Arsenal vs Everton: Arsenal capitalised on Manchester City’s defeat against Aston Villa with a convincing 2-0 victory over Everton at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
Ezri Konsa gave Arsenal the lead in the seventh minute before Gabriel Magalhães scored a header to put them two up after the break and earn Mikel Arteta’s side three crucial points in the Premier League.
The Arsenal vs Everton win brings them level at 21 points with City at the top of the table. They showed a positive response to their 2-2 Champions League draw with Bayern Munich on Wednesday by dominating and keeping Everton from threatening their goal.
Konsa gives Arsenal an early advantage
Arsenal wasted little time taking control, breaking the deadlock in the seventh minute following their third consecutive corner.
A goalmouth scramble ended with Konsa getting the final touch, giving the hosts an early advantage and scoring their first corner-kick goal of the season.
Everton applied some early pressure and played some good football after some sloppy Arsenal play in wet conditions, but they quickly got back into their rhythm.
Eberechi Eze could not take his chance; Noni Madueke hit two great chances off target, and Mikel Merino had an excellent chance blocked, then headed over from a set piece.
Arsenal controlled the first half and had plenty of chances to increase their lead but could not do so, which allowed Everton to stay in the game.
Thierno Barry almost took advantage of a defensive error after he won the ball off a mis-hit header from Ben White, but the Arsenal goalkeeper put in an incredible save to keep the lead.
Despite that scare, Arsenal entered half-time firmly in control and looking more likely than ever to score again.
Gabriel marks 200th appearance with decisive header
Arsenal carried on where they left off, asserting control of the ball, and looked to add a second goal to make it safe.
A moment of concern arose when Gabriel took a clumsy tumble to the ground and quickly flagged to the ref. Fortunately for Arteta, the Brazilian had jarred his right knee on the floor but was well enough to continue playing.
His afternoon took a much happier turn in the 69th minute.
White provided a superb cross from the right which found the run of Gabriel, who headed the ball into the net from the opposite end of the box to give Arsenal a two-goal lead. He scored to the delight of the Emirates fans.
Gabriel’s 200th Premier League appearance for Arsenal was a thing to behold as he scored the vital second goal to help his team keep a clean sheet.
Gunners see out victory as title race heats up
Everton struggled to get back into the game in the final stages, and they were restricted by Arsenal’s solid backline.
The closest they came to changing the scoreline was Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who headed just off target. Hayden Hackney had a long-range shot but was comfortably dealt with by Raya.
They held on for the remainder of the game to give a professional display that put them in a strong position in the title race.
Arteta’s team took the chance to level up after City’s early setback.
The Gunners will now look ahead to their League Cup clash with Fleetwood Town before facing Liverpool at Anfield next weekend. With momentum building, the Gunners will hope this result provides another foundation for their title challenge.
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