Arsenal 5-1 Everton: Premier League – as it happened
Arsenal 5-1 Everton: Premier League – as it happened
FULL TIME: Arsenal 5-1 Everton
And that’s the end of a perfect evening for Arsenal. A debut goal for Aubameyang, a hat-trick for Aaron Ramsey, and three assists for home debutant Mkhitaryan. Not a bad return at all! They move to within three points of fifth-placed Spurs. As for Everton ... well, at least they had a good 15-minute spell in the second half, eh
90 min +1: There will be two added minutes. In the first, the busy Davies wins a corner down the left. But they do nothing with it.
89 min: Mkhitaryan is robbed by Calvert-Lewin, who makes off towards the area. He goes down in the box with Mustafi behind him. There’s a coming together, and Everton want the penalty kick, but the ref is convinced Calvert-Lewin instigated the contact, so they’re not getting it.
88 min: Arsenal clip the ball around the midfield in the relaxed style.
86 min: Ozil tries to set Aubameyang off down the right but overcooks the pass slightly. A broad smile from the new Arsenal striker anyway; he’ll have enjoyed his debut.
84 min: Corner for Everton down the right. Ospina picks this one.
81 min: Davies tears down the left, past a sleeping Bellerin, and pulls the ball back for Calvert-Lewin, who tries to sidefoot home from 12 yards like Ramsey, but shanks his effort off target.
80 min: Tosun
drags a very weak shot wide left from 20 yards.
79 min: Kenny,
quarterbacking from deep on the right, finds Calvert-Lewin’s head on the edge
of the Arsenal area. Calvert-Lewin knocks down for Tosun ... not quite. Decent
attempt, though, with Arsenal light at the back.
78 min: Tosun
comes on for Niasse.
77 min: Now that
Arsenal’s four-goal cushion has been reestablished, we’re back in testimonial
mode. Nothing much going on.
75 min: Now
Ramsey goes off, Wilshere coming on in his stead.
GOAL! Arsenal 5-1
Everton (Ramsey 74)
Aaron Ramsey scores
his first-ever hat-trick! Mkhitaryan robs a dozy Calvert-Lewin down the
Arsenal right. He strides down the wing and pulls back for Ramsey, who slams
into the bottom right from 12 yards! What a crisp, clean strike. And he was
about to be subbed, as well!
72 min: Corner
for Everton down the right. Ospina’s first meaningful act is to come off his
line and flap at the ball. Niasse can’t turn it goalwards; the keeper’s got
away with one there.
71 min: Ospina’s
first act is to blooter a free kick upfield. Mkhitaryan rises to meet it, and
clashes heads with Martina. The flow of this game has been totally broken.
69 min: Cech
hasn’t been the same since being accidentally belted by Niasse. He sits on the
turf and shakes his head. It looks as though he’ll have to go off. And indeed
that’s his lot, as he trudges off. Ospina will take his place.
67 min: The ball
bounces around on the edge of the Arsenal box. Mangala shapes like Zidane to
meet a Calvert-Lewin chest-down. But he can’t connect like Zizou circa 2002.
Arsenal block and clear.
66 min: So much
for that testimonial atmosphere. The Arsenal fans have fallen really quiet now,
while Everton’s have found their voice a little. And Everton are suddenly first
to everything.
GOAL! Arsenal 4-1
Everton (Calvert-Lewin 64)
Martina floats a cross into the Arsenal box from the left. Kolasinac
doesn’t bother jumping. Calvert-Lewin does, aggressively attacking the ball and
planting a header into the top left!
63 min: The
testimonial feel of this game is maintained, as both teams take turns to stroke
the ball around the middle with no particular urgency.
61 min:
Calvert-Lewin comes on for ... Walcott. He gets a very warm ovation as he
departs, and he spins to clap all four corners of the ground. A furrowed brow,
which is understandable; he’ll feel pretty down right now. But he’s been far
from the worst Everton player tonight.
59 min: Ozil
floats the free kick into the mixer. It’s easily cleared. A slightly strange
atmosphere at the Emirates, hardly surprising given the scoreline.
58 min: Arsenal
are now beginning to reassert themselves. An awful lot of passing, back and
forth, across the front of Everton’s area. The visitors hold firm for now. But
then Xhaka is illegally checked 35 yards out on the right. Free kick, and a
chance for Arsenal to throw a few more people forward.
56 min: Walcott
makes off down the right and curls another fine cross into the Arsenal box.
