Why Arteta must drop 4/10 Arsenal star after Everton

In the end, it was a comfortable victory for Arsenal against Everton at the Emirates, now level on points with Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.

The build-up to Saturday’s match was marred by the news that Bukayo Saka will spend as many as six weeks on the sidelines after a quadriceps injury suffered against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach

But Arsenal were well worth their money at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday, and a confident display against Everton has reminded everyone of this team’s title-winning quality.

How Arsenal beat Everton

With Manchester City’s sporting fate uncertain as they await the outcome of their legal battle against the Premier League, Arsenal are simply cracking on, winning football matches and tightening on-field bonds.

REUTERS/Chris Radburn

Everton might have been disciplined and well-drilled, but they lacked the kind of attacking quality needed to breach such an impregnable backline. At the other end, Arsenal’s forwards didn’t have their sharpest games, but it mattered not, with Arteta enjoying the rebirth of his side’s set-piece dominance.

It wasn’t the best performance that supporters will be treated to in north London, but Arsenal got the job done in the kind of performance that could reflect the club’s dominance at the end of the season, with Arteta on course to claim his second successive Premier League title.

Ezri Konsa gave his side the early lead, scoring from a set-piece after an interminable wait for such a goal. With William Saliba sidelined, the £50m summer signing from Aston Villa looks like one of the club’s finest signings in many years – certainly the best buy of the Andrea Berta era as technical director.

Konsa and Gabriel Magalhaes both excelled. It’s remarkable how this partnership has been forged in the wake of Saliba’s fall into injury purgatory. But it’s also a measure of Arsenal’s recruitment that Arteta has kept the bedrock of his system intact – even though Arsenal’s best player is out for the count.

They weren’t just influential in attack. Both centre-halves “defended brilliantly“, according to content creator Rory Talks Football. Perhaps the biggest compliment Konsa can be given is that he looks like he’s been part of the furniture for years in north London, dovetailing into Arteta’s project.

Reuters/Matthew Childs

Across ten games together, the centre-backs have kept six clean sheets and won eight times. Arsenal are going from strength to strength, but not everyone is on Konsa and Gabriel’s wavelength, with Saturday’s win showing that Arteta needs to drop one Gunners star.

Arteta must brutally drop Arsenal star

Arsenal are level with Man City at the top of the Premier League, and it’s exciting to think that Arteta’s side still aren’t firing on all cylinders. When they do, it wouldn’t be absurd to say that the rest of the Premier League doesn’t have a chance.

However, the boss will surely recognise the improvements needed in midfield. Bruno Guimaraes and Martin Zubimendi both started from the bench on Saturday, and there’s a case to be made that Mikel Merino needs to be dropped next time out in the Premier League – when Arsenal travel to Anfield to take on Liverpool next Sunday.

In all honesty, it’s not like Merino produced a disastrous performance. Indeed, the Spaniard continues to provide clutch moments for the Gunners, but this is simply a measure of how good Arsenal have become, able to cherry-pick as they chase the reputation as the best team in the business.

There’s a feeling that Merino slows Arsenal down when on the ball. Considering the alternative options that Arteta has at his disposal, such as £75m summer signing Guimaraes, there’s no question that Merino needs to be dropped for the more magnitudinous matches Arsenal have up ahead.

Reuters/Matthew Childs

As journalist Eduardo Hagn put it, “Arsenal should upgrade next year“. Everton were hardly cutting in attack, but Merino failed to provide any defensive support and lacked the creative touch that someone like Martin Odegaard offered at the Emirates. He lost the ball once every four touches despite failing to create a single chance. Given the surplus of options in the middle of the park, why not cash in on the 30-year-old next summer and search for an upgrade?

These are the tough decisions that Arteta need to make. Arsenal are on the cusp of greatness, and there’s no question that Merino could be replaced with an even shinier piece next season.