1-0 TO THE ARSENAL...IT'S BACK!

A throwback result but a deserved win and dominant displa fires stylish Gunners into the top-six mix

- JOHN CROSS

THIS was a throwback to the days of 1-0 to the Arsenal.

It was a hard-fought and a pretty dull affair at Goodison Park - yet Mikel Arteta's men thoroughly deserved all three points.

And that is all that will matter to Arteta because his team showed their title mettle and dug deep, with Leandro Trossard's lovely goal decided a game lacking in entertainment and quality.

Incredibly, this was Arsenal's first win at Goodison since 2017 and the days of Arsene Wenger, but it was a performance straight out of the George Graham handbook.

No wonder the away end at the final whistle were singing "1-0 to the Arsenal", which was the theme tune to Graham's success in the late 1980s and 1990s.

 

We have come to expect more from Arteta's Gunners but title-winning teams must be able to do the dirty work and Arsenal showed they can mix it.

They kept Everton at arm's length throughout and it turned out to be a dream debut for onloan keeper David Raya, who started ahead of Aaron Ramsdale and was never really tested.