Niasse can’t quite meet it, although the Arsenal defence make a meal of mopping
up. Then Arsenal go up the other end, and after a quiet opening to this half,
nearly score their fifth. Mkhitaryan sashays across the face of the Everton box
and fizzes a low one towards the bottom left. Pickford reads it well, and
collects.
54 min: It’s been
all Everton since the restart. Arsenal have done next to nothing in attack.
52 min: Yes, much
better! Walcott, on the right-hand corner of the Arsenal box, curls a delicious
ball to the far post. Niasse, sliding in, meets it and sends it crashing off
the left-hand post! Arsenal clear, and Cech will need some treatment having
been accidentally hit by Niasse on the follow-through. Everton very unlucky.
51 min: The free
kick’s whipped towards the near post. Xhaka heads that one behind for a corner.
Then a bit of a kerfuffle in the box. Walcott has a smack but Mustafi blocks.
Arsenal half clear. Martina loops long into the area from the left, forcing
Cech to claw away from under his bar. Much better from Everton.
49 min: Martina
and Niasse combine down the left. Mustafi comes across to hack the latter to
the floor. He deservedly goes in the book for that. And this is a free kick
just to the left of the Arsenal box, a chance for Everton to begin salvaging
their reputation.
47 min: Williams
threatens to break down the Everton right. Ramsey dribbles with purpose down
the Arsenal left. All in the middle of the field. Nothing in particular
happening since the restart.
Arsenal get the ball
rolling again. They beat Everton 7-0 at Highbury in 2005, and 6-0 there in
1963 when the Toffees were reigning champions. Unless the visitors get their
act together in this second half, they could suffer a similar humiliation
tonight. With a view to stemming the tide, Davies has come on to bolster the
Everton midfield at the expense of a reportedly dizzy Keane. Meanwhile Arsenal
swap Monreal, who has suffered a small knock, for Kolasinac.
Half-time ad break:
“Hiya Scott,” begins Mac Millings. “Don’t forget to remind readers of your
terrific new book, ‘The Title’. I got it for my dad for Christmas. His glowing
review: ‘I haven’t read it yet, but I probably will.’ ” The Don Draper de nos
jours, eh readers.
Half-time
entertainment: This is beyond magnificent, and well worth your time.
Includes some hot Arsenal action from 1938 and 1991. Warning: it’s possible to
lose yourself in these photos, so once you’ve had a look, snap out of it, will
you, and come back for the second half!
45 min +1: In the
first of two added minutes, Arsenal try to walk the ball into the net. Ozil’s
at the heart of some very pretty triangles, as Everton are again opened up down
the left. Ozil has the ball at his feet, just inside the area, and space to
shoot. Which he does, but Xhaka gets in his way! Somebody’s got to try to stop
him, I guess. Everton clearly couldn’t be bothered.
44 min: Bellerin
cynically checks Bolasie. No booking, but it’s a free kick, and a chance for
Everton to load the box. Which they do, but Cech punches the set piece
powerfully clear.
43 min: Xhaka is
back up and about.
42 min: Xhaka is
getting some attention from the physio after landing on his back from on high,
having contested a ball clumsily with Niasse. It looks like he’s winded,
nothing more, and he’ll be back up and about soon.
40 min: The
corner is hit long. Monreal slaps a header onto the left-hand post. The ball
somehow stays out as it sails across the face of goal. Everton half clear, but
soon enough Monreal is having another dig at goal, this time with his boot. His
low shot is deflected wide left for another corner. Nothing comes from that
second one, but Everton are an absolute shambles.
39 min: Arsenal
continue to pile on the pressure, and win a corner down the right. On the
touchline, Sam Allardyce, hood down and drenched, chews gum even harder than
usual.
GOAL! Arsenal 4-0
Everton (Aubameyang 37)
Everton’s passivity costs them. Arsenal ping it around.
Everton don’t close them down. Mkhitaryan slips a pass down the inside-left
channel and releases Aubameyang into the box. He draws Pickford, dinks the ball
over him, and there’s a beautifully taken first goal for Arsenal! He was a mile
offside, mind you; that’s a shocker from the linesman.
36 min: Arsenal
with more of the pretty triangles. After a decent burst of activity, Everton
have become passive again.
34 min: A pause
as Mkhitaryan is padded down with the magic sponge, having taken Bolasie’s arm
across his beak while contesting a 50-50 ball in the midfield. There didn’t
seem a whole lot in that, and the referee agrees.
