Arsenal 1 Everton 1: The Emirates Stadium is no longer a passing fortress for the Gunners

Roberto Martinez's side completed over 100 more passes in the draw

Everton manager Roberto Martinez and Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger shake hands ahead of the Premier League clash at the Emirates (GETTY IMAGES)

Roberto Martinez’s Everton completed over 100 more passes than Arsenal in the 1-1 draw on Sunday (434-317), and edged possession (55%-45%).

It was the second time this season that a team has completed more passes than Arsenal in a Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium after Tottenham Hotspur during the Gunners 1-0 win over their north London rivals back in September. Olivier Giroud scored the only goal of the game in which Spurs completed a total of 135 passes more (432-297)

In the whole of last season, Arsenal had only lost the completed passing statistics three times at the Emirates in the league – to Newcastle United (462-340), Manchester City (489-284) and lastly to Martinez’s Wigan Athletic, who completed 69 more passes than Arsenal (432-363) despite losing 4-1 in May.

So the Emirates Stadium is no longer the passing fortress for Arsenal it once was. But is this down to a change of style over the last couple of seasons with target man Giroud leading the line? Now there is more emphasis on long balls, knock-downs and impact from wide positions than the quick movement Arsene Wenger’s side were previously known for.

Statistics compiled using the FourFourTwo Stats Zone app powered by Opta, available to download from the App Store.