Havertz's winner in vain as Arsenal fall just short

For a few seconds, the miracle that Mikel Arteta and Arsenal fans so craved seemed as if it might happen.

- Ed Aarons

Arsenal        2

Everton        1

As Takehiro Tomiyasu was slamming home an emphatic equaliser against Everton, rumours that West Ham had scored a second goal to peg back Manchester City began to sweep through the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal, having found themselves trailing to Idrissa Gueye's free-kick that deflected off the head of Declan Rice, suddenly had hope of ending their 20-year wait to become Premier League champions. They almost matched Pep Guardiola's side stride for stride this season, but the brutal reality that City do not falter at the final hurdle was made clear when news of Rodri's goal, which sealed an unprecedented fourth straight title, was confirmed just before the hour.

All but a handful of Arsenal's fans remained until the final whistle as the team poured forward in search of the winner that would take them to 89 points, second only to Arsène Wenger's Invincibles. It came in the 89th minute courtesy of Kai Havertz's 13th league goal of the campaign, after Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Jesus had almost snatched victory, although this nervy performance against Sean Dyche's well-drilled Everton was probably a signal that Arsenal are not the finished article.