5/10 Arsenal star let Arteta down on their big day

With great sincerity thank you, Mikel, deeply, truly, this has been one hell of a ride. It may not have ended with Premier League title number four for Arsenal but this has been a campaign to be proud of.

The Gunners fought valiantly, aggressively right to the final whistle in a bid to secure the crown but Manchester City were too good for the north Londoners as the season reached its climax.

Truth be told, there is little more that Arsenal could have done to secure the title. Yes, they could have beaten Aston Villa a matter of weeks ago but then you could argue that, having lost the title by two points, drawing 0-0 at the Etihad also wasn’t a great result.

But let us not nitpick, let us not look at the negative moments from a season which was so close to euphoric.

Arteta’s men finished with 28 wins, their most in a single Premier League campaign and ended up with 89 points. That’s a mammoth haul of points and gives them an immense platform to build upon heading into next season.

Barring some sort of collapse, the Gunners will be up there again, ready and waiting to test City’s resolve. Will they prevail? Only time will tell. Either way, you can bet your bottom dollar that the club’s head coach will be working his socks off to topple City.

So, on a day of sadness for the club, who did themselves justice and who didn’t?

Arsenal’s best player vs Everton

Arsenal just needed to win today and they duly did that, although it wasn’t without some hard graft.

There is a reason Everton had one of the sternest defences in the league and they showed that at the Emirates on Sunday. Initially taking the lead via a deflected goal from Idrissa Gueye, it took until the stroke of half-time for Arsenal to equalise, firing home thanks to Takehiro Tomiyasu.

The hosts didn’t score again until the dying embers, Kai Havertz tapping home from close range with minutes on the clock to seal a 2-1 victory.

The celebrations were muted, understandably so for a team that despite winning had lost out on the title.

Havertz was again right in the thick of things but it was captain fantastic, Martin Odegaard, who deserved all of the plaudits. Recently named in FFC’s Team of the Season, the Norwegian was sublime against the Toffees and ended the campaign with two assists, taking his tally up to nine in all competitions this term.

He pulled the ball back delightfully for Tomiyasu’s equaliser and then it was the midfield maestro who inadvertently rolled the ball into Havertz for his late winner.

Supplying seven key passes on Sunday, it was a vintage performance from the skipper, although not everyone in red and white was at the races.

Arsenal’s biggest underperformer vs Everton

This wasn’t a classic Arsenal performance, far from it in fact, but it did tell the story of the season in parts.

The Gunners carved out regular opportunities but struggled to find the back of the net, Odegaard at one point notably firing straight at Jordan Pickford from close range. Declan Rice had a glorious first-half opportunity too but it was their clutch man, the player for the big occasion who was rather anonymous; Leandro Trossard.

With Bukayo Saka missing out through injury, this was a chance for the Belgian to show why he could be the main man. Scorer of 17 goals in 2023/24, the second-best record at the club, means he certainly knows where the back of the net is. Sadly, his radar was off against Everton.

The 29-year-old was withdrawn on 78 minutes having done very little to trouble Sean Dyche’s defence, awarded with a 5/10 match rating courtesy of GOAL’s Matt O’Connor Simpson who wrote: ‘Not his best afternoon. Barely involved early on and could not get the better of Coleman.’

That was reflected in the numbers. Trossard amassed just 45 touches, the second-fewest of any Arsenal starter and had only one shot, which was blocked.

Further registering one key pass, but no dribbles or accurate crosses, it compounded a poor day at the office for a player who throughout the run-in has been so consistent.

There is nothing to worry about long-term with the former Brighton man, Arsenal did still win after all, but he will no doubt be disappointed he couldn’t do more to roar his side onto a title win.