Arsenal were let down by an “uninspired” 5/10 star who lost 88% of their duels

More points. However, more points were claimed in what turned out to be quite a tough one Premier League campaign for Arsenal until now.

A few weeks ago it looked like the Gunners had regained their form, scoring 12 goals above Nottingham Forest, Sporting and West Ham.

However, since then, they haven’t had it all their own way. Arsenal drew with Fulham a week ago and are left to rue yet more lost points, this time against relegation-threatened Everton.

You won’t find many games that Mikel Arteta‘s men fail, but this was a truly terrible performance at home.

In truth, nothing seemed to click, and when Bukayo Saka brilliantly denied Jordan Pickford’s shot on the post in the second half, you might have known it wasn’t going to be the hosts’ afternoon.

So, where did it all go wrong on Saturday afternoon?

Why Arsenal drew with Everton

Arsenal have not had a hard time keeping the ball in recent weeks. Against Everton this weekend, they left the pitch with 77% possession, but only created one big chance in the end.

It really told the story of a lackluster attack that only saw Saka make much of a splash in red and white.

It’s a familiar story, really. Give the ball to Saka and hope. If something isn’t created by him, then they’ll probably have to rely on an angle. Neither worked on this occasion.

Again you could blame a lot on the dysfunctional left side. It remains to be seen what Raheem Sterling or even Gabriel Jesus have to do to potentially start on that left side.

The problem seems to stem from the day Granit Xhaka left the club. Let’s turn our thoughts to the 2022/23 season. Arsenal may have finished the season five points behind Manchester City, but it was some of the best football we’ve seen at the Emirates in recent years.

This was helped by a flexible structure across the pitch and one that didn’t rely solely on things happening on one side of the pitch.

There’s no doubt that the combination of Saka and Martin Odegaard was a treat on the right, but since Xhaka left, they haven’t had the same combination on the left.

During that aforementioned season, Xhaka was involved in 16 goals doc Gabriel Martinelliwho seemed to like playing on that left flank, had a hand in 21 goals.

Arsenal seemed to half fix that in midweek with Mikel Merino and Miles Lewis-Skelley on the left with Trossar behind.

In fact, a combination on the left led to the opening goal, scored by Saka. Lewis-Skelly kept the ball brilliantly before feeding not Trossard but Jesus, who crossed at the back post.

This time there was no such luck with “blunt and inspiring” Martinelli – in the words of European football expert Zac Lowy – not once again at the races.

Gabriel Martinelli’s performance in numbers

Martinelli starts one game. Trossard starts the next one. And repeat. That has been the story of Arsenal’s season as far as their left flank is concerned and now it is becoming a big problem that neither can find great form.

Trossard did score in back-to-back games against Sporting and West Ham, but his performance a week ago against Fulham wasn’t much, producing only a lone key.

Martinelli replaced him late on and looked set to produce the winning moment, crossing to Saka at the back stick only for the Brazilian to be ruled offside in the build-up.

That painful moment didn’t affect Arteta’s judgment too much, as the former Itouane winger has now started the last two matches.

However, his lack of impact was alarming, especially considering he was up against 39-year-old Ashley Young. In total, he attempted four dribbles, but did not complete any of them. As it happens, Young did not pass once and won seven of nine duels. Martinelli’s numbers were abysmal in comparison, winning just one of his eight duels.

To make matters worse, the 23-year-old passed the ball 14 times and produced just two key passes while having a single shot on goal.

Handed a 5/10 match rating by Kaia Kainak of Football.Londonthe reporter noted that the striker’s ‘end product remains a problem’. Indeed, the Brazilian star has scored only three times in the league and assisted two goals.

Compare that with the right-hand side where Saka contributed five league goals and ten assists and the difference is huge.

Frankly, if Arsenal want to win the Premier League title soon, they need a left winger with good features. That’s unlikely until they sign another winger with an end product.