5/10 Arsenal star let Arteta down on their big day

Sincerely thank you, Mikel, seriously, really, this has been one hell of a ride. It may not be over with Premier League title number four for Arsenal but this has been a campaign to be proud of.

The Gunners battled valiantly until the final whistle in their bid to defend the title but Manchester City were too good for the north Londoners as the season reached its climax.

Truth be told, there was little Arsenal could have done to defend the title. Yes, they could have beaten Aston Villa a few weeks ago but you could argue that, losing the title by two points, a 0-0 draw at the Etihad is not a good result either.

But let's not be picky, let's not look at the negative moments from a season that was very close to being exciting.

Arteta's men finished with 28 wins, their most in a single Premier League campaign and ended up with 89 points. That's a huge points haul and gives them a huge platform to build on as they head into next season.

Barring some collapse, the Gunners will be there again, ready and waiting to test City's resolve. Will they win? Only time will tell. Either way, you can bet your bottom dollar that the club's coach will work his socks off to rile up City.

So, on the club's day of woe, who did it justice and who didn't?

Best player for Arsenal vs Everton

Arsenal needed to win today and deservedly did so, although it wasn't without some hard graft.

There's a reason Everton have one of the strongest defenses in the league and they proved it at the Emirates on Sunday. Initially taking the lead through Idrissa Gueye's deflected goal, it took until half-time for Arsenal to level, firing home from Takehiro Tomiyasu.

The hosts did not score again until the dust settled, Kai Havertz calling home from close to the hour mark to make it 2-1.

The celebrations are muted, it is understandable what happens to the team that although they won they lost the title.

Havertz again did well in midfield but it was the excellent captain, Martin Odegaard, who deserved the praise. Recently named in the FFC Team of the Season, the Norwegian impressed against the Toffees and finished the campaign with two assists, taking his tally to nine in all competitions this season.

He pulled the ball back beautifully for Tomiyasu's equalizer and the midfielder inadvertently rolled the ball past Havertz for a late winner.

We gave away seven key passes on Sunday, it was a classic performance from the captain, although not everyone in red and white was racing.

Arsenal vs Everton man of the match

This was not a classic Arsenal performance, far from it in fact, but it told the story of the season in parts.

The Gunners created the usual chances but struggled to find the back of the net, with Odegaard at one point shooting straight at Jordan Pickford from close range. Declan Rice had a brilliant first-half chance again but it was their catch-man, an unheralded big-time player; Leandro Trossard.

With Bukayo Saka missing through injury, this was a chance for the Belgian to show why he can be a top man. Scored 17 goals in 2023/24, the club's second-best record, means he really knows where the goal is. Sadly, his radar was off against Everton.

The 29-year-old was withdrawn on 78 minutes as he did little to trouble Sean Dyche's defence, and was awarded a 5/10 performance rating courtesy of GoAL's Matt O'Connor Simpson who wrote: 'Not his best afternoon a lot. A bit involved early on and he couldn't deal with Coleman.'

That was evident in the numbers. Trossard amassed just 45 touches, the second-fewest of all Arsenal starters and had just one shot, which was blocked.

Continuing to register one key pass, but no accurate dribbles or crosses, it adds up to a bad day at the office for a player who has been inconsistent throughout the run.

There is nothing to worry about over time with the former Brighton man, Arsenal are still winning, but he will no doubt be disappointed that he couldn't do more to roar his side to the title.