3 standout players in dominant Everton home win

3. Oleksandr Zinchenko

The entire backline was back to their best against Everton. For Zinchenko, his best comes with what he does on the ball. If the Ukrainian played well, Dyche’s back line had no chance. This eventually came to fruition.

Zinchenko controlled the game from the first minute until he was subbed off. Given a free role by Arteta, the left back drifts wherever he wants. The ball stays glued to his foot as he floats around the field, pushing the boys in blue back while searching for weaknesses. He found one for Saka’s goal.

The Everton back line was unbalanced for just a second, a narrow corridor to the starboy opened up and Zinchenko found him with a perfectly weighted ball. This play is emblematic of the ex-Man City player. Nominally a left-back, he found himself in the right half-space, creating an assist for the team’s right winger.

For the rest of the game, Zinchenko continued to play well, passing the ball and breaking lines with ease. When at his best, the left-back is unplayable.

Arsenal did well to win their game in hand against a difficult opponent in Everton. With the spectre of their loss still overshadowing them, the team rallied together to defend bravely and attack with intelligence. The second-half performance was peak Arsenal. Control was the keyword of the day as the players dominated the game after the break. While the players above stood out, nearly every performance was solid, if not dazzling. Add to that the injured players working their way up to full fitness and Arsenal’s prospects look very exciting indeed.