At Emirates Stadium on December 14, Arsenal were superior in every parameter, controlling the ball 77%, passing 682 times, and shooting 13 times with five on target. However, the “Gunners” were stuck, not creating any clear chances with only an expected goals (xG) of 1.4.

Everton, meanwhile, defended with 209 passes and only two shots off target. It was the first time Everton failed to hit the target in the Premier League since a 3-0 defeat at Wolves in December 2023. But this time, Sean Dyche’s men were successful, leaving London with a point.

This result prevented Arsenal from closing the gap with Liverpool , the club drew 2-2 with Fulham in the same match. The “Gunners” are still in third place with 30 points, one point behind Chelsea and six points behind Liverpool. Chelsea will close the gap with Liverpool to two points if they beat Brentford at Stamford Bridge today, December 15.

Bukayo Saka disputes with Vitaliy Mykolenko during Arsenal’s 0-0 draw with Everton at Emirates Stadium, London, England on December 14. Photo: Reuters

Arsenal took control of the game right from the opening whistle. In the 10th and 12th minutes, captain midfielder Martin Odegaard shot over the bar and wide of the post in an unmarked position.

The hosts’ best chance came in the 29th minute, when Kai Havertz fed Bukayo Saka down the right flank, who beat Vitaliy Mykolenko and Jarrad Branthwaite before crossing to Odegaard. But the Norwegian midfielder was wasteful again, hitting James Tarkowski and being pushed out by Jordan Pickford.

In the second half, Arsenal were more stuck when they did not create this clear opportunity. In the last ten minutes, center back Gabriel Magalhaes was pushed up to play as a striker, and Arsenal continuously stuffed the ball into the penalty area but failed.

Everton not only defended the ball well, but also easily cleared eight corners from Arsenal. Everton are very strong in these situations, scoring 31 Premier League goals from set pieces, excluding penalties, accounting for 42.5% of the total 73 goals, since appointing Sean Dyche in February 2023.

Of the clubs to have scored more than 10 penalties under a manager in the same period, no team has done better than Everton, followed by Rob Edwards’ Luton Town on 30.8% and Julen Lopetegui’s West Ham on 30%.

Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford is excited after catching the ball during the draw with Arsenal. Photo: AP

In the previous round, Arsenal also drew 1-1 at Fulham and missed the opportunity to shorten the gap with Liverpool – the team that did not play because the match against Everton was postponed due to the impact of Storm Darragh in England.

Arsenal have drawn back-to-back Premier League games for the first time since a run of three in April 2023. It is also the first time the Gunners have drawn 0-0 at the Emirates since a match against Newcastle in January 2023.

In their last nine Premier League games, Everton have kept six clean sheets and failed to score in six. Everton have 109 goalless draws in Premier League history, the most in the competition, surpassing Aston Villa’s 108.