32 min: Ramsey
bundles Gueye over, 30 yards from Arsenal’s goal. The free kick is floated
softly into the box by Schneiderlin, and easily cleared. Arsenal tear off up
the other end, Ozil spinning down the left and raking a pass along the flank
for Aubameyang, who is suddenly clear on goal! He reaches the area and batters
low and hard towards the bottom left. Pickford kicks away, and a huge chance
for a debut goal is spurned!
30 min: A lull in
the middle of the pitch. It’s fair to say the first half hour of this game has
flown by.
28 min: Then
Williams meets the corner with his head on the right-hand corner of the
six-yard box. He can’t direct the ball goalwards, and it skims off to the other
side of the pitch. A half-chance, to follow up two full-fat chances. Everton
should have taken at least one of them.
27 min: And
suddenly Everton are making chances! Niasse sends Walcott racing goalwards down
the inside-left channel. He enters the box and should shoot, but opts to check
and curl towards the top right. Mustafi slides in to block brilliantly, the
ball deflected out for a corner on the right.
25 min: Arsenal
continue to ping it around in the pretty style. But there’s always a danger of
complacency, and when one of the triangles isn’t completed, Bolasie picks up
the loose ball and tears off towards goal. He’s on the edge of the Arsenal box,
with space to shoot, and Walcott to his right. But he hesitates for a split
second, then takes a heavy touch, and the chance is gone.
23 min: A nice
piece of fast-paced juggling by Walcott to jink his way past a couple of his
former team-mates down the right. He strokes a pass down the wing for Niasse,
who is cleaned out by Koscielny. A deserved booking.
21 min: Everton
finally put a few passes together. Kenny again makes some ground down the
right. The ball’s hooked into the middle and only half cleared. Martina, on the
left-hand corner of the D, takes a shy. His volley squirts wide right of the
goal, but that’s better from Everton. To be fair, they couldn’t get much worse.
GOAL! Arsenal 3-0
Everton (Ramsey 19)
Ramsey has a shot from 25 yards. The ball’s heading to the
top right, until it clips Mangala and sails off to the left. Pickford’s already
going the wrong way, and can’t stop the ball flying into the top left. But
again, nobody in blue was closing down with any sort of purpose. Too easy for
Arsenal, who are all smiles.
18 min: Bellerin
drops a shoulder, then saunters past Martina at will. His low cross doesn’t
find a red shirt in a crowded box. Walcott scuttles upfield, and is fouled
fairly unpleasantly by Xhaka. Studs nearly met shin there. Walcott doesn’t
complain, though. Could have been a booking.
16 min: Already
this new Arsenal look effervescent in attack. They’re coming at Everton from
all angles. Monreal shoogles in from the left, unchallenged of course, and
looks to curl a low one into the bottom right. His shot clips Aubameyang, and
the ball deflects wide left of goal. But Everton haven’t turned up yet.
GOAL! Arsenal 2-0
Everton (Koscielny 14)
Mustafi meets the corner at the near post. He flicks it to
the far post, where Koscielny stoops to head home from a couple of yards. So
very, very simple! What was Williams was doing there? Not much, is what.
13 min: Ramsey is
sent scampering down the right. He pulls a ball back inside for Aubameyang on
the penalty spot. A first-time snapshot, meant for the top right, is deflected
out by Mangala. Corner on the right, which leads to corner on the left. From
which...
12 min: Monreal
comes through the back of Gueye, out on the Everton right. The free kick’s
looped into the Arsenal box. Keane rises and wins a header, knocking down for
Walcott to his right. Walcott spins and shoots, but it’s blocked by Mustafi.
11 min: A bit of
space for Kenny down the right. The impressive young Everton defender whips a
cross into the mixer. It’s easily snaffled by Cech, but only because neither
Niasse nor Bolasie attacked the ball. That’ll give Everton a little succour,
though. Goodness knows they need it after this slow start.
10 min: Arsenal
have enjoyed 82% possession in these opening exchanges. Everton are all over
the shop. Mkhitaryan, who is here, there and everywhere, swans in from the
left, unchallenged, and lets rip from 25 yards. His effort, intended for the
top left, only just flies wide. A lovely effort which draws oohs and aahs from
his new fans. He’s made an extremely positive impression already.
8 min: Everton
respond down the left wing through Mangala, of all people. The defender reaches
the byline and for a second it looks as though he’s rounded Bellerin and
Mkhitaryan, breaking into the area. But he’s just run the ball over the
goalline.
