Arsenal beat Everton as Arteta praises set piece breakthrough

Gunners end set piece wait in Everton win

Arsenal beat Everton 2-0 on Saturday to move level on 21 points with Premier League leaders Manchester City. The Gunners scored their first goal from a set play this season when Ezri Konsa opened the scoring in the seventh minute.

Konsa turned in a corner from Martin Odegaard to score his first goal for the club. Gabriel later added a second goal with a header from a Ben White cross to seal Arsenal's seventh win in eight league games.

Mikel Arteta expressed confidence that the team will keep scoring from these situations after a dry run. Last season, the champions scored 29 times from corners, free kicks and penalties.

Arteta pleased with squad after tough week

Arteta said he was convinced the goal against Everton would rebuild belief among the players. He praised the work of set piece coach Nico Jover and noted the high level of attention in training sessions.

The Arsenal manager pointed out that his team missed chances in their 2-2 Champions League draw at Bayern Munich earlier in the week. He said they should have scored at least twice from set plays in Munich.

The victory rounded off a busy week that started with a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest. Arteta praised the mentality of his players for managing a tough schedule while dealing with injuries.

Title race tightens as City slip

Arsenal are now second in the Premier League on goal difference. Manchester City suffered their first defeat of the season, falling 2-1 at Aston Villa on Saturday.

Arteta stated he is happy with most of Arsenal's performances this term, apart from a 3-0 loss at Brighton last month. The Gunners next face League Two side Fleetwood in the Carabao Cup fourth round on Tuesday before visiting Liverpool next Sunday.