Arsenal was held to a 0-0 draw by Everton on the Emirates Stadium, lacking the chance to slim the hole with Premier League leaders Liverpool to 4 factors.
Liverpool’s 2-2 draw with Fulham at Anfield means the Gunners’ title hopes will improve in the event that they win their subsequent recreation, however they cannot discover a well past the impressed Jordan Pickford .
The Everton goalkeeper made two essential saves within the first interval, first blocking a shot from Martin Odegaard, who had additionally wasted a shot early within the recreation, after which rising to disclaim Gabriel Martin Nellie’s angled shot.
Pickford adopted up his transfer simply after half-time with an outstanding reflex save to push Bukayo Saka’s volley in the direction of the submit because the tenacious guests continued to frustrate Arsenal.
Jordan Pickford’s reflex save retains Arsenal at bay
The house facet continued to pile on the strain however Everton, buoyed by the information that the protracted takeover by the Friedkin Group was lastly nearing completion, put up a fierce resistance, repelling a collection of corners.
Nevertheless, similar to final weekend’s 1-1 draw with Fulham at Craven Cottage, Arsenal struggled to transform their dominance into clear-cut possibilities within the closing levels, leaving Mikel Arteta’s facet in 4 factors dropped in two video games, permitting Everton to rejoice a win.
The Gunners stay in third place, one level behind Chelsea and 6 behind Liverpool, with each groups having a recreation in hand, whereas Everton are in fifteenth place with 15 factors.
Jurrien Timber and Iliman Ndiaye compete for the ball
Evaluation: Arsenal lack No. 9
After final weekend’s 1-1 draw with Fulham, Arsenal had been disenchanted to fail to transform their dominance into objectives for the second consecutive Premier League recreation. This was one other recreation that highlighted their want for offensive reinforcements. They lack a killer quantity 9.
Kai Havertz has impressed on this position to an excellent extent. His late strike towards Monaco on Wednesday took his tally into double figures for the season. However that whole solely consists of 5 objectives within the Premier League, and he by no means seemed like a aim scorer right here, with only one shot on aim in 90 minutes.
Arsenal want extra assist from the centre, and it appears unlikely they’ll get extra from their substitute possibility in Gabriel Jesus, who has not scored in a aggressive match since January. Like Havertz, he posed little risk after approaching within the second half.
Arsenal’s enchancment over the previous two years has been fueled by their capacity to share objectives. Notably, they broke the membership document final season with a complete of 91 objectives scored.
However to take the subsequent step, it appears more and more clear that they’ll want an attacking participant who can ship in some of these video games. Their efforts to signal Benjamin Cescó in the summertime confirmed they’re conscious of this. However, as January approaches, they cannot afford to let one other window move with out strengthening their entrance line.
