Tarkowski Tells Everton to Bounce Back at Arsenal After Chelsea Defeat Ends Unbeaten Start
Tarkowski Tells Everton to Bounce Back at Arsenal After Chelsea Defeat Ends Unbeaten Start
James Tarkowski has called on Everton to produce an immediate response against Arsenal after their unbeaten Premier League start was ended by Chelsea, and he believes last season's resilience proves the Toffees can handle the trip to the Emirates Stadium.
Everton's unbeaten run halted by Chelsea
Everton had gone into Matchday 7 unbeaten in the top flight, with two wins and four draws, before Chelsea beat them 2-0 with goals at the start and the end of the second half. The result leaves Everton eighth in the table, but a win over the reigning champions would put them back on track and lift them at least up to fifth — taking them above rivals Liverpool in the process.
Tarkowski believes his side's attitude heading into the clash at the Emirates is key, pointing to last season as evidence of what they can achieve with the right approach.
"I always felt last year that anytime we suffered a defeat, we responded pretty well. So, hopefully that happens [this weekend]," Tarkowski told evertontv.
"Hopefully, the team can keep picking up points. [Chelsea] was a tough day, a setback.
"We dealt with them pretty well last year, so we're looking forward to [the next match]."
Arsenal riding momentum into Saturday's meeting
Arsenal sit second in the table, three points behind Manchester City ahead of the weekend's action, having bounced back from a loss to Brighton with two consecutive wins. They edged past Nottingham Forest last time out in the top flight and then came from behind to draw 2-2 with Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
Arsenal lost Bukayo Saka to injury early in that European tie, but manager Mikel Arteta was pleased with their reaction and will hope to carry those positives into Saturday's match.
"The character, personality and quality we showed to understand what the game required, because the game changed, and they pressed in two different ways, what the team understood and executed was really, really good," Arteta said about the performance against Bayern.
"Execution-wise, we had some great moments – we could have been even better and more clinical in certain aspects with our final shot – but overall, it's a game we can take a lot of positives from."
Players to watch
Arsenal – Gabriel Magalhaes
Gabriel Magalhaes could make his 200th Premier League appearance in this match, becoming the 11th Brazilian to reach that milestone. Arsenal have won 65% of their games when he plays, compared with 44% when he does not since 2020-21 — among players to have played 150 or more Premier League games for the Gunners, only Lauren has a higher win rate at 66%.
Everton – Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
No player has made more line-breaking passes into the opposition box than Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the Premier League this season, with 16, level with Granit Xhaka. He has scored 13 goals in the competition in total, including one in Everton's last away game against Hull City. All four of his away goals in the top flight in 2026 have been equalisers.
Match prediction: Arsenal win
Arsenal are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League matches against Everton (W5 D2), their best run against the Toffees since going 13 without defeat between December 2007 and December 2013. Everton have won just one of their last 30 away league matches against Arsenal (D5 L24), a 1-0 victory in 2020-21 under Carlo Ancelotti. Under David Moyes, the Toffees have never won away at the Gunners in 13 attempts in the league (D3 L10).
Everton's recent away form does not help either, given they are winless in their last eight Premier League games on the road (D5 L3), with all three of their away games this season ending level. The last time a team drew each of their first four away games in a season in the competition was 2010-11, when both Fulham and Manchester United did so.
Arsenal, meanwhile, have won 11 of their last 12 Premier League games (L1), winning all six at the Emirates Stadium in that run.
Opta win probability
- Arsenal – 69.5%
- Draw – 17.1%
- Everton – 13.4%