Last weekend the Barclays Premier League kicked off, it was a thrilling weekend of football and this weekend we could be in for another one.
Arsenal travel to Merseyside to face Everton, after a close 2-1 opening day win at home to Crystal Palace, Wenger and his team will be confident going into the match.
The Gunners did travel to Turkey for a game on Tuesday that finished 0-0. Everton kicked off their season with a 2-2 draw away to Leicester City, after leading twice, The Toffees just couldn’t get a winner.
Last season Arsenal and Everton met twice in the league, the first game was at The Emirates which was a very tight match and it was 0-0 all the way until the 80th minute when Mesut Ozil put The Gunners ahead.
Minutes after Arsenal scored, Barcelona loanee Gerard Deulofeu scored a screamer to make it 1-1. It was a good draw for Everton.
The second time the two sides met was in April when Everton destroyed Arsenal 3-0. Naismith and Lukaku scored along with an Arteta own goal.
Key Players
Both sides have quality players to put on the pitch, but lets narrow it down to just a few of the key players for each team. For Everton, some key players will be Tim Howard, Phil Jagielka, Gareth Barry & Romelu Lukaku.
Tim Howard will be key to this match because he is in charge of making sure no shots go in. He was poor in the first match and will need to improve. Phil Jagielka will be key in organising the defense, he is a leader at the back for Everton and it will be crucial that they don’t let Arsenal get many chances. Gareth Barry will need to have a soild game in the midfield, he will be going up against quality players so he needs to shut down the Arsenal attacks and needs to start a quick transition for defense to attack. Romelu Lukaku, who just signed a permanent deal with the club, will be very influential to Everton because he is their main threat. He got a goal in this fixture last season and will need to produce the same in this match.
Now, key players for Arsenal will be Callum Chambers, Mathieu Debuchy, Alexis Sanchez and Olivier Giroud. Chambers will play a big role in this game because he is young and will need to be at his best in such a big, intense match. Mathieu Debuchy will be key because he will be in charge of the right wing, taking care of Leighton Baines attacking. He will then need to be quick to counter attack when Baines comes up a lot, to get into the space Leighton leaves. Alexis Sanchez will play a big role in this match, still settling into English football, the Chilean will need a great patch to get the rest of the team going. If he plays well then Arsenal are bound to do well. He will need to use his pace. Olivier Giroud, who is off form, will need a big game because he will be the main target up front. It will be his job to get in and behind the Everton defense.
Key Match-ups
On the pitch, there will be many encounters between players due to their position. Lets outline a few of them; Debuchy v Baines, both are attacking wing backs and will need to attacking and defend with great pace. Barry v Wilshere, both play in the middle of the park and it will be a midfield battle, both players will look to dictate the pace of the match. Chambers v Lukaku, the young centre back will need to keep the giant Belgian quiet, Chambers will need to be on Lukaku’s back and will need help from Koscielny also. Giroud v Jagielka, the Frenchman will need to be fast on the ball with Jagielka on him. Both have a great aerial threat on crosses and corners, it will be a good match up.
Predicted Line-ups
Everton: (4-2-3-1) Howard; Coleman, Stones, Jagielka, Baines; Barry, McCarthy; Naismith, Pienaar, McGeady; Lukaku.
Arsenal: (4-2-3-1) Szczesny; Debuchy, Chambers, Koscielny, Monreal; Arteta, Wilshere; Ramsey, Ozil, Sanchez; Giroud.
Prediction
Everton are usually very strong at home, as teams find it tough to go to Goodison Park and pick up points. Last season Arsenal lost 3-0 in this fixture, it will be hard for that to happen again as Arsenal have strengthened their side. Everton look for their first win of the season, as Arsenal look to get their second win. Score Prediction: Everton 1-1 Arsenal.