That’s it for today’s blog; I’ll leave you with Andy Hunter’s report from Goodison. Thanks for your company and emails - goodnight!
This is Arsenal’s lowest points total after 14 games since 1974-75. Crikey.
Updated
More more more
It’s been a great week for Everton, who have beaten Chelsea, Leicester and now Arsenal. Rob Holding’s own goal and Yerry Mina’s towering header settled the match, with Nicolas Pepe’s penalty bringing Arsenal level for a short while in the first half. Arsenal have now lost seven of their last 10 Premier League games.
Full time: Everton 2-1 Arsenal
Peep peep! Everton are second in the Premier League after a hard-fought victory over Arsenal.
90+6 min: Pickford makes a vital save from Saka’s cross shot! That was brilliant goalkeeping; he got down very smartly to his left and punched the ball whence it came, away from danger. He could easily have pushed that out in front of goal.
Updated
90+3 min Another Everton change: Cenk Tosun replaces the majestic Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Weirdly, Calvert-Lewin has been booked for not leaving the field quickly enough, even though it seemed like the board hadn’t gone up.
90+2 min Everton bring on Jonjoe Kenny for Richarlison. David Luiz walks him halfway off the field in an attempt to ensure he doesn’t waste time. Bit weird.
Updated
90+1 min Willock is booked for a late tackle on the flying Godfrey.
Updated
90+1 min Five minutes of added time.
90 min Arsenal are running out of time. They started the second half superbly but, as Jamie Carragher says on Sky, they haven’t created enough.
88 min “I wonder how often Ancelotti thinks about playing in that late 80’s Milan team?” says Niall Mullen. “Baresi, Maldini, Rijkaard, Gillis, Van Basten... I would never stop talking about it.”
Is Gillis an amalgam of Ruud Gullit and Pietro Virdis? Good player that Gillis. (If you haven’t seen it, have a look at this Ancelotti goal.)
Updated
86 min Willian wanders infield from the left and plays a good pass to find Saka in space on the right. He cuts into the area and hits a shot that is blocked by Keane on the six-yard line. Moments later, Willock heads a few yards wide from Maitland-Niles’ cross. He was under a lot of pressure from Mina and it wasn’t a great chance.
84 min After a bit of a scramble in the area, Martinelli shoots well wide from 15 yards.
83 min Alex Iwobi is replaced by the returning Seamus Coleman.
82 min After all sorts of wrestling off the ball, Sigurdsson’s corner is headed over at the near post by Holgate. He was running away from goal so it wasn’t much of a chance.
81 min Sigurdsson’s corner is headed away to Iwobi, whose shot takes a big deflection off Willock and goes a few yards wide. Leno was wrongfooted and wouldn’t have saved it had it been on target.
80 min Everton break through Calvert-Lewin, who curls a glorious pass inside Maitland-Niles to find Richarlison on the left. He runs at Maitland-Niles, who does well to stand up and poke the ball behind for a corner.
Updated
79 min “Ben Godfrey, playing out of position, looks like an England player in waiting - quick and strong, positive in all he does and a calm head,” says Gary Naylor. “Money well spent; player well coached.”
Apart from Calvert-Lewin, he’s been my man of the match. Very good point about the coaching; he’ll learn so much under Ancelotti.
78 min Willock flashes a speculative cross all the way across the area.
77 min The second half has become increasingly scruffy, which suits Everton just fine. They almost extend their lead when Sigurdsson’s dipping free-kick just evades the stretching Keane.
76 min Arsenal make their final change: Alexandre Lacazette replaces Eddie Nketiah.
75 min “Arteta maybe deserves time but the comparison to Wenger and Lord Ferg is a bit specious,” says Niall Mullen. “Ferguson had performed (almost) literal miracles at Aberdeen. Multiple league titles, cup wins and beating the actual Real Madrid in a European final. While Wenger came in and won the Double in his first full season with his no ketchup future-ball. Ferguson had earned his time and Wenger was an almost instant success.”
I know what you mean, though Arteta did win the FA Cup a few months ago. In a different era that would have bought him plenty of time.
74 min Willian wastes a promising attack with a left-foot blooter from 20 yards that goes well wide.
72 min If it stays like this Arsenal will have taken five points from their last 10 league games.
71 min Martinelli replaces Nicolas Pepe, who scored Arsenal’s equaliser from the penalty spot but did little else of note.
70 min The exciting Gabriel Martinelli, who has been out since June with injury, is about to come on for Arsenal.
Updated
69 min Pepe cuts inside Godfrey, moves to the edge of the area and lines up a trademark curler towards the far corner. Goalkick to Everton.
Updated
66 min On the plus side, Arsenal can pencil in Tierney and Saka for the next 10 years. They are two lovely players.
65 min That run from Godfrey has really roused the crowd, and Everton are having a much better spell as a result.
64 min An Arsenal change: Joe Willock replaces Mohamed Elneny.
