Arsenal’s Takehiro Tomiyasu absent from training ahead of Everton clash
Everton will go to Arsenal for their final game of the season knowing that they have already secured their Premier League place for next season.
The Toffees confirmed their survival after a turbulent season with a stunning 3-2 comeback win at home to Crystal Palace but they now travel to the Emirates wanting to end the year on a high.
The Gunners themselves are still chasing a Champions League place but they need to beat Frank Lampard’s side and hope bottom club Norwich City can take points off Tottenham Hotspur to make that a reality.
Arsenal posted a video of their final preparations on YouTube and one of their best players this season, right-back Takehiro Tomiyasu, was not seen in the group after being a revelation since signing in the summer.
This doesn’t necessarily rule him out of Sunday’s clash but it does give Mikel Arteta an unnecessary headache for their final game with something still to play for.
Perfect
If you had to pick out the player who causes opposition defences the most problems on the Everton side, you would probably say Richarlison and this news, should Tomiyasu not be able to play, is perfect for the Brazilian.
He often plays wide left in the attack and his direct opponent, the right-back, knows he is in for a tortuous day when they see him ready for action.
Cedric Soares is likely to be the man Arteta trusts in to take the Japanese player’s place in the side as they bid to achieve a top-four finish and the Portuguese man, formerly of Southampton, will be quaking in his boots at the thought of trying to keep tabs on Richarlison.
He isn’t the only player at Lampard’s disposal capable of taking a team to pieces on his day and Anthony Gordon will fancy beating his opposite number just as much as the Toffees look to go out on a high after the tough campaign that was 2021-22.
In other Everton news, Andros Townsend responded to a Twitter video of him celebrating during the win against Palace.
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