Arne Slot praises Liverpool's grit in the Fulham draw, while Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta defends the "tactical" substitution of Martin Odegaard against Everton.

As Arsenal was restricted to a goalless draw at Everton and lost the opportunity to catch up to leaders Liverpool, Mikel Arteta justified his choice to replace Martin Odegaard.

After 62 minutes at the Emirates Stadium, Declan Rice and Arsenal captain Odegaard were substituted out, while Jorginho and Ethan Nwaneri were brought in.

Although a persistent ailment was cited as the cause for Rice's substitution, Arteta later stated that "tactical reasons" rather than fitness were the reason for Odegaard's removal.

Without the Norway international, the Gunners found it difficult to generate opportunities in the final minutes and were unable to take advantage of Liverpool's 2-2 draw with Fulham at Anfield.

"With Declan, I had to take him out because he was feeling something," Arteta added. Additionally, Martin's attempt to alter their rhythm—particularly on that side—was a calculated move.

"Is Ethan a fantastic substitute if he enters the game and scores a goal? You have removed your captain if he doesn't. Football is that.
 
"[His] reaction was identical to anyone else's, including [Gabriel] Martinelli's. They want to keep playing the ninety minutes, I'm sure. We have the subs, though, for that reason. in an effort to support the team.

After Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Fulham, they failed to make their domination count for the second straight league game. Odegaard had not been at his best during the match, wasting a few good chances in the first half and failing to create any chances.

Nevertheless, considering his significance, it was unexpected that he was substituted off, and Arteta did not benefit from the substitutions as Arsenal failed to generate any clear scoring chances in the final minutes as the Jordan Pickford-inspired visitors hung on for a well-deserved point.

"I feel very disappointed not to win the game, because obviously there is only one team which deserves to win, which is Arsenal," said Arteta. "We dominated the direct play, gave nothing away, gave up no shots, prevented them from running, and had a great high press.

"We created the opportunities, but despite our immense domination, the goals missed the mark in the final 20 meters. But other than putting the ball in the net, I can't ask the players to do much more."

Slot was thrilled with Liverpool's personality.

Andrew Robertson was sent off for a last-man tackle in the 17th minute, but Liverpool rallied to win a 2-2 draw at Anfield due to a late equaliser from Diogo Jota.

Robertson was penalised for continuing to play despite an injury, according to Arne Slot, who was thrilled with his team's performance as they maintained their six-point advantage over Arsenal.

"The character the team showed, that is what Robbo showed," Slot stated. "It can hurt for a few minutes if you get a kick like this, two studs on a knee. We were thinking that if you kept running, it will get better and better.

"You're hoping that he was able to overcome that and perform admirably because I only had one defender on the bench, and he's not a left full-back.

"But the one time they played the ball in behind and he started racing and was only able to head back to Ali (Alisson Becker) was the first time I realised he wasn't quite himself.

"I thought, 'Well, let's see how this goes.'" I believe he gave up the red card not long after.

"There's nothing wrong with him; the character wanted to keep going after taking a pretty severe rap from two studs. Regretfully, it resulted in a well-earned red card.

With second-place Chelsea playing Brentford on Sunday, Slot congratulated his team for increasing their advantage at the top of the Premier League to five points.

"I think it is exactly the opposite from Girona (the midweek Champions League win) where I was pleased but not the performance," he stated.

"At this moment, I am really pleased with the performance; I couldn't have asked for more, but obviously not with the outcome, as losing to Fulham at home is not what you want or anticipate.

"But yeah, being a goal down twice, it's all going against you, except for one thing, which is our players and our fans, I thought we were outstanding."