Deulofeu strike earns deserved point at the Emirates

, 8 December, 0comments  |  Jump to most recent
Arsenal 1 - 1 Everton
A moment of magic from substitute Gerard Deulofeu rescued a point for Everton just minutes after leaders Arsenal looked to have won it with Mezut Ozil's 80th-minute strike.

The Spaniard rifled home an equaliser that was richly deserved for an accomplished display from Everton, particularly in the first half, in which they out-played their hosts for long periods.

Bolstered by Wednesday's victory at Old Trafford, the Blues controlled the first half to an impressive degree but just couldn't find the final ball to carve out chances to press home that superiority.

Arsenal didn't come into the game until the very end of the half, when their familiar passing interchanges started to cause Everton problems.

Tim Howard made two excellent stops just before half time to deny Giroud and Ozil to keep things goalless.

The home side, so dominant at home since their opening day defeat to Aston Villa, were more dangerous in the second half but a stellar display by an impressively organised Everton rearguard kept them at bay.

That was until Theo Walcott got above Bryan Oviedo at the back post and headed back across goal, Ozil converting after Olivier Giroud had air-kicked in front of goal.

Martinez's side had been confident and fluid throughout but just lacked end product until Deulofeu struck.

The teenager wrong-footed his marker with a trademark feint in the Arsenal area, engineering enough space to surprise the goalkeeper with a powerful shot that flew in and silenced the crowing Emirates crowd.

The result preserves Everton's remarkable record of just one defeat all seasons so far.

Quotes or other material sourced from ToffeeWeb Match Reports





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