64 min Richarlison roasts Maitland-Niles on the left, gets into the area and pulls the ball back towards Iwobi. Tierney gets in front of him to clear.
63 min Sigurdsson turns smartly away from Ceballos, who attempts to bring him down. He can’t even manage that.
62 min Godrey surges thrillingly down the left, all the way into the area before lifting a good cross that is just behind Calvert-Lewin. That was a great run which has got the crowd going agian.
61 min “Evening Rob and Merry etc,” says Stephen Carr. “Quick question - do you think Richarlison likes playing football? I’m not convinced.”
Ha, good point. Imaginary Opta stats show that he spends 82.47 per cent of matches with an affronted coupon.
59 min Saka waves a poor free-kick over the bar.
58 min Richarlison is penalised for a tackle on Ceballos just outside the area on the right, although replays show he got the ball. This is another chance for Arsenal...
58 min “Remember what happened to Sir Alex Ferguson when he first came to Manchester United?” says Shaun Meleady. “He didn’t start well at all. And when everyone said Arsene Who? He went on to produce the Invincibles. However, they were both given time to achieve what they achieved. Arteta should be given the time too.”
While I agree with you, the world is a very different place now.
57 min Arsenal have been excellent since half-time. Calvert-Lewin, who has been marvellous, gives Everton a breather with some good hold-up play that leads to a silly foul from Holding.
56 min “WENGER BLOODY IN,” says Michelle Peters-Jones. “Right now!”
I would love it.
54 min: David Luiz hits the post! Willian took a short corner on the left and dumped a cross into the middle. Pickford came but could only flap the ball to David Luiz, whose shot took a deflection off Doucoure and kicked off the pitch to hit the top of the post.
Updated
53 min Tierney plays a good pass to find Saka in the area. He gets the ball out of his feet and hits a shot that is blocked by Mina. Tierney and Saka have been Arsenal’s best attackers.
51 min Tierney flashes a dangerous cross from the left that just clears the leaping Nketiah at the near post.
50 min Arsenal have made a decent start to the second half. Pepe gets round the back on the right but his cutback is poor and Everton clear.
Updated
48 min “Hi Rob,” says Gary Naylor. “For all Don Carlo’s sophistication, this is the tallest Everton side I can recall (taller still if Gomes plays for Davies). Not only does this help on defending set pieces, but it gives margin for error on offensive set plays. A big man attacking the ball at the near post is never a bad move - some of us remember Mark Higgins doing it against Manchester United!”
46 min Peep peep!
Half time: Everton 2-1 Arsenal
Peep peep! Everton lead deservedly through goals from Rob Holding (yep) and Yerry Mina. They equalised through Nicolas Pepe’s penalty, but Everton - inspired by the relentless Dominic Calvert-Lewin - have been the better side.
Sigurdsson curled it at pace towards the near post, where Mina towered over Nketiah and flicked a header that went through Leno at the near post. It was a majestic leap from Mina, and though Leno got a fist on the ball he couldn’t keep it out.
Updated
GOAL! Everton 2-1 Arsenal (Mina 45)
Everton score from the corner!
Updated
45 min Holgate cuts a sharp pass back to Calvert-Lewin 25 yards from goal. He runs infield, away from Elneny, and hits a rising drive with his left foot that is touched over at full stretch by Leno. That’s a fine save.
Updated
42 min Ceballos and Mina have a brief fallout before shaking hands. Ceballos studded Mina, who was on all fours, down the back of the leg as he tried to get to the ball; he’s a bit lucky to get away with that. It wasn’t deliberate but it was clumsy, at best. In the current climate, he could easily have been sent off. I don’t think VAR looked at it.
Updated
41 min Sigurdsson’s free-kick hits the wall, and he volleys the rebound well wide.
39 min Calvert-Lewin goes on a Roy of the Rovers run before being taken out on the edge of the D by Tierney. He’s booked.
Updated
38 min Everton need to get Sigurdsson on the ball a lot more. There isn’t a huge amount of creativity in this side - no James, Gomes, Digne or Coleman.
37 min “Hi Rob,” says Damian Durrant. “I don’t think Arteta is as safe as people think. Kroenke is not a passion owner. He is all about the value of the Arsenal brand; being 16th hurts it. Making a managerial change can reassure your commercial partners, on which modern football relies.”
I think he deserves until the end of the season at the very least, but it wouldn’t exactly be a JFK moment if he was sacked in the next week or two.
Updated
GOAL! Everton 1-1 Arsenal (Pepe 35 pen)
Nicolas Pepe calmly sends Pickford the wrong way. I feared for him when he jogged on the spot, Zaza-style, but it was a good penalty.
Updated
PENALTY TO ARSENAL! Maitland-Niles pokes a loose ball away from Davies, who tries to clear it and brings him down. Maitland-Niles came on the blind side and Davies knew immediately he’d messed up.
Updated
31 min “Godfrey has been a rock on Everton’s back line this year,” says Mary Waltz. “He doesn’t panic with the ball, he makes intelligent tackles.”
