Everton were desperate to bounce back following their disappointing 3-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester United last weekend but the Toffees were unable to do so after losing out 2-1 against Arsenal on Saturday.
Nonetheless, the performance was a huge improvement to the one against Manchester United and manager Roberto Martinez would certainly have been encouraged by his player’s output on the night at the Emirates Stadium.
Here is an analysis of the performance of the Everton players on the day –
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Player Rating |
Comment |
| Tim Howard – 5
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Tim Howard did not look all that convincing against Manchester United and the American veteran produced another shaky performance against Arsenal. While Howard could not be directly faulted for the two goals that Everton conceded, he most certainly could have been more commanding in the air on both occasions and perhaps should have prevented such easy headers for the Arsenal attackers. |
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Seamus Coleman – 5.5
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Coleman had struggled against Manchester United and the Irishman did not do any better against Arsenal as well.
While he was more solid defensively, Coleman gave away the free-kick which led to the second goal and he could not do much going forward as well. |
| Phil Jagielka – 5
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Jagielka has delivered a couple of poor performances in recent times and the defender was once again exposed against Arsenal. He was at fault for not tracking Olivier Giroud for the first goal and the Everton captain struggled throughout before going off with an injury in the second half. |
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John Stones – 5.5
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Stones looked good with the ball at his feet but much like Jagielka, the young defender struggled to deal with Arsenal’s prowess in the air.
Stones did better when Ramiro Funes Mori came on but overall, it was a poor performance from the England international. |
| Brendan Galloway – 6
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Galloway was arguably the pick of the Everton defenders on the day. The left back looked composed on the ball and even had a great chance to get the equalizer in the second half with a near post header. |
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Gareth Barry – 4.5
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It certainly was not a clash which will live long in the memory of Gareth Barry.
The veteran was overrun at the middle of the park by Santi Cazorla and the former Manchester City man capped off a miserable night by getting himself sent off late into the game. |
| James McCarthy – 5.5
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Alongside Barry, even McCarthy struggled to cope with the Arsenal midfielders. While the Irishman did put in a gritty performance, his passing was poor and it was a mediocre display from the midfielder. |
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Gerard Deulofeu – 6
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Deulofeu did look very dangerous whenever on the ball but the Spaniard simply did not produce the goods in the final third.
Deulofeu had a great chance to score the equalizer in the second period but was denied by a fine Petr Cech save. |
| Aaron Lennon – 4.5
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It was another anonymous performance from Aaron Lennon on the night. Being a former Spurs player, it was expected that Lennon would be looking to make an impact but he simply did not do much throughout the course of the game. |
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Ross Barkley – 6.5
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Ross Barkley was arguably the best player on the pitch for Everton on the night.
Barkley showed desire to attack whenever on the ball and while the Englishman did give possession away cheaply at times, the Arsenal backline had a very tough time in dealing with him. |
| Romelu Lukaku – 5.5
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Lukaku was once again isolated throughout the course of the game and unsurprisingly, the Belgian was rendered ineffective on the night. Lukaku did have a glorious chance to level matters in the second half but his header hit the bar. |
Substitues
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Ramiro Funes Mori – 6 |
Mori replaced Jagielka in the second half and he was most certainly an improvement on the Everton skipper. |
| Arouna Kone – NA
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Had little impact as a late sub. |
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Kevin Mirallas – 5
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Mirallas came on with 20 minutes remaining but he could not get into the game enough to affect the final scoreline. |
