Ndiaye’s Penalty Blow Leaves Arsenal's Title Dreams Hanging by a Thread
What a frustrating afternoon it was for Arsenal at Goodison Park, as their already-slim hopes of catching Liverpool at the top of the Premier League were dealt another heavy blow. In a match that saw rotation, controversy, and some missed chances, it was Everton’s Iliman Ndiaye who stepped up when it mattered most—slotting home a controversial second-half penalty to secure a 1-1 draw. And while Liverpool didn’t need favors in their title pursuit, their Merseyside neighbors handed them one anyway.
Leandro Trossard had given Arsenal the lead midway through the first half, capitalizing on a messy sequence at the back by Everton. A misplaced header from Idrissa Gueye and some confusion between him and Jarrad Branthwaite allowed Raheem Sterling to break forward unopposed. He teed up Trossard, who fired low and clinically past Jordan Pickford to make it 1-0.
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But the real talking point came just after the break. Myles Lewis-Skelly collided with Jack Harrison near the edge of the Arsenal box—a challenge that arguably started outside the area. Both players went down, and after a short pause, referee Darren England pointed to the spot. Despite protests, VAR upheld the decision, and Ndiaye, on his return to the starting eleven, made no mistake from 12 yards. David Raya dived the wrong way, and Everton were level.
Arsenal tried to respond. They had their chances—Trossard stung Pickford’s gloves from a free-kick, Martinelli weaved through defenders and shot towards the top corner, and Rice forced another smart save—but the breakthrough never came. Substitute appearances from Bukayo Saka, Martin Ødegaard, and Gabriel Martinelli added quality and energy, but they couldn’t tilt the balance.
Mikel Arteta looked visibly frustrated at full-time. Not just because of the penalty, which he adamantly believed wasn’t one, but also due to the lack of control his team showed at the start of the second half. With one eye clearly on Tuesday’s Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid, Arteta rotated his squad, resting key players, and that may have cost them vital league points.
In the bigger picture, this result leaves Arsenal needing a miracle. Liverpool now only require 11 points from their final eight matches to mathematically secure the title. With Arsenal dropping yet more points—11 draws this season and counting—it’s hard to argue they’ve done enough to stay in the race.
For Everton, it’s a gritty, well-earned point. It wasn’t pretty, but it was effective. And for Arsenal fans? Well, it's yet another “what if” moment in a campaign full of near misses. The focus now shifts to Europe, but domestically, the mountain just got steeper.
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