Carlo Ancelotti celebrates Everton anniversary with win over Arsenal
Everton's Yerry Mina (right) celebrates scoring his side's second goal of the game with team-mate Dominic Calvert-Lewin at Goodison Park. Picture: Clive Brunskill/PA
CARLO Ancelotti celebrates his one-year Goodison anniversary on Monday and, after a goal from Yerry Mina capped a highly productive Premier League week for the Toffees, the mood around the club will be one of celebration.
Defeat, of course, added to the mounting pressure on Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, mired in a desperate run that has not seen them win a league game since the first day of November.
But the contrast with Everton could not be any more stark.
It helps that Everton are one of the few English league clubs currently allowed to host supporters and 2,000 were on hand to watch their team cap an eight-day period in which they have also beaten Chelsea and won at Leicester.
Victory lifted Ancelotti’s side into second, for a few hours at least, and hopes of a top-four finish in this unpredictable campaign do not seem outlandish.
Nor does the Everton dream of winning silverware for the first time since the 1995 FA Cup. Wednesday sees Manchester United visit Goodison in the Carabao Cup quarter-final and the blue half of Merseyside is hopeful that the new year will see that depressing run come to an end.
Everton had already taken a grip on the game by the time they took the lead, in slightly fortunate circumstances, midway through the first half.
Former Arsenal winger Alex Iwobi drifted over a perfectly-timed cross for Dominic Calvert-Lewin to meet it, with an equally perfectly-timed run.
The striker’s run was well covered by Rob Holding, Gunners captain for the day in the absence of the injured Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but the defender could only watch as the ball deflected off him and into his own goal.
After the opening, it was hard to see a way back for Mikel Arteta’s team, given their current malaise, but they received an unexpected assist from the home team just after the half-hour.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles’ cross was headed away by Mina but the persistent Arsenal man chased the loose ball, only to be tripped by an unaware Tom Davies.
Nicolas Pepe was handed the chance to equalise from the spot and duly accepted, comfortably converting into the bottom-left of the Everton goal.
This was a test of both teams’ current form, physical and mental, and the response found Everton up to the challenge and Arsenal, not for the first time this season, wanting.
As Everton re-asserted control, the excellent Calvert-Lewin made space for himself on the edge of the area in there final minute of the first half with his superb, first-time shot being kept out by Bernd Leno’s athletic dive to his top corner.
The danger was far from over, however, and Gylfi Sigurdsson’s superb delivery from the resulting corner was headed powerfully goalwards at the near-post by Mina and Leno could only help the ball into his net.
It was no more than Everton deserved as their supporters found their voice and sensed the chance to watch what would be a third important league victory in no more than eight days.
But Arsenal at least put up a better showing after the interval and may soon have been level for a second time after the latest mishap by home keeper Jordan Pickford.
He came for, but failed to catch, a Willian cross and as the ball ran loose, David Luiz was on hand to produce a shot which bounced into the ground and struck the post.
A poor foul by Richarlison soon presented the Gunners with a free-kick in a dangerous position, which was duly wasted by Bukayo Saka who drilled an optimistic shot high and wide.
Ben Godfrey lifted the mounting pressure with an enterprising run down the left and a cross that passed inches behind Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison just missed setting up Iwobi for a second.
Pickford 5; Holgate 7, Minaz 7, Keane 7, Godfrey 6; Doucoure 8, Davies 5, Iwobi 7 (Coleman 82), Sigurdsson 6, Richarlison 6 (Kenny 90); Calvert-Lewin 9 (Tosun 90).
Olsen, Lossl, Nkounkou, Bernard, Gordon, Branthwaite.
Leno 6; Maitland-Niles 8, Holding 5, Luiz 6, Tierney 5; Ceballos 6, Elneny 5 (Willock 64. 5), Saka 5; Pepe 7 (Martinelli 71, 5), Nketiah 6 (Lacazette 76, 5), Willian 6.
Runarsson, Bellerin, Soares, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Smith Rowe.
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