EPL 2016/17: Everton vs Arsenal - 3 Key Battles
The Premier League returns to action in the midweek. Arsenal visit Goodison Park to take on Everton under the floodlights at 1.15 AM IST post-midnight to kick-off the midweek action.
Everton have been very inconsistent in this season. Although they started brightly under new manager Ronald Koeman, their form has suffered a dip of late. The Toffees have failed to register a single victory in their last 5 league fixtures.
Ronald Koeman’s men languish at the 9th position in the Premier League table with 20 points to their name. They definitely have some problems in defence as was evident in Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Swansea City.
Arsenal have come out as strong title contenders this season. They are 2nd in the league standings with 34 points, just three points below leaders Chelsea. Arsene Wenger’s men have lost only one game in the league so far and will look to extend their run. On Saturday, they came back from a goal down against Stoke City to win 3-1 at the Emirates.
In their last six meetings, Everton have won just one, drawing one and losing four against Arsenal. However, Koeman has registered three victories in five games against the Gunners during his tenure as the Southampton manager and this stat would boost his confidence.
These high-octane fixtures are usually decided by the key individual battles. On that note, we have looked at three key battles that will decide the game’s result.
#1 Phil Jagielka and Ashley Williams vs Alexis Sanchez
Everton's veteran centre-backs Phil Jagielka and Ashley Williams were expected to be the most solid defensive partnerships in England before the start of the campaign. However, the two seem to be lacking in some aspect and have faltered here and there. After Funes Mori and Williams leaked in three goals against Watford, it is likely that Koeman would bring back Jagielka in the starting line-up.
Much of the fate of the match will be decided by how Everton’s central defenders handle Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean has been in top form since being shifted to the central striking position by Wenger. He has scored 11 goals in the league and is second behind Chelsea’s Diego Costa in the scoring charts.
Sanchez is also involved in creating goals and has so far amassed five assists to his name. He scored a brilliant hat-trick just a couple of weeks back against West Ham and no defence has found the answer to his relentless activity in the attacking third.
Neither Jagielka nor Williams has the pace to match Sanchez and this could prove vital. Everton’s defenders need to work as a team to stop the menace of the Arsenal number 7 if they hope to secure any positive result from this match.
#2 Idrissa Gueye vs Mesut Ozil
Idrissa Gueye was dubbed by many as one of the signings of the season. Although his performance level has not dipped over the course of the season, he has not been very influential in Everton’s attacks. However, the 27-year-old has provided the balance in the midfield for Koeman’s side.
If stats are to be taken as the scale for measuring a player’s qualities, then Gueye has been impressive so far. He has averaged the most tackles-per-match of any Premier League player so far in the season, averaging a staggering 4.9 tackles per game. He also has 2 interceptions per game and a pass completion rate of 86%.
On paper, it looks like he would be perfect to nullify the threat of Arsenal playmaker Mesut Ozil. The German star is no longer the assist-providing machine he was last season.
It would appear that Ozil is more focused on scoring important goals for his team by getting into dangerous positions. Nonetheless, he is also very much involved in building the attack from the midfield. He scored against Stoke on Saturday and would look to improve his scoring record against Everton.
Gueye would have to be wary of Ozil’s late runs into the box. Otherwise, it could prove costly for Everton.
#3 Romelu Lukaku vs Laurent Koscielny
Romelu Lukaku returned to his goal-scoring best after a four-game drought when he scored a brace in Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Watford. The Belgian has been in good form in this season and has scored nine goals in 13 league appearances. He is fourth on the list of Premier League’s top goal-scorers and would look to improve his tally on Tuesday.
He has a good record against Arsenal as well, scoring two goals and providing three assists in 10 appearances against the North London club. With Shkodran Mustafi being doubtful for the game, Lukaku could terrorise the Arsenal back-line. Laurent Koscielny will be handed the task of stopping the towering striker.
Koscielny, is no doubt, one of the best defenders in England at the moment. But he could struggle against the physical prowess of Lukaku. It is unlikely, though that the Frenchman will leave an inch of space for Everton forward to exploit. Arsenal’s defence has overall seemed pretty solid. But then again, Mustafi has been the main man in defence.
The match could be decided if Lukaku is successful in tormenting the Arsenal defence. But if not, Arsenal will run away with yet another three points.