Arsenal v Everton: Team news, predictions, odds, statistics, quotes & kick-off time


The match pack for Arsenal v Everton includes team news, statistics, manager quotes, odds and our prediction.

The game kicks off at 1500 BST at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal v Everton: Our prediction  


Nick Hext writes... A four-match winning run has given Arsenal the chance to qualify for the Champions League on the final day of the season if either Liverpool or Manchester City slip-up.

City are three points clear of Arsenal and five better off than the Gunners’ goal difference. That means Arsenal have to beat Everton by a margin on Sunday and hope City lose at Watford in convincing fashion to have any chance of finishing third.

That won’t happen. 

Arsenal's only relatively realistic hope (and still very much an outside bet) is Liverpool failing to beat already-relegated Middlesbrough at Anfield. Anything but a win for the Reds would mean that victory for Arsene Wenger’s men would secure a top-four finish for the 21st season in a row. 

The Gunners are 6/1 to get that top-four finish but I wouldn’t take a slice of that. There might be a few nervous moments for Liverpool against Boro but they’ll get the job done and that will leave plenty of questions aimed at Wenger ahead of next week’s FA Cup final against champions Chelsea. 

It’s also far from straightforward that Arsenal will beat Everton to keep up their end of the bargain on Sunday. 

I expect the Gunners to claim a narrow victory but if Liverpool and City are both easing to wins, it will be interesting to see how the hosts deal with an increasingly fractious Emirates Stadium crowd. 

Arsenal were far from impressive when beating bottom-of-the-table Sunderland 2-0 on Tuesday night - it took Alexis Sanchez until the 72nd minute to make the breakthrough - and they stumbled to a late 1-0 win at home to Leicester last month when Robert Huth netted an own goal. 

Everton beat Watford 1-0 last time out to end a three-match winless run but it’s fair to say Ronald Koeman’s men aren’t at their best away from Goodison Park with only victory picked up in eight away games in 2017.

Toffees striker Romelu Lukaku looks like missing out on the Golden Boot following Harry Kane's Thursday night heroics but he's always worth a look around 11/5 in the anytime goalscorer market, but I’m taking a watching brief pre-match. 

The advice is to closely consider Everton in-running if the top-four becomes out of reach for Arsenal as Sunday’s action progresses.  

Prediction: Arsenal 1-0 Everton

Arsenal v Everton: Team news


Arsenal are once again sweating on the fitness of Laurent Koscielny ahead of their final Premier League game of the season at home to Everton on Sunday.

The France defender is struggling with a calf issue and could be left out as a precaution ahead of the FA Cup final having missed two of the last three games.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (hamstring) is definitely out but Aaron Ramsey (leg) should be available despite limping out of Tuesday's win over Sunderland.

Everton are set to have an unchanged squad for their season-concluding Premier League trip to Arsenal on Sunday.

Goalkeeper Joel Robles replaced Maarten Stekelenburg (groin) for the club's 1-0 home win over Watford last week.

Along with Stekelenburg, the Toffees remain without Aaron Lennon (stress-related illness), James McCarthy (hamstring), Seamus Coleman (broken leg), Ramiro Funes Mori (knee) and Yannick Bolasie (knee).

Arsenal (from): Cech, Ospina, Martinez, Bellerin, Holding, Gabriel, Mustafi, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Monreal, Gibbs, Maitland-Niles, Coquelin, Xhaka, Ramsey, Ozil, Walcott, Iwobi, Sanchez, Perez, Welbeck, Giroud.

Everton (from): Robles, Holgate, A Williams, Jagielka, Baines, Gueye, Schneiderlin, Davies, Barkley, Mirallas, Lukaku, Hewelt, Pennington, Barry, Besic, J Williams, Valencia, Kone.

Arsenal v Everton: Manager quotes 


Arsene Wenger (Arsenal)

When pushed on whether a decision on his future will be finalised at a board meeting following the FA Cup final: "Yes. You have certainly to know that there are many aspects of a football club which have to be discussed at a board meeting.

