Arsenal defeated Everton 1-0 in the Premier League on Saturday evening.
In the 27th minute, Arsenal were awarded a penalty after Jake O'Brien clearly handled the ball inside his own box. Victor Gyokeres stepped up to take the spot kick and made no mistake in converting it, smashing it into the back of the net and leaving Jordan Pickford with no chance of saving it.
The first half came to a close with the hosts leading 1-0. Everton ended the half with just 35% possession and zero attempts on goal, so they clearly needed to change things if they wanted to get anything out of the match in the second half.
Midway through the second half, Arsenal put together some of their best moves of the match and managed to hit the woodwork twice in five minutes. Leandro Trossard almost converted a smooth, curling finish, but his strike hit the post, and in the 69th minute, Martin Zubimendi hit the post with a powerful, low effort.
Arsenal saw the match out to defeat Everton 1-0 and pick up a big three points to regain their lead at the top of the Premier League.
Match Highlights
To follow soon...
Everton Player Ratings
Jordan Pickford and James Tarkowski in action for Everton against Arsenal in the Premier League
GK: Jordan Pickford - 6/10
Hardly had a significant thing to do during the match, either with the ball at his feet or in terms of shot-stopping. Pickford couldn't have really done anything more to stop Gyokeres' penalty either.
RB: Jake O'Brien - 5/10
Committed a really silly handball, which awarded Arsenal a penalty in the 25th minute. The Irishman was fine defensively, but didn't offer anything going forward.
CB: James Tarkowski - 7.5/10
Made plenty of important defensive actions such as blocks and clearances. Tarkowski dealt with the threat of Gyokeres well and practically completely nullified him.
CB: Michael Keane - 7.5/10
Like his centre-back partner, Tarkowski, Keane also put in a pretty good defensive display. He put in plenty of blocks and clearances and also physically dominated Gyokeres at times.
LB: Vitaliy Mykolenko - 7/10
Played with plenty of energy and put in a decent defensive performance. The Ukrainian helped Keane out against Gyokeres several times, which really limited what Arsenal had going forward.
CM: James Garner - 7/10
Battled well in the midfield and had some tidy moments with the ball at his feet. Garner was a composed figure in the midfield, which was key when Everton were under pressure.
CM: Tim Iroegbunam - 7/10
Like his midfield partner, Garner, Iroegbunam also put in a solid shift in the middle of the park and had some real moments of quality with the ball at his feet.
AM: Carlos Alcaraz - 7/10
Got on the ball quite a bit and was one of the only Everton players who was constantly trying to get forward and make things happen. The Argentinian also provided an excellent work rate and pressing, which was also valuable to his side.
RW: Dwight McNeil - 5.5/10
Didn't see much of the ball, which made it hard for him to create anything significant. Despite his lack of time on the ball, McNeil put a few dangerous crosses into Arsenal's box, which caused a few problems.
ST: Thierno Barry - 6/10
Didn't get any service from his teammates in front of goal, but managed to make himself a nuisance and cause some problems against Hincapie and Saliba, especially with his physicality and work rate.
LW: Jack Grealish - 5/10
Didn't have anywhere near as much creative influence on the match as he typically does. Grealish really struggled to get the better of Timber and looked void of ideas at times in the final third.
SUB: Beto - 5.5/10
Tried to be physically imposing after coming on, but never really managed to have much of an impact.
SUB: Tyler Dibling - N/A
Didn't do much after coming on.
SUB: Merlin Rohl - N/A
Didn't do much after coming on.
Arsenal Player Ratings
Victor Gyokeres celebrating after scoring against Everton for Arsenal in the Premier League
GK: David Raya - 7/10
Didn't have a thing to do in terms of shot-stopping, but always stayed alert and was very good at dealing with lofted balls into his penalty area.
RB: Jurrien Timber - 8/10
Put in a brilliant defensive performance against a talented winger in Grealish. As well as being defensively brilliant, Timber also provided a threat in the final third, especially with his runs down the flank and crosses.
CB: William Saliba - 7/10
Struggled to deal with the physicality of Barry at times, but outside of that, the Frenchman was defensively solid and produced some important clearances when Everton managed to get on the front foot.
CB: Piero Hincapie - 6.5/10
Although he didn't really put a foot wrong, Hincapie looked really nervous at times and had a few shaky moments with the ball at his feet. Like his centre-back partner, Saliba, Hincapie, for the most part, was defensively solid.
LB: Riccardo Calafiori - 7/10
Managed to keep McNeil out of the match and also had some good moments going forward, especially with his runs down the left flank to get his side further up the pitch.
CM: Martin Zubimendi - 7/10
Safe in possession of the ball and battled well against Everton's midfield. Zubimendi was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet, as he hit the woodwork in the 69th minute.
CM: Declan Rice - 8/10 (Man of the Match)
Probably Arsenal's most threatening player. Rice saw more of the ball than any other player on the pitch, and he wasn't wasteful or timid with it. Every time he had the ball at his feet, he was looking to make things happen, and as always, his delivery into the box was really good.
CM: Martin Odegaard - 7.5/10
Had some tidy moments in possession of the ball and created some very good chances for his teammates, although they couldn't convert them.
RW: Bukayo Saka - 7.5/10
A constant threat against Mykolenko. Saka relentlessly ran at the Ukrainian all throughout the match and tried his best to create in the final third.
ST: Victor Gyokeres - 6.5/10
Despite managing to end his goal drought with a thunderous penalty, Gyokeres didn't put in a great performance. The Swede hardly got involved in general play, but even when he did, he looked slow and void of ideas.
LW: Leandro Trossard - 6/10
Saw quite a lot of the ball out on the left flank, but didn't really have any big moments outside of hitting the woodwork in the 64th minute.
SUB: Gabriel Jesus - 6/10
Did well at holding the ball up and bringing others into play, but didn't really have any service in and around Everton's box.
SUB: Gabriel Martinelli - N/A
Didn't do much after coming on.
SUB: Mikel Merino - N/A
Didn't do much after coming on.