GOAL! Arsenal 1-0
Everton (Ramsey 6)
Arsenal recycle the ball and go again. Aubameyang plays a
clever little reverse pass down the right. Mkhitaryan is in space in the box.
He fires low and hard across the face of goal. Ramsey rushes in to powerfully
sidefoot home from close range! A lovely crisp move, that. Everton were ripped
apart with ease.
6 min: Mkhitaryan
is a foul magnet. Now he’s battered to the floor by Williams, just to the right
of the Everton D. Ozil smacks the free kick straight into the wall. But no
matter, because...
4 min: Mangala’s
first meaningful act in an Everton shirt is to miscue a clearance wildly as
Iwobi attempts to break into the box down the right. He just about gets away
with it.
3 min: Mkhitaryan’s
first act as an Arsenal player at the Emirates is to be clattered on the back
of the head by Keane. A free kick in the midfield, nothing more. It’s all a bit
scrappy so far.
2 min: Now
Bolasie makes good down the left wing. Mustafi comes across and puts in a firm
but fair slide tackle. That’ll settle the defender down a bit.
And we’re off!
Everton get the ball rolling. It’s pelting down and it’s cold. Wenger
doesn’t even have a coat on! Let’s hope he’ll wrap up warm soon. Everton send
the ball long. Mustafi nearly trips over the ball twice, and then is almost
robbed by Bolasie. Clearly not over the Swansea debacle yet.
Big Sam talks!
Although not to BT Sport today. And now the teams are out! Arsenal wear their
famous red shirts with white sleeves, while Everton are in their storied blue.
A couple of classic looks. And a rare old atmosphere on a rainy north London
night as the home faithful get to see Aubameyang and Mkhitaryan for the first
time ... and Walcott in blue. We’ll be off in a minute or two!
Arsene speaks!
“The new signings have lifted the club. Aubameyang felt much better than
expected and was declared fit yesterday, so I thought it was better to start
him, and if it doesn’t work we can take him off. Mkhitaryan has a point to
prove and has an opportunity here to show he can be very successful in the
Premier League. He was very successful at Dortmund, and a player that was
admired by everybody. I hope he can do that here now.”
Scrub that about
Aubameyang’s fever! Arsenal’s new superstar striker hauls himself off his
sickbed to make his debut this evening! He takes the place of Alexandre
Lacazette, while home debutant Henrikh Mkhitaryan is the other change to the XI
sent out at Swansea on Tuesday: he replaces Mohamed Elneny.
Five changes to the Everton side named against Leicester in
midweek. In comes debutant Eliaquim Mangala, along with Jonjoe Kenny, Morgan
Schneiderlin, Ashley Williams and Yannick Bolasie. Seamus Coleman and Phil
Jagielka are rested altogether, while Gylfi Sigurdsson, Tom Davies and Wayne
Rooney drop to the bench.
The teams
Arsenal: Cech,
Bellerin, Koscielny, Mustafi, Monreal, Ramsey, Xhaka, Mkhitaryan, Ozil, Iwobi,
Aubameyang.
Subs: Lacazette,
Wilshere, Ospina, Chambers, Maitland-Niles, Kolasinac, Elneny.
Everton: Pickford,
Keane, Williams, Mangala, Kenny, Schneiderlin, Gueye, Martina, Walcott, Niasse,
Bolasie.
Subs: Rooney, Tosun,
Sigurdsson, Davies, Calvert-Lewin, Holgate, Robles.
Referee: Neil
Swarbrick (Lancashire).
Preamble
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has the fever. Not the battle
fever; an actual fever. So Arsenal’s £56m new boy might not make his debut
today. We’ll see. Another box-fresh signing should make his first home
appearance, though; welcome to the Emirates, Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
And welcome back to the Emirates, Theo Walcott! Everton’s
new hero returns to his old stomping ground in short order, and he’s in hot
goalscoring form, with three already for his new club. He might feel he’s got
something to prove.
But if Walcott is to make a point today by helping Everton
take three, he and his new team-mates will have to do some trend-bucking.
Arsenal have Everton’s number, with the Toffees only winning two of the last 22
meetings in all competitions. Arsenal are the only club to have totted up 100
goals against another team in the Premier League era. And Sam Allardyce has
lost his last eight matches against Arsenal. This is his 500th Premier League
game; it’s not just Walcott who will fancy making a statement this evening.
Will Arsenal bounce back from defeat at Swansea? Will
Everton build on that win over Leicester? We’ll find out soon enough. It’s on!
Kick off: 5.30pm GMT.
Source :- www.theguardian.com