"One of them is, of course, what is happening with the manager, the future, the players who have to come in, the renewal of contracts. You don't miss problems in a board meeting.

"Of course I will be there. At the moment I think we should focus on short term and what's going on on Sunday and in the cup final."

Asked if the visit of Everton will be his last game in charge of Arsenal at the Emirates, he said: "Of the season...yes. I think what is the most important for us is to win the football game we play on Sunday. After that, what happens to me is less important.

"I'm here to serve the club and the best way to do that is to win the next game."

Ronald Koeman (Everton)

On whether he is confident Ross Barkley will stay at Goodison: "No, because it is a long time that he is thinking about his future.

"But, okay. I'm not worried, because I like to work with players who like to stay.

"And - it is not about his decision - we will go on. We are looking for players in that position.

"Even if he stays, there will be more competition for him next season.

"If you offer a player a new contract, and a good contract, that means that you like to keep the player," he said.

"I spoke to the player, the board spoke to the player and his agent. We need an answer after the weekend.

"We will see what the answer will be - and I don't know what will happen if he doesn't give any answer about that."

On Romelu Lukaku: "Even if he doesn't win the golden boot, 24 goals is a good number.

"He can improve - he knows that by himself. He is just 24 years old and he can improve, and needs to in several aspects, as a nine, as a target man - to keep the ball better, be stronger and do better pressing in front. But that is what we work on to improve.

"What we need is to keep his goals and find more players to score more than four or five in one season."

On plans and expectations for next season: "If we can do our business this summer, the team for next season will be really strong.

"Normally, if you have a stronger team, then the expectations will be higher than before. But that's okay.

"That means more pressure for the players and, for sure, more pressure for the manager. But I know I can deal with the pressure, that's no problem."

On where the Toffees can improve: "We had a really strong home record, but I think we need to improve away, and we need to be more clinical, more productive.

"We know it is difficult - and playing in Europe next season will make it even more tough.

"But it is really a nice challenge for next season."

On the extra challenge of European football: "It will be a new experience for some of the players, and of course we need to play two qualification rounds, and that is tough, because that starts after three and a half weeks of our pre-season.

"Let's wait to see what we can do.

"But we take it really seriously because we like to play in Europe. I think that is important for the club."

Arsenal v Everton: Opta facts


o Arsenal are unbeaten in their last 20 Premier League home games against Everton (W16 D4); their longest ever unbeaten streak against a side in the competition.

o Indeed, this run started when Arsene Wenger became manager in 1996, beating all five Everton managers he has faced in that time.

o After beating the Gunners in the reverse fixture this season; the Toffees are looking to do the league double over Arsenal for the first time since the 1985-86 season.

o Olivier Giroud has scored four goals in his last three appearances in all competitions against Everton at the Emirates.

o Arsenal have won each of their last nine matches on home turf contested on the final day of the season, scoring four times in each of the last five.

o After failing to win in 11 successive games on the final day of the season, Everton have picked up victories in seven of the last nine seasons (L2).

o Romelu Lukaku has now gone four games without scoring for the Toffees. He last went longer without a goal in the Premier League between March and August (11 games).

o If Lukaku does end the season as the Premier League's top scorer, he'll be the first Belgian to win the Premier League Golden Boot and the first player to win it from a club outside the top four since Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink for Chelsea in 2000/01.

o Alexis Sanchez has 23 Premier League goals this season and is in the race for the Golden Boot. The last Chilean player to finish as top goalscorer in one of the big five European leagues was Iván Zamorano in La Liga for Real Madrid in 1994-95 (28 goals).


Arsenal v Everton: Sky Bet odds  


Arsenal are the 4/9 odds-on favourites with Sky Bet to bag three points, Everton are the 6/1 outsiders and the draw is priced at 7/2. Alexis Sanchez is at 3/1 to score first for the home side while Romelu Lukaku is priced at 6/1, while he’s drifted out to 16/1 to be the top goalscorer. The Gunners are seen as unlikely to grab a top-four place at 5/1, while the Toffees are priced at 10/1 to finish in the top four next season. 

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