Sean Dyche talks of Arsenal progress ahead of Everton clash
Sean Dyche has expressed admiration for Arsenal and Mikel Arteta‘s efforts in the team’s recent development, as his Everton team prepares to face the Gunners.
Arsenal is gearing up for a match against Everton at Goodison Park following the international break.
This stadium hasn’t been kind to Mikel Arteta’s team in recent years. They suffered a 1-0 defeat in 2019 under Unai Emery and played to a 0-0 draw later that year under Freddie Ljungberg.
Arteta himself has faced Everton at Goodison Park three times in the Premier League and has lost all three times. This is a record that the team undoubtedly needs to change, and Sunday’s game provides an ideal opportunity to do so.
Despite Everton’s strong track record against Arsenal when playing at home, manager Sean Dyche had some positive words for the Gunners in his program notes.
“After a season of progress last year in which they went close to winning the league title, they have built on that strong foundation with investment over the summer and the additions of several high-quality players to their squad,” Dyche wrote.
“Mikel and Arsenal Football Club have invested heavily and engrained a style and identity on their group over the three-and-a-half years he has had at the club as manager and we know we must be at our best in order to achieve a positive result today.”
However, Dyche went on to indicate that his team believes they can secure another victory regardless, stating: “We have full belief in ourselves that we can [get a positive result], as we managed here last season in my first game in charge of the Club.”
Arsenal may receive a significant boost with the availability of Gabriel Jesus, who has historically been a thorn in Everton’s side in previous seasons.
During his time at Manchester City, Jesus netted eight goals and provided one assist in 10 matches against the Toffees. However, due to the timing of his injury last season, he has not had the opportunity to face them while playing for Arsenal.
Gabriel Jesus’ remarkable track record against Everton was so impressive that he would be included in the Manchester City lineup for their matches against Everton, even if he hadn’t started the previous fixtures.
A prime example of this is from the 2019/20 to the 2020/21 seasons when Jesus was on the bench for three out of four games leading up to City’s four encounters with Everton.
Nevertheless, in all four instances, he was selected to start the Everton match and managed to score four goals.
Mikel Arteta might be aiming to replicate this level of performance from Jesus on Sunday, especially since the 26-year-old has yet to start a game this season.
Sean Dyche talks of Arsenal progress ahead of Everton clash
