Liverpool [UK]: A second-half strike by Leandro Trossard helped Arsenal secure a hard-fought 1-0 win over Everton to end their five-match winless run at the Goodison Park on Sunday night.
Trossard came into the match as a first-half substitute for an injured Gabriel Martinelli. He made an impact by firing the winning goal in the 69th minute.
It followed a controversially disallowed Martinelli strike in the first half, when VAR adjudged Eddie Nketiah to be fractionally offside earlier in the phase of play, despite the ball only reaching him by a hefty deflection from Everton striker Beto. Martinelli faced a hamstring injury and all the positive momentum Gunners had, disappeared.
Debutant David Raya, chosen in goal instead of Aaron Ramsdale in a risky Arsenal lineup that also contained Fabio Vieira ahead of Kai Havertz, had been a spectator early on but had to dive to his right to save an Idrissa Gueye shot from range.
Everton’s penalty appeal was also turned down when Abdoulaye Doucoure went to the ground inside the box and referee Simon Hooper waved away protests from the home side.
The match was a stop-start affair in the first half and both teams could not make a lot of clear opportunities.
In the second half, Arsenal tried to dominate, but Everton offered resistance in the form of solid defending from James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite, who made some useful blocks.
Eventually, Everton succumbed to pressure and Gunners took a corner, the ball was worked quickly to Bukayo Saka on the right-hand side of the box and Trossard brilliantly received the pass and slammed it into the net past Jordan Pickford to make it 1-0 in 69th minute.
Everton had a tumultuous week off the field, with its Chairman Farhad Moshiri agreeing to sell the club to 777 Partners, subject to Premier League approval. They offered very little improvement as an attacking side throughout the match.
The Gunners looked to add to their lead, but Martin Odegaard was denied by Pickford and Fabio Vieira’s effort was blocked by Vitaliy Mykolenko.
Now, the Gunners have moved to the fourth spot in the PL table. They have four wins and a draw, with a total of 13 points. Everton is in 18th spot, with one draw and four losses in five games, which has given them only one point.
Everton’s next match is an away game to Brentford on Saturday. The Toffees will then travel to Aston Villa for the Carabao Cup on September 27.
Arsenal’s next match is at home to PSV on Wednesday as they start their UEFA Champions League campaign. Following this, they will play Tottenham in their Premier League match on Sunday.
