Arsenal vs Everton

Arsenal’s United States Tour gets underway this weekend as they take on familiar Premier League foes Everton in a pre-season friendly atM&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore.

Following a landslide 5-1 victory over League One side Ipswich Town in their opening pre-season fixture, Arsenal came from a 2-0 halftime deficit to beat Nurnberg 5-3 last time out. An action-packed triumph in Germany saw marquee summer signing Gabriel Jesus notch up a second-half brace on his debut after joining the fray at the interval. Inspired by an impressive pre-season, the ‘Gunners’ are looking to emulate a comprehensive 5-1 H2H triumph at the Emirates Stadium on the final weekend of the 2021/22 season. That success helped them arrest a frustrating three-game losing H2H streak in England’s top flight. Interestingly, since a goalless home draw with last season’s relegation boys Burnley in late January, none of Arsenal’s subsequent 20 games have ended level (W14, L6).

On the other hand, Everton are lagging behind Arsenal in terms of match fitness, as they have yet to kickstart pre-season preparations following a thoroughly disappointing 2021/22 season. Frank Lampard’s side avoided what would have been their first relegation from the Premier League in the 21st century by the skin of their teeth last term. With standout forward Richarlison gone for Tottenham Hotspur, the ‘Toffees’ head into proceedings with their spirits at a historic low. On top of that, they have only won one of their last four outings (D1, L2), conceding 2+ goals in three of them. The arrival of highly-rated centre-back James Tarkowski from Burnley could help Lampard address his side’s defensive issues.