Koeman unsure of Everton future after 2-5 loss to Arsenal

Reuters

Ronald Koeman doesn't know if he'll remain Everton manager after a 2-5 loss to Arsenal saw his team slip into the English Premier League's relegation zone on Sunday.

The statistics are bleak for Koeman: Everton has no wins in its last five matches, two victories in the last 13, eight points from nine games and only six league goals.

Everton, which finished seventh in the EPL last season, is bottom of its Europa League group with one point from three games.

"I don't know," Koeman said when asked by broadcaster Sky Sports about whether he could be fired. "I told the players I believe in them, the commitment of the players. But if you are negative thinking, and everybody is doing that in this moment, all these kinds of decisions are not in my hands.

"That is normal because that is football. We have played nine Premier League games, against the first five of the Premier League last season, but this is not the position that is good for Everton."

Even Wayne Rooney's re-creation of his famous breakthrough goal as a precocious 16-year-old against the same opposition and in the same Goodison Park net to give Everton an unexpected early lead could not mask the issues the Toffees face.

It was an advantage the hosts never looked like holding as Nacho Monreal equalized just before the break with further goals coming from Mesut Ozil, Alexandre Lacazette — after Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye was sent off — and Aaron Ramsey.

Substitute Oumar Niasse pulled one back thanks to poor defending but Alexis Sanchez had the final say with the last kick of the game as Arsenal's eased to a first away win of the season.

Everton is not looking like a team that had around 150 million pounds (US$198 million) invested in new players in the offseason.

How Koeman must wish he could call on the pace of a player like Sanchez, the creativity of Ozil or the finishing of Lacazette.

The trio caused problems from the third minute with the overworked goalkeeper Jordan Pickford tipping Ramsey's shot around the post after Sanchez and Ozil combined to cut Everton wide open through the middle.

It was a recurring theme for Pickford, who denied Sanchez (three times), Lacazette (twice) and Granit Xhaka in the first half.

Ozil, meanwhile, created more chances (six) than all the other 21 players on the pitch.

Pickford's save from Xhaka led to Arsenal's 40th-minute equalizer as he could only parry the low, deflected shot into the path of Monreal, who scored the club's 1,500th EPL goal under Arsene Wenger.

Koeman switched to a back four with the removal of Ashley Williams intending to shore up space but it left a gap at the back and Ozil nipped in to head home Sanchez's near-post cross in the 53rd.

The Chile forward, operating on the left, gave Jonjoe Kenny a tricky time on his first EPL start but the 20-year-old Everton academy graduate was not afforded much protection from more senior teammates.

A difficult situation was made worse when Gueye, after a first-half booking on Sanchez, was shown a second yellow card after going in late on Xhaka.

Lacazette made it an impossible task from a cross by Ozil, exploiting space down the right, in the 74th, extending Arsenal's lead to 3-1.

Koeman introduced Oumar Niasse for Dominic Calvert-Lewin, drawing boos from the crowd. Fans might not have another chance to jeer Koeman.

AFP

On Saturday, Huddersfield Town stunned Manchester United 2-1 at the John Smith's Stadium, a defeat that ended the visitors unbeaten start to the EPL season and dropped them five points behind leader Manchester City which beat Burnley 3-0.

Huddersfield's victory in driving wind and rain was their first over United since 1952 and all the more unexpected after a run of one goal in six league games.

But the top-tier newcomers fully deserved their first league win since mid-August after hitting United twice in the first half and withstanding everything the visitors — and the appalling weather — threw at them.

Former City midfielder Aaron Mooy and Laurent Depoitre scored within 33 minutes, with United's afternoon made worse by an injury to Phil Jones.

Jose Mourinho responded by bringing on Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Marcus Rashford for Juan Mata and Anthony Martial at halftime and Rashford scored his seventh goal of the season to set up a rousing finish in what was the sides' first league meeting since 1972.

Mourinho blamed defensive mistakes for the defeat.

"A bad team deserved to be punished," he said.

By  City's recent free-scoring standards, its 3-0 victory over Burnley was modest, with the match turning on a controversial first-half penalty when Bernardo Silva went down theatrically in the area.

TV replays showed minimal contact from Burnley 'keeper Nick Pope and the Portuguese may find himself in trouble with the three-member FA review panel which looks at simulation and last Friday issued its first retrospective ban on a player for diving.

Burnley manager Sean Dyche said: "I had to watch it four times to see contact. But if I contact my kid in the garden I would be amazed if he got that high off the floor. It is amazing how high these players go."

Sergio Aguero converted the penalty to equal Eric Brooke's all-time scoring record for the club with his 177th goal. Nicolas Otamendi and Leroy Sane made the scoreline more comfortable as City registered a club-record 11th straight win in all competitions.

Elsewhere, Chelsea made up ground on third-placed Tottenham Hotspur, which was playing Liverpool on Sunday, by beating Watford 4-2 in the day's early kickoff at Stamford Bridge.

The game was closer than the scoreline suggests, with Marco Silva's impressive side coming from behind to lead at Stamford Bridge before two goals from Michy Batshuayi and another from Cesar Azpilicueta ended the argument.

Pressure will be growing on Stoke City manager Mark Hughes after a disappointing 1-2 home defeat by Bournemouth which left it in the relegation zone.

Hughes had hoped the return of Ryan Shawcross would strengthen his defence after last week's 2-7 demolition by City, but Shawcross gave away a penalty, which Junior Stanislas converted and Andrew Surman also found the net.

Mame Biram Diouf narrowed the gap but the goal was not enough to prevent Bournemouth recording its first away league win of the season.

A Federico Fernandez own goal and a second-half strike by Shinji Okazaki gave Leicester City caretaker manager Michael Appleton a much-needed 2-1 win at Swansea City in his first game in charge, lifting the Foxes out of the relegation zone.

But there was no escape for Crystal Palace, whose 0-1 defeat at Newcastle United left it rooted to the bottom spot. Mikel Merino scored Newcastle's 85th-minute winner.

Southampton also left it late to beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0 in the day's evening kickoff but the wait was worth it with substitute Sofiane Boufal beating five men before slotting the ball past Ben Foster for what was Southampton's third league win of the season.