Arsenal bungle Fulham with Everton coming to fractured Emirates

Arsenal left points for the taking once again against Fulham over the weekend. Now, with the fallout over the owner’s dream Super League ambitions clouding the air, they must welcome the Toffees to the Emirates. Everton will hardly be an easier sight than Fulham was, and they have as much to play for as Arsenal themselves, if not more.

The Fulham affair was just the latest example of lackluster performances against lesser opposition in key moments; these types of matches have doomed the days of Arsenal across this season, and reared its loathsome head once again.

It is lucky for Arsenal, as it was for Everton, that so many other games of importance also ended favorably with draws or losses. Against the Toffees, however, they need three points in the worst way, as do the visitors. This is not the best circumstance for Arsenal to be in.

This is a massive matchup for both clubs, a massive week in general for both clubs, even before the Super League, the hubbub, the protests, the fallout, the statements and the matches. A win is necessary by both clubs, yet achievable by only one. A draw is as useless as a loss for either.

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Toffees and Gunners: Friday means a lot in so many ways to Arsenal

For me, as a writer covering both clubs extensively, I find this to be a difficult matchup to call. The consistent inconsistencies, as I’ve labeled them, plague both of the clubs I write, at least for this season. They have both shown out against higher end teams, while falling flat against others of lesser calibre more times than not.

And so I am torn; who might win? Either has a fair shot, but were I to have to choose, I would say that Everton have a really good chance away from Goodison Park. Arsenal have simply been too on and off to put a great deal of trust on currently, at least outside of the Europa League, yet it is equally true that, since I’ve now said this all, that Arsenal will come out and simply beat the boots off of the Blues of Merseyside.

It is not possible to know of course, yet Arsenal will have to show not only me something, but the fans and supporters across the world. While the schedule of the assorted competitions have done the Gunners no favors this season, much like their form in the Premier League at times, the owner of the club has left the team in an even less enviable position after his botched European Super League venture.

Arsenal vs Everton vs the World

There is not a fan across Europe that appears to be happy with the thought of the newly aborted ESL. It was roundly dismantled by fans, pundits, players and coaches within hours. Minutes, even. Yet the fallout will continue long after the most overt discussion has died down; the media cycle is rapid, yet fans don’t always move on as quickly.

Arsenal will be mercilessly heckled, ridiculed, remarked at and derided. #KroenkeOut will continue to trend on Twitter, and players might even be asked the odd question regarding it all, as if they had anything to do with in a larger sense. They may have voted, they may have been asked, they may have had neither courtesy extended to them; I personally have a difficult time seeing any of these massive clubs leaving a multi-billion dollar decision to whether their players voted yes or no on it, but I could be incorrect.

Regardless of this, the team will have to play hard, will have to focus, and will have to find a way to pull out three points against Everton. This isn’t your fathers Toffees, and so Carlo Ancelotti will have an impassioned, well managed outfit ready to take the field against a team he remembers playing when he managed Chelsea. Whether he can win is another matter all together, yet I know Mikel Arteta and Arsenal are keen to try to avoid two losses to Everton in the same season.

For Arsenal to accomplish this, the young players will have to come to play. Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli will have to shine, as will whoever comes in to replace fallen friend Alexandre Lacazette. Should those names be able to create mayhem at the backline of Everton they could very well nick some goals and challenge the Toffees in a match they need more for Europe than Arsenal does.

The Gunners can win, but will they? We will simply have to wait and see, yet in a season of ups and downs, this match could be as winnable or unrealistic as any other in both theory and practice.

Both teams have wonderful offensive weapons that sometimes misfire, positive midfield pieces that are still working on their fluidity, goalkeepers who can have blinders and boast young, talented and inconsistent defenses.

For me, this is an awesome week, and Friday will be fascinating regardless of the outcome. The same cannot be said for the teams in question, however, and I am fully confident they like it best that way.