin – 5
Arsenal
David Raya – 7
Ben White – 8
William Saliba – 7
Gabriel – 7
Oleksander Zinchenko – 8
Declan Rice – 9*
Fabio Vieira – 7
Martin Odegaard – 7
Gabriel Martinelli – 6
Eddie Nketiah – 6
Bukayo Saka – 8
Substitutes
Leandro Trossard – 8
Gabriel Jesus – 6
