I’m not sure that my nerves can handle another seven Premier League games like yesterday’s so hopefully City will drop some more points so I can calm down. The tension at the Emirates yesterday was palpable, you could feel it, you could almost taste it and I was watching the game in my front room – but it transcended the airwaves and I spent the last 20 minutes pacing up and down willing our boys to score and after they did willing them to defend their lead – and I’ve seen Arsenal win six titles so I know how it goes!
Arteta made some interesting and I thought wise team changes based around an opponent who knows how to defend deep. In came Calafiori for Hincapie and Havertz for Gyokeres, so we had a more offensive drive from left-back and more technical proficiency in attack where space would be at a premium. Madueke started on the left wing and Bakayo retained his place much to my surprise after his limp performance in Germany. Yep, trust in the process.
Arteta doesn’t listen to the outside noise – you know like that absolute tool John Obi Mikel – and fortunately nor do our players, they know what they need to do and today they went for it. I thought I heard a stat that Arsenal had more attempts on goal yesterday than at any other Premier League game this season, so much for boring Arsenal. But don’t let the truth get in the way of a media narrative because they’ll find another angle with which to build an attack. But when I’m standing at Highbury corner in early June watching the open top bus go past I won’t care a jot and neither should any of you.
Arsenal went for from the off with Madueke and Saka driving deep at the massed blue ranks of toffees, Havertz meanwhile was pulling out wide, spinning his markers and linking up well with Eze who played further forward linking with the front three. Some of his forward passes didn’t come off but in general he wasn’t looking to pass sideways or backwards he was driving forwards and I liked that. Madueke got off an early shot as the Gunners ramped up the pressure, then Zubimendi did some ball juggling before laying a pass to the adventurous Calafiori whose shot flew over the bar. Around 11 minutes Zubimendi had a low drive blocked by the blue wall, the rebound went to Saka who shot powerfully but it went agonisingly wide. Arsenal looked fresh and they looked a lot sharper than we’ve seen in awhile.
Madueke got free running onto a long ball and was unceremoniously barged off of the ball but the referee Andy Madley ignored the foul which unfortunately would become a theme of his officiating all afternoon.
On the 17th minute Everton showed their teeth as a dangerous cross came in from their left flank, the ball went to McNeill whose drive looked goal bound even if Raya was sure to get to it, but he didn’t need to as Calafiori, who was falling forward stuck up a leg and deflected the shot to safety. It was a spectacular piece of defending but the ball ran again to McNeill whose drive looked on target as he sent an arching shot beyond Raya but happily for us onto the post. Phew!
Everton were looking really dangerous on transition and I predict that they’ll be a serious threat next season if Moyes can further strengthen a very capable squad in the summer. Then on 24 minutes Eze found some space in and around the pocket he loves to operate in and after jinking this way then the next he sent in a beautiful long forward pass towards Havertz into the heart of the Everton defence. Kai looked certain to score but Keane kicked his standing foot and he went flying, a nailed on penalty. But astonishingly Madley waved play on and VAR must have had smoke in their eyes because they missed it as well.
Only in the Premier League…
On 31 minutes the industrious Dewsbury-Hall got in a low drive that Raya did well to parry as Everton continued to do their best to break our hearts. Timber had taken a heavy challenge earlier in the game and had soldiered on but eventually Arteta withdrew him and replaced him with Mosquera, even though Ben White was on the bench. Both sides continued to threaten as half time approached then on 38 minutes a Saka corner was flicked on by Calafiori but it somehow evaded the forehead of Saliba and was cleared. A tumultuous half of football came to an end with no score, it could have been 2-2 but it was 0-0.
No respite as the 2nd 45 kicked off with both teams still going full gas, if there hadn’t been so much riding on it I could have enjoyed it so much more because the level was really high, but I just wanted the win. From an Everton corner and following a melee the ball ran to Beto who thought he’d poked home the opener but our amazing goalkeeper stuck out a foot to save the day. Both sides continued to trades punches, footballistically then Arteta made his next pair of substitutions on 61 minutes by sending on Martinelli for Madueke which I thought was unfair as Noni had done really well and then replaced Havertz with Gyokeres, which I didn’t agree with, luckily Mikel doesn’t listen to me because both his subs played a crucial part in the result.
The ball pin-balled around on the right edge of the Everton penalty area as the players tried to create a chance but the blue wall smothered them. The ball ran to Eze and he bent a lovely shot which just cleared the far post. If you don’t buy a lottery ticket etc. 10 minutes later on 74 Arteta went the opposite of risk averse, yes he’s capable of going there – on came Hincapie for Calafiori and off came Zubimendi for 16 year old Max Dowman. Eze dropped in alongside Rice again showing the faith that Mikel has in our mercurial midfielder whilst Saka moved to inside forward and Max sat on the wing and we waited and hoped for some Max magic.
Everton were beginning to show some fatigue and a little space started to appear and into that space the fearless Max drifted. Viktor wasn’t getting any joy but Hincapie was getting forward as the Gunners turned up the pressure. With the clock running down it was getting hectic, the Sky cameras hovered deliciously on the faces of the suffering faithful, the Sky director was probably loving it, Gunners bottle it headlines were being written by the haters, social media was salivating.
