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Merry Christmas and Happy Anniversary mikel artetaTo some extent, anyway. armory The manager can testify from bitter experience that being Christmas No. 1 is no guarantee that he will remain in the top spot in May. But, six years after his appointment, Arteta left the club he had represented for six years.
The importance of a largely forgettable matter can be measured in numbers or in armoryImmediate reaction to being demoted to second place or identifying the scorer. Arsenal’s summit clash lasted only five hours before they were beaten by Manchester City. Having failed to win any of their last three league matches, it marks a three-point turnaround in their fortunes on the road. However, this felt more like a test in theory than in practice. everton Both are weak and complicit in their own downfall.
For Victor Gyökeres, the gifts came from opponents and colleagues alike. A striker, in need of a goal, got his first in six games and only his second in 11 after two acts of generosity: Jake O’Brien conceded a penalty and his teammates let him take it. While Bukayo Saka has scored two spot-kicks this season, with a summer signing on the pitch, Arsenal alternated between takers. “There are some of us who can take it,” Gyokres shrugged. He was provided the ball by Martin Odegaard. “He took ownership of the pitch between Martin, Bukayo and him and made a great decision,” Arteta said. The control freak of a manager was happy to allow him to choose his players.
Gyokres nevertheless has a track record of regularity. Since joining Sporting CP, he has taken and scored 19 penalties in league matches in Portugal or England.
All of this made O’Brien’s defection more costly. “We gave away a stupid penalty kick,” David Moyes said candidly. O’Brien’s unnecessary handball was more volleyball than football, preventing Riccardo Calafiori from scoring, but still getting a header. Gyökeres hit his spot kick into the roof of the net.
Before this Arsenal had rarely looked to score; neither was evertonThe first quarter of an hour passed without any shot being attempted. Gyöckeres had a header wide but controlled well. Yet O’Brien was spared a penalty appeal for his strike on the Swede, and he did not learn his lesson.
Gyöckeres was industrious without looking particularly sharp, his 65 minutes on the pitch brought bookings for kicking the ball, but there were few signs that he would go on a goalscoring burst. Perhaps, though, he will leave Merseyside with momentum.
Arsenal were largely uninspired before the break but became more expansive after that. “We had three big chances to score the second goal,” Arteta said. After Saka’s effort was cleared off the line by James Tarkowski, Leandro Trossard fired a shot against the far post and then Martin Zubimendi fired a shot wide of the upright. “You hit the post twice with players who are usually the ones to put it in the net,” Arteta said.
They were not made to pay. Everton had hopes of equalizing from 12 yards, but, in a match of penalty appeals, William Saliba escaped punishment for his challenge on Thierno Barry. “We’ve seen something happen when you kick someone’s leg,” Moyes saidHe nevertheless admitted that he was “not sure” it was a spot kick.
Otherwise, however, Everton’s threat was minimal. It was a sign of Everton’s impotence that they went 30 minutes without touching the ball in the Arsenal box during the first half. Moyes praised the attitude of his players but admitted they lacked quality. They were also without their usual midfield three, either through injury or because of the African Cup of Nations and, in Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye, two of their three best creators.
Barry was ineffective and, as might happen on such occasions, he was replaced by Beto. During this time, Dominic Calvert-Lewin scores as many Premier League goals in one evening for Leeds As have Everton’s two current strikers all season.
So Arsenal’s clean-sheet kings got the job done with few alarms. They had two-thirds of the ball, attempted 652 passes and finished with nine times more xG than Everton. Declan Rice was “incredible”, Arteta said. Moyes, who managed the England international at West Ham, called him “probably the best midfield player in the world”. He brought a control that some of his competitors did not have.
which day A meeting of North London and Merseyside was explosive entertainmentIt was a more subdued affair. This suited Arsenal.
And for Arteta, who played his part in many difficult-to-win victories for Moyes during his Everton years, borrowing from a mentor helped overcome him. Thus, for the third time in four seasons, they are on top at Christmas. But, as Arteta knows well, Arsenal have not won the league since 2004; Before even joining Everton, let alone Arsenal.