LIVERPOOL — James Tarkowski‘s 60th minute goal secured an opening game 1-0 win for new Everton manager Sean Dyche and inflicted a damaging blow to Arsenal‘s title hopes.
The league leaders hadn’t lost in the Premier League since a 3-2 defeat at Manchester United in September, but they failed to match Everton for fight or commitment at Goodison Park. And Tarkowski’s header was enough to consign Arsenal to a fourth defeat in their last five games away to Everton.
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Rapid reaction
1. Arsenal fail physical test at Everton
Arsenal need to toughen up if they are to win the Premier League title, with this defeat highlighting some worrying failings for the Gunners.
Despite the obvious talent in Mikel Arteta’s team, Everton showed that when a game is reduced to a battle of commitment and physical endurance, Arsenal can be found wanting.
Having played for Everton and experienced the Goodison Park crowd firsthand, Arteta will have known what awaited his side in this game. When times are tough, Everton revert to scrapping for points and getting the fans onside with robust tackles and lung-busting runs to track back.
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The top teams know how to handle such an approach — they stand up to the physical challenge and gain superiority with their additional quality. But Arsenal didn’t do that and allowed Everton to grow in confidence with every 50-50 challenge. Ben White, Granit Xhaka and Gabriel Martinelli were the main culprits when it came to allowing their opponent to win the physical battle, but Martin Odegaard and Eddie Nketiah were also distracted by Everton’s approach.
Everton’s goal was an example of Arsenal being too easily beaten in a physical situation, with James Tarkowski more determined than anyone to win the header as he outmuscled Odegaard to nod home.
Previous Arsenal title challenges have faltered because the team has exposed their soft centre in challenging away games, so Arteta needs to ensure that this performance was a one-off.
