Premier League leaders Arsenal have taken the lead in the title race against Manchester City. Against a defensively strong Everton, it took a late goal from substitute Gyökeres and a historic goal from 16-year-old Dowman to secure the victory.
Between the two Champions League round of 16 matches against Leverkusen, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta fielded a largely familiar lineup. Eight players who had started in the 1-1 draw at Leverkusen started again. Only Calafiori, Madueke, and Havertz were selected over Hincapie, Gabriel Martinelli, and Gyökeres (all on the bench).
Against the Toffees, who are strong on the road, the Gunners started with a lot of momentum. Madueke (7th min.), Calafiori (9th min.), and Saka (11th min.) fired the first warning shots before Pickford was called into action for the first time with a strong reflex save against Saka’s header (13th min.). But for the most part, Everton’s defense held firm—even though regular center-backs Tarkowski and Branthwaite were out with injuries.
David Moyes replaced them with Keane and Iroegbunam
Once the opening quarter of an hour had passed, Everton—bolstered by the confidence of two straight wins—finally ventured forward—and how! McNeil was only denied the chance to capitalize on a mistake by Raya because Calafiori acrobatically blocked the shot with a backheel. Just seconds later, the winger had another chance; his curling shot thundered against the post and bounced off Ndiaye into the stands (18′).
The game then lost a bit of its pace, and chances became fewer. Raya showed his class once more on a long-range shot by Dewsbury-Hall (32′), while at the other end, Saliba missed the ball by centimeters on a corner kick—of course (39′). Thus, an intense duel went into halftime without any goals.
After the break, Raya was called into action again and brilliantly saved Beto’s shot from five yards with his foot (50th minute). After that, it was all Arsenal, pinning Everton back. However, the Londoners rarely found openings; the only real threat came from a curling shot by Eze that skimmed past the post by inches (64′). Later, Pickford punched away a powerful shot from Eze (78′).
The substitutes’ moment came late: After a mistake by Pickford, Gyökeres tapped the ball into the empty net to seal the win for Arsenal (89′). Gabriel Martinelli had the chance to seal the deal shortly after, but Everton’s keeper was in fine form this time (90’+3).
Dowman finally sealed the deal: After a cleared corner, the youngster set off on a solo run across the entire field and slotted the ball into the empty net (90’+7), as Pickford had rushed forward for the set piece. For Dowman, it was his first professional goal, making him the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history at 16 years and 73 days.
With this win, the Gunners took a late lead in the title race against Man City and celebrated a morale-boosting victory ahead of next Tuesday’s return leg against Leverkusen. However, just as they had struggled against Leverkusen, the Londoners found it difficult to create chances from open play against the Toffees, who were excellently organized defensively.