Sean Dyche said he had “no explanation” for the shambolic second goal that ended Everton’s hopes of clinching a positive result at Arsenal.
The Blues boss was pleased with the opening 40 minutes, during which his side prevented the league leaders from creating a clear-cut opportunity while providing a threat to their hosts. But the game unravelled for Everton just minutes before half-time.
First, Bukayo Saka latched onto a sublime through ball from Oleksandr Zinchenko. The fatal blow then came in the aftermath of the opener when Idrissa Gueye dallied on the ball and Saka stole it from him, playing in Gabriel Martinelli to double the Gunners’ lead.
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It was a hellish moment for Everton and became a focal point for questions to Dyche after the match. Asked for his thoughts on the goal, he said: “I have no explanation, other than sometimes players get caught in three minds, not two minds, and it is just one of them odd moments. They don’t occur very often but when they do they always look like that.”
Dyche sought to rally his players for a second-half comeback but instead Arsenal simply exploited the visitors’ desperation and ran out comfortable winners, Martin Odegaard and Martinelli completing a 4-0 win.
For Dyche, the match had started well. But he acknowledged the two goals on the cusp of the break undermined his plans. He said: “For 40 minutes we were doing very well, I thought, against a top side. You know you have to keep it tight at places like this and you have to work for the counter, which we did. It is finding those killer moments - obviously that is the story of the season so far, before and with me. That defined that period and then, obviously, a soft goal from our point of view, only yardages, the back four just got a bit open for the first time. It was good from them, that is what they do, they slide and play quick passes into the box.
"And then the second one, as a manager it is hard to legislate for. Once you are 2-0 down at a place like this it is very difficult, we all know that, and then we had to take the second half on and at the end of the day you saw why they are top of the league.
"It is not always about us - there are lots of things we could have done better but at the end of the day they are a top side and they showed it at the end of the day.”
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