Arsene Wenger's men had enjoyed an unbeaten September in which their backline was not breached on a single occasion, but their return to action after the recent international break was not a happy one. Arsenal took the lead at Vicarage Road in their meeting with Watford, but Marco Silva's side turned the game on its head with two second-half goals - the last of which came in stoppage time. It was an extremely disappointing outcome for the Gunners despite the fact Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil were missing from the starting XI, and one which leaves them nine points adrift of Premier League leaders Manchester City. That is a sizeable gap even at this early stage of the campaign, and although there is plenty of time for any team in the division to turn their fortunes around, the worry for Arsenal fans is that the club do not appear to have learnt from the mistakes they have been making on a regular basis in the last few years.
Everton have found things even tougher this term, with last weekend's 1-1 draw at Brighton and Hove Albion making it just two wins from eight for Ronald Koeman's charges in the top flight. The Liverpool-based outfit were widely thought to have had a successful transfer window in the summer, but Ronald Koeman has yet to mould the individuals at his disposal into a cohesive collective, which has proved costly in the opening weeks as Everton have already ceded considerable ground in the race for the Champions League places. In the Toffees' defence, they were not handed any favours by the fixture computer with trips to Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United - as well as a meeting with Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison Park - scheduled among their first eight encounters. Koeman will hope that Wayne Rooney's equalising penalty in the last minute at Brighton proves to be a turning point of sorts.
Arsenal will have to make do without Danny Welbeck (hamstring), Shkodran Mustafi (thigh) and Calum Chambers (hip), while Santi Cazorla is a long-term absentee. Wenger will stick with three at the back but may look to reintegrate Aaron Ramsey after the Wales international sat out the loss to Watford; further forward, Alexis Sanchez is expected to be restored to the line-up in support of former Lyon goal-getter Alexandre Lacazette up top.
Everton will be unable to call upon Yannick Bolasie (knee), Aaron Lennon (muscle), Ross Barkley (hamstring), Ramiro Funes Mori (knee) and Seamus Coleman (leg) for Sunday's clash on Merseyside. Koeman may opt to bring back Oumar Niasse to provide some speed and cutting edge up front, while energetic midfielder Tom Davies is another who may return to the starting XI. Koeman may instruct his charges to press high up the pitch early on, with such an approach bearing considerable fruit for the Toffees in this fixture last season.
This is a difficult game to call, with both sides having fallen short of expectation in the first couple of months of the 2017/18 campaign. Given the favourable odds available, though, it could be worth backing Everton to come out on top in front of their own supporters this weekend. Arsenal's away form has been miserable up to now, bringing three losses and a creditable draw with Chelsea, while the Toffees were superb at home last term and have beaten both Stoke City and Bournemouth on their own patch in the last couple of months. Aside from the result, both teams to score is another wager worthy of consideration given both sides' defensive frailities.
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