FA Premier League
ARSENAL 1 (Pepe, pen 35)
EVERTON 2 (Holding og 22, Mina 45)

PERHAPS, the most worrying thing for Arsenal fans, in the end, will be the response from the team’s manager to yet another defeat.

Mikel Arteta insisted the Gunners had been unlucky, that they had done enough to earn at least a draw and that they had dominated much of this encounter with Everton.

This was a view similar to the idea that Arsenal had bossed the second half of the recent north London derby – a 2-0 defeat at Spurs – because they were allowed almost as much possession as they wanted.

The disconnect is that teams that are winning do not always feel they need to score again, Tottenham certainly didn’t, and Arsenal get the ball by default. This allowance surely shouldn’t be used as evidence of improvement.

Similarly tonight at Goodison Park: what good was Arteta’s impression that Arsenal were surging, when Everton seemed happy with their lead and found themselves skipping few heartbeats as their visitors once more huffed and puffed as if still unsure about what their chief strategy is to actually score a goal.

Again only Bukayo Saka, and occasionally Ainsley Maitland-Niles, showed any real wind of enthusiasm.

Arteta can curse bad luck, simply because David Luiz hit the post as Arsenal searched to squeeze out a draw here but misfortune alone cannot explain eight league defeats before Christmas, only 12 goals in the back of the net and a ten point chasm to the Champions League places that the club was in theory aiming for this season.

Teams of grand stature have sleepwalked into relegation battles before, and the basic equation of the Premier League remains: Can’t score, go down.

Some Arsenal  supporters drink in the ‘classy’ traditions of the club’s history, and often seem to believe that they are almost on a higher plain when it comes to doing things rights. The gentlemen of the old marble halls didn’t sack their guy at the first sign of trouble.

All very well, but there have also been times when it might have been said that Arsenal have put off painful decisions. The next steps should, it’s plain to see, be under urgent review rather than lost in grumbling and mumbling about not getting the breaks.

The system is not working and Everton seemed eager to get on the pitch to have their turn playing against it.

And, like clockwork, Arsenal duly gave them a leg-up as Rob Holding, captain in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s injury absence, poked the ball past his own goalkeeper to hand Everton the lead after 20 minutes.

Arsenal got on level terms not too long later when Everton’s Tom Davies’ attempt to clear a ball tripped up Maitland-Niles in the box. Nicolas Pepe stroked home a penalty.

But just before the half time break, they conceded from a simple set piece: Toffees defender Yerry Mina heading in a corner.

So Arsenal had a lot of the ball in the second half, but it was mainly scrappy stuff. Willian failed to inspire much excitement and has become the first target for frustrated supporters.

But don’t be fooled that it is only the man signed from Chelsea in the summer who is underperforming.

“Obviously, it’s not good enough,” Arteta admitted afterwards.

“It’s not good enough for the standards of this football club and this is the challenge. But I am very encouraged from what I see from the players. Of course we have to improve, but as well I think we’ve been very, very unlucky not to pick up many, many more points.”

EVERTON: Pickford, Holgate, Godfrey, Keane, Mina, Davies, Doucoure, Sigurdsson, Iwobi (Coleman 83), Richarlison (Kenny 90+2), Calvert-Lewin (Tosun 90+3)
SUBS NOT USED:  Bernard, Braithwaite, Gordon, Lossi, Nkounkou, Olsen

ARSENAL: Leno, Maitland-Niles, Tierney, Luiz, Holding, Saka, Ceballos, Elneny (Willock 64), Willian, Pepe (Martinelli 71), Nketiah (Lacazette 76)
SUBS NOT USED: Bellerin, Kolasinac, Mustafi, Runarsson, Smith Rowe, Soares