When he joined you I thought it was quite a shrewd long-term signing. Right!
Updated
30 min “Not looking good for Arsenal,” says Charles Antaki. “The only bright-ish spots are the combinations between Tierney and Saka/Nketiah, and Maitland-Niles and Pepe. If Willian is combining with anyone, it must be someone in the crowd.”
When he joined you I thought it was quite a shrewd short-term signing. Wrong!
29 min Arsenal have woken up since going behind. The frequency with which teams wait to go 1-0 down before starting to play never ceases to surprise.
27 min Ceballos thumps the ground in pain after a ball-and-man tackle from Godfrey. His studs were showing but he went low, through the bottom of the ball, and the referee is happy it was a clean tackle. Ceballos is fine.
25 min Nketiah misses a good chance to equalise. Saka clipped a superb ball down the left to find Tierney in the area. He did very well to cut the ball back on the half volley to Nketiah, unmarked on the edge of the box. Nketiah could have taken a touch but decided to shoot first time; it whistled a few yards wide of the far post.
Updated
Calvert-Lewin is claiming it but I’m pretty sure that was an own goal. Davies played a simple pass out to Iwobi on the right. His flat cross took a deflection off a defender, skimmed the head of Calvert-Lewin and hit the unsighted Holding before bouncing into the net. Calvert-Lewin’s header was going off target, so that’s an own goal.
Updated
GOAL! Everton 1-0 Arsenal (Holding 22 og)
Everton take the lead!
Updated
19 min Everton continue to dominate possession. Arsenal have defended well so far, as they have for most of the season. The problem is at the other end.
16 min Elneny is booked for a foul on Sigurdsson.
15 min: So close from Keane! That was almost a spectacular goal. Keane received the ball on the edge of the centre circle and pushed it into space. Nobody came to him so he ran to within 25 yards of goal and hit a rising drive that swerved just past the post. That was a great effort.
Updated
12 min Everton have had two thirds of the possession, which by my working gives them six-tenths of the law. They haven’t done anything with it yet.
10 min “No Allan, no Gomes,” says Brad Wilson. “Is Davies in that role today? I guess he is next best choice. Holding midfielders have a tough time staying healthy for Everton. Might see Gbamin in 2021 — remember him?”
Nope! Davies is indeed playing in that role. Doucoure has assumed senior status with a couple of lively runs from midfield.
9 min Still nothing much to report, except that Arsenal are cheating. When they have the ball they are playing with a back four; when they lose the ball they are playing with three central defenders and two wing-backs.
7 min “Do you think that ‘tight calf’ (sounds like a farmer left the cider barn door open) of Auba’s is a ruse - rest the chap and let some of the youngsters have a crack at it?” wonders Bill Hargreaves. “If so, I’d support it. This season is all but gone in terms of top four. We can have a go for the big vase in Europe, where the younger fellas are doing a sterling job, and use this year for bringing on the new crop. That said, could we give them Willian and Luiz’s money to get them all to re-sign?”
I think it’s a genuine injury, but now that Christmas has been cancelled I don’t know who or what to believe. I have been surprised how few opportunities the younger players have been given. I’m not convinced by Nketiah, in truth, but I’d like to see more of Smith Rowe and Balogun.
4 min A quiet start to the game. Everton look quite confident, as you’d expect after such a great week.
2 min Arsenal’s formation looks like a back three, with Tierney in the centre and Saka at left wing-back.
1 min Peep peep! Arsenal, in their bloody away strip, kick off from left to right.
There’s a crowd of 2,000 at Goodison, which certainly made a different last weekend against Chelsea. It’s a dank night in Liverpool, perfect weather for a zesty encounter.
Updated
Pre-match reading
Team news
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is missing for Arsenal with a tight calf, so Eddie Nketiah starts up front. Everton are without the influential Allan, who has a hamstring injury; Tom Davies replaces him.
Everton (4-2-3-1) Pickford; Holgate, Mina, Keane, Godfrey; Doucoure, Davies; Iwobi, Sigurdsson, Richarlison; Calvert-Lewin.
Substitutes: Olsen, Lossl, Kenny, Nkounkou, Coleman, Branthwaite, Tosun, Bernard, Gordon.
Arsenal (3-4-3) Leno; Holding, David Luiz, Tierney; Maitland-Niles, Ceballos, Elneny, Saka; Pepe, Nketiah, Willian.
Substitutes: Runarsson, Bellerin, Cedric, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Willock, Smith Rowe, Lacazette, Martinelli.
Referee Andre Marriner.
Updated
Preamble
The difference a week makes. Seven days ago, London was in tier 2 and Everton were in freefall, their flying start to the season just a kooky detail in another tale of woe. Then they had a good win over and Chelsea, followed by an even better one at Leicester, and now they have the chance to go second in the table by beating Arsenal. We’ll have team news shortly.
Kick off 5.30pm.
Updated
