Everton ended their 8 game winless run with a 2-1 victory over Arsenal at a blustery Goodison Park on Monday.
An explosive Demari Gray goal in the final minute was enough to seal the comeback for Everton. Although truth be told, the 2 – 1 victory was flattering for Arsenal.
When Richarlisson scored to make it 1 – 1, it was actually the third time he had the ball in the net on the night. He had two goals ruled out by VAR for marginal offside.
It was emblematic of how vulnerable Arsenal are when defending a lead as for the second time in a week they’ve given a struggling team a lifeline after going a goal ahead.
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Against United at Old Trafford, they took the lead through a freak goal, and proceeded to concede all the possession. With the attacking talent of United, it’s no surprise the capitalised and started scoring goals.
It was a similar story against Everton. They took the lead through Martin Odegaard shortly after Richarlisson’s first disallowed goal. They held the lead until the 80th minute until they conceded from their own throw-in. A poor throw-in from Tavares to Partey resulted in a clumsy exchange which was intercepted.
Richarlisson was put through on goal in a flash to equalise. Demari Gray’s fantastic winner came after some end-to-end play from both teams.
It’s a result that has to draw scrutiny on the decision making of manager Mikel Arteta. In both defeats this week, he brought on Eddie Nketiah when Arsenal were chasing a goal.
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He brought on Nketiah to play on the wing ahead of Nicolas Pepe, who is out in the cold. As well as that, Nketiah recently refused a new contract, and has no future at the club. How much is it possible to dislike a player when you’re willing to bring on a raw player who has no future out of position ahead of the experienced, natural option?
At times it feels as if Arteta is more worried about making a point to his players than taking points on the pitch. More often that not it backfires on him and the goodwill he built up with the team’s recent good form will quickly evaporate.
Arsenal should have taken at least four points from United and Everton. Instead, they have zero.
