Arsenal vs. Everton: Winners and Losers from Premier League
Arsenal moved to the top of the Premier League with a 2-1 victory over visiting Everton on Saturday at the Emirates Stadium.
Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny scored within two minutes of each other to give Arsenal control late in the first half, but Ross Barkley pulled a goal back for Everton one minute before the break. Both sides had chances in the second half, but the Gunners held on to reclaim first place in the league for the first time since February 2014.
Everton's Gareth Barry was sent off in stoppage time for his second bookable offense.
Here, B/R selects winners and losers from the match.
Winner: Olivier Giroud
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French striker Olivier Giroud had served as something of a supersub for Arsenal lately, scoring goals in substitute appearances against Watford and Bayern Munich since the international break. Manager Arsene Wenger gave his countryman a starting role on Saturday, and Giroud repaid his faith with a good goal and strong overall performance.
The goal came in the 36th minute, when Giroud made an intelligent run behind Phil Jagielka and flicked a glancing header into the net from Mesut Ozil's sensational cross. It was the kind of goal that Giroud alone can give Arsenal, and perhaps that was why Wenger opted for the burly Frenchman ahead of Theo Walcott on this occasion.
In addition to his goal, Giroud supported attacks with consistently excellent hold-up play and showed good movement off the ball. With Walcott also playing well in recent weeks, Wenger now has a welcome selection dilemma on his hands.
"We have a lot of questions about our strikers but Theo Walcott is outstanding and Olivier Giroud is outstanding at the moment," Wenger told BBC Sport.
Loser: Tim Howard
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Arsenal scored two quick goals late in the half, and Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard really could have done better on the second.
Less than two minutes after conceding the opener, the Toffees had to defend a set piece in a dangerous area just outside their box. Santi Cazorla whipped in a great cross, but Howard hesitated coming off his line. That allowed Laurent Koscielny to score with ease.
Shortly after the goal, BBC writer Phil McNulty called Howard "allergic to dominating his penalty area." Sky Sports statistician Matt Cheetham noted that four of the last seven goals against Everton have come on headers inside the six-yard box. "Teams (are) seeing Howard increasingly unlikely to come and claim (the ball)," Cheetham tweeted.
With better goalkeeping, Everton might have claimed a result from this game.
Winner: Petr Cech
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Much like in the win over Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League this week, goalkeeper Petr Cech was not so much spectacular for Arsenal as he was very, very solid. The veteran goalkeeper gave Arsenal a steady presence in goal throughout the 90 minutes, further underlining his importance to the Gunners' ambitions this season.
Cech could do nothing to stop Everton's goal, which resulted from a big deflection. But late in the second half, he made a fine save on Gerard Deulofeu to maintain Arsenal's lead and secure the three points.
It turns out John Terry might have been right. Despite his miscues on the opening day of the season, Cech might be worth 12-15 points per season.
"The second half we could have scored five goals but also it could have ended up 2-2 and I'm happy with my save to help us get three points," Cech told BBC Sport.
Winners: Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla
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Who was your man of the match? Mesut Ozil? Santi Cazorla? The two made it a truly difficult decision.
Both midfielders starred for Arsenal, with Ozil providing a beautiful assist for Olivier Giroud's goal and Cazorla running the show from his deeper position. At Football Insider, Wayne Veysey called Cazorla the "brains" of Arsenal, as well as a "maestro." Ozil, for his part, earned the title of "king creator."
Choosing between the two is almost impossible at the moment. Ozil leads the league with seven assists this season and is playing the best football of his Arsenal career. But as Squawka noted, both have assisted 11 goals in 2015, joint-most in the Premier League.
The slight edge might go to Ozil at the moment, if only because of this comment from manager Arsene Wenger:
"Rather than talking about (Ozil), I'd rather than watch him play again," Wenger said, per the Associated Press' Rob Harris. If you love watching football, you love to watch Ozil."
Either way, Arsenal have two top-class creative players in their midfield, and both are in good form at the moment. With Ozil and Cazorla playing so well, Arsenal can be a joy to watch.
Losers: Arsene Wenger's Critics
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It's good to be Arsene Wenger at the moment.
Arsenal started the season with a loss at home to West Ham United, but with West Ham flying high (and also beating Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool this season), that defeat is looking less confounding. With this latest victory, the Gunners have put themselves atop the table for the first time in 20 months.
And they have momentum on their side as well, thanks to four straight league wins and a memorable victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League. Meanwhile, Wenger has welcome selection headaches at center-forward (Walcott or Giroud?) and center-back (Mertesacker or Gabriel?).
Many critics (this writer included) have questioned Wenger repeatedly this season. He deserved some of it, especially for the Champions League losses to Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiakos. But suddenly Arsenal are playing some of their best football, and suddenly a title challenge doesn't seem so out of the question.
For the moment, at least, Arsenal fans have fallen back in love with Wenger.
