By Daniel Lewis

18th Sep, 2023 | 2:10pm

Everton shortcomings made brutally clear following defeat to Arsenal at Goodison Park

Everton fired yet another blank on Sunday 17 September as they fell to a 1-0 Premier League defeat at home to Arsenal.

Losing to Arsenal is hardly a cause for concern in isolation, but it was a continuation of a worrying theme for the Toffees – one that has been abundantly clear for a while now.

Sean Dyche’s side had just one shot on target, coming via holding midfield Idrissa Gueye, which says it all as they look to pick up improbable points.

They have now scored in just one of their opening five games, with their return of two goals so far the worst of any team in the Premier League.

In fact, as highlighted by Optus Sport on Twitter, they are also bottom of the pile for shot conversion (3.4%) and big chances missed (11).

Completing the list of unwanted attacking stats, they are also the worst team in the division for expected goals performance (-5.3).

That basically means the Toffees should have scored five goals more than they actually have at this stage.

Looking at the figures from last season [FBref], Everton also came out ‘on top’ in that metric, scoring 13.2 goals fewer than expected.

This is an ongoing issue, then, and one that has yet to be resolved by the addition of Beto.

The Portuguese looks talented enough, but he has mustered four shots in the 155 league minutes and has failed to either score or assist [FBref].

Dominic Calvert-Lewin is now back in action but has had just one shot in his hour or so on the field, which is simply not good enough.

There are problems in other departments, but up top is undoubtedly the priority area for Dyche to address.

If he fails to do so, it could end up with him losing his job and, in the longer term, Everton dropping into the second tier.

In other Everton news, Calvert-Lewin needed less than a minute to achieve something Beto couldn’t against Arsenal.