Arsenal will be top of the Premier League at Christmas after three points at Everton took Mikel Arteta’s side back to the summit, even if they were far from their best.
Viktor Gyokeres scored his first goal in five Premier League games from the penalty spot, having seen his appeal after apparently being pushed in the back two minutes earlier waved away.
His right-footed finish was powerful and decisive, but Everton did not let Arsenal have it all their own way. Clumsy challenges from Martin Zubimendi and William Saliba went unpunished and then a beautiful move led to Declan Rice feeding Leandro Trossard on the left, but his right-footed shot hit the bar.
Yes, this puts Arsenal top of the table at Christmas but nothing is settled yet — and Arteta will know that.
Art de Roche analyses Arsenal’s victory….
How big a win was this for Arsenal?
After dropping points in their last three away games in the Premier League, this win will be very welcome for Arsenal and Arteta.
As was the case when they beat Wolverhampton Wanderers in a last-gasp victory at home a week ago, this was far from their best performance, but they got the job done.
Arsenal seeing out the latter stages of the game will be particularly important to Arteta, as the Spaniard mentioned pre-match that they had conceded stoppage-time goals in two of those previous three away Premier League games (Sunderland and Aston Villa).
In fact, leading into this weekend, no Premier League team had conceded a higher share of their goals in the final 10 minutes of games than Arsenal (40 per cent).
This win is their second in a row domestically while not at their best, though. To be in the conversation after Christmas, Arteta will know their performances across 90 minutes will need to improve.
A goal for Gyokeres but did he do enough?
Gyokeres and Arsenal needed that penalty. The team had not started sharply, and it was an opportunity any striker looking for confidence would be craving; a blatant spot-kick after Everton’s Jake O’Brien inexplicably raised both hands in the area.
Jake O’Brien raises his hands under pressure from Riccardo Calafiori (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Gyokeres delivered a powerful finish, which gave Arsenal a stronger foothold in the game, but did not capitalise on his thundering penalty in the way many fans would have liked.
There was an element of an opportunity missed for Gyokeres, who was replaced by Gabriel Jesus in the 65th minute. With neither team in control at the start of the the second half, the Brazilian’s ability to combine with his team-mates may have been a reason to change strikers.
Saliba and Martin Odegaard had found Gyokeres in more familiar situations in the final 20 minutes of first half, darting into the penalty area, but Gyokeres was unlucky with a touch on the ball from James Tarkowski on one occasion and an overhit pass on the other.
Even with the goal, his first in the Premier League since the 2-0 win at Burnley on November 1, there were still elements of the 27-year-old’s general play that need improving. Not anticipating contact well enough when trying to hold the ball up gave Everton encouragement in some moments, for example.
(Oli Scarff /AFP via Getty Images)
As Arteta said in his pre-match press conference, though, getting more out of Gyokeres will go both ways. With the striker scoring his first in six games in all competitions, his manager will hope that he can carry that momentum on after Christmas.
Top at Christmas — what does history tell us?
Well, the omens are not good, as you probably know.
Arsenal have led the Premier League at Christmas four times and on each occasion, they have not gone to win the title.
In 2002-03 and 2007-08 Manchester United went on to win the Premier League, and in 2022-23 and 2023-24, Manchester City ended up lifting the silverware.
But could it be third time lucky for Arteta’s Arsenal?
What did Arteta say?
On Gyokeres taking Arsenal’s penalty, Arteta told Sky Sports: “That’s what I hoped and they have to take initiative on the pitch. They decide that Viktor is the best taker and he scored, so what a great decision.
”You need to enjoy the process of winning and that’s going to be hard moments, difficult moments, great moments., That’s all part of that intention and how close we are winning and that’s why we have to enjoy and take it game by game.“
Asked about Manchester City winning earlier in the day, he said: “We are not looking at that. I know you guys do. The only thing we can control is our own performance and results and we know how long it’s going to be and how tough is this league. That’s it. Enjoy every day. Do your best and see what we’re going to get.”
And the former Everton player was pleased to win on his first visit to the Hill Dickinson Stadium as manager. “Very happy to win here. It’s a really difficult place to come. I think it is very organised. By the way, (I want to) take the opportunity to say what a beautiful stadium they’ve built. I had chills with the beauty of it, so congratulations.”
What next for Arsenal?
Tuesday, December 23: Crystal Palace (Home), Carabao Cup quarter-final, 8pm UK, 3pm ET
Saturday, December 27: Brighton (Home), Premier League, 3pm UK, 10am ET
