Arsenal Maintains Hope For Success Ahead Of Goodison Trip Despite Title Challenges

Add as a preferred source on Google

Declan Rice emphasises that Arsenal still have significant objectives to pursue as they prepare for Saturday's match against Everton, despite their Premier League title ambitions being nearly out of reach. Arsenal trails Liverpool by 12 points in the standings following recent matches. Goals from Mikel Merino and Bukayo Saka secured a 2-1 victory over Fulham, while Liverpool triumphed 1-0 against Everton.

Arsenal's focus now shifts towards European success, with hopes of achieving glory in the Champions League. They are set to face Real Madrid in the quarter-final first leg on Tuesday. Rice stresses the importance of maintaining positive momentum leading up to this crucial encounter. "Until the season's over, we need to have full belief as a group, as a team, as a fanbase, that we can still achieve great things," Rice stated on Arsenal's website.

The possibility of making history by becoming the first Arsenal team to win the Champions League is a driving force for the squad. "We can only focus on what we can focus on and that is winning our remaining games," Rice added. The team is motivated by this opportunity and is determined to leave a lasting legacy at the club.

Despite challenges faced this season, there remains optimism within the team. "It's been tough this year, but there's still some positivity that can come out of it," Rice noted. He urged fans to continue supporting them, believing that good things are on the horizon for Arsenal.

During their match against Fulham, Arsenal suffered an injury setback when Gabriel Magalhaes had to leave the field early due to an injury. His participation against Everton seems doubtful. Meanwhile, Everton lost narrowly to Liverpool with Diogo Jota scoring the decisive goal in their recent derby clash at Anfield.

Beto was a standout performer for Everton despite not scoring at Liverpool. He had one goal disallowed for offside and hit the post during another attempt. Beto contested 16 duels in that match, equalling Virgil van Dijk's tally, with seven successful attempts.

Saka's Impactful Return

Bukayo Saka made an immediate impact upon his return from injury by scoring Arsenal's second goal against Fulham midweek. Saka has consistently scored and assisted 10 or more goals across all competitions for three consecutive seasons, matching Alexis Sanchez's record from 2014-15 to 2016-17.

Match Prediction: Arsenal Favoured

Everton has struggled recently against Arsenal after previously winning four out of five league encounters between December 2020 and February 2023. Their last four meetings have resulted in one draw and three defeats for Everton. The reverse fixture ended goalless last December.

Arsenal hasn't kept clean sheets in both league meetings with Everton since 2011-12 nor failed to score against them since 1912-13. In all competitions, they've won just three of their last 26 away games on Merseyside against Everton and Liverpool (10 draws, 13 defeats).

Current Form and Statistics

Everton has lost only two of their last 13 Premier League matches at Goodison Park (four wins, seven draws), drawing each of their last three home games. However, only Liverpool (17 games) currently boasts a longer unbeaten away run than Arsenal (10 games) in the Premier League.

Since early 2024, Arsenal has accumulated more away points than any other team (52) while conceding the fewest goals (16). According to Opta's win probability model: Everton stands at 20.8%, Arsenal at 53.2%, and a draw at 26% likelihood.