Then on 89 minutes Max got the ball out on the right flank. He bent a beautiful cross into the danger area leaving Pickford to come for it, but it evaded his desperate gloves leaving the blue wall in disarray and as the cross kind of bounced off of the onrushing thighs of Hincapie it ran across the face of the unguarded net, right to the feet of the man with the best quiff in football and Viktor gleefully poked it home. Our very own flat track bully doing what we bought him to do. Cue bedlam.
Arteta and Co went bananas but there was still 6 minutes of added time, long enough to shatter our dreams and Everton threw everything at the Arsenal goal. Following a smart build up on 93 minutes Martinelli got in a good attempt but the flow was still towards the Clock End and David Raya. Hincapie got in a thundering challenge and the ball went out for a throw in, all hands on deck as the long throw came in and it was cleared for a corner. The corner was driven into the near post with the clock showing 97 minutes but the blond quiff headed it clear and then Martinelli headed it on and beyond Pickford who was up for the corner.
Martinelli’s header went to Max Dowman, the coolest dude in the stadium and he headed the ball past one Everton player then chilled as you like swerved past another – and then he was clear on goal. Now we’ve seen these scenarios before, where players through on goal mess it up but Max was calmness personified, his touch was exquisite as he controlled the ball and as the blue wall desperately closed it he pushed the ball over the line with Gyokeres just behind him punching the air before the ball was over the line.
Everyone went mental, everyone except Max who was as chillax as Dennis Bergkamp, this is after all, what he does all the time, so look forward compadres for many many more of this type of goal from the youngest goal scorer in Premier League history.
Man City then luckily took the lead at the Olympic Stadium before conceding to the Hammers and dropping two more points. Thank you West Ham United, I really hope you stay up.
We most certainly do march on…
By Kev
Great post Kev, morning to you and all.
Max, what an impact he had. Such a joy to watch him play without fear. Won’t be long before he’s dubbed the “next Liam Brady”. If he’s not already.. lol
A mention for Everton too, Moyes has got a great group of players who made things really difficult for us.
Very nice write up Kev, even though we left it late to score, we were unlucky not to score more, the best part for me was that Arteta decided to go for the win and not play for a draw.
Great match report Kev.
No not the next Liam Brady Rico. He’s Max Dowman the first. If they give Arsenal 1 point for every time I watched his goal we would be over 150 points already.
Thanks Kevski. A commentary up there with… “Thomas… charging through the midfield… It’s up for grabs now… Thomas… right at the end!”
Morning Gooners, morning Rico and thanks. Did anyone notice Martinelli cutting across the path of an Everton defender who was catching up Max, doubtful that he would have stopped him but Gabriel was switched on and made 100% sure.
Cheers Geoff, yeah we can always debate substitutions, line ups and tactics, it’s what we do but I thought that Mikel went for it throughout the game. We certainly silenced our detractors and their snide ugly football, asterisk, boring jibes.
I realise Devil, he’s his own player but you know what folk are like..
Similar ran through my mind Stuart, that win was huge against a very good Everton team imo.
I did Kev, nice touch from Martinelli.
I also loved how Dowman crashed into Gyokeres after he’d scored our opener. Great scenes and Arteta, goodness, he was a happy manager.
Cheers Dev, to me he’s the next Kaka, their play styles are very similar. We’ve got another coming through the ranks in Luiz Munoz so the conveyor belt it working well. Hale End is doing a great job developing technically proficient footballers.
Thanks Stu, yeah, ‘Dowman charging through the midfield’ has a certain familiarity about it.
That’s right Rico, Max almost knocked him over, the scenes after the goals reminded me of Bournemouth a couple of seasons ago and Arteta was running around in circles. It was as if someone had released a pressure cooker lid.
Good factual write up Kev but I have to say that on the North Bank the view was that with Havertz and Eze it was too much of a good thing . Eze improved dramatically after Havertz went off and Rice dropped back to replace Zubimendi and he became the fulcrum of our advance.
I can’t believe that had Havertz still been on the pitch we would have got the first , it fell to Gyokeres who did what strikers do and the second was pure icing , it’s a risk you take when the keeper goes up and don’t put a small player on the half way line .
When Pickford went up the guy behind me shouted leave Martinelli up , he was half right as it was our much maligned Brazillian that not only won the header that put Dowman away but then escorted him all the way to the second goal.
The celebrations were born out of relief as the frustration on the terraces had been growing and probably on the pitch and the dug out too .
Getting to listen to the West Ham match on the way home was almost as sufferable , is that a word ?, but City dropping two points to an ex Arsenal player to a set piece was a delicious irony.
Morning all.
You’ve definitely found your groove, Kev, I felt like jumpin’ off my couch again at the start of Max’s run (flight? – you chose the perfect photograph, Rico, the boy always looks like he’s just gliding over the surface of the pitch).
I like your (and Rico’s) tip of the hat to Moyes. What a smart man he is. It’s very seldom that we see a head coach improving with the years, like a great wine, but that’s what he’s done lately. He’s set up a genuine shape-shifting side, a fortress in defense, and able to hurt the opponents in many different ways when in possession … with 2-3 clever additions (Myles? what a blow that’d be for us) they might be some tough nut to crack next season.
Bring on the Monsanto boys now, let’s keep that big-eared cup dream alive, too …