The key Arsenal star Mikel Arteta needs to stay fit if they are to hold off Man City's charge and why Everton win provides a huge psychological boost, writes ISAAN KHAN

It is those cold winter evenings which have often kickstarted the decline of an Arsenal campaign.

Dropping points here at the Hill Dickinson Stadium would have signalled a typical December crumble, a month the Gunners have, in the past, routinely failed to win against opposition they were expected to beat.

December 2023 saw the north London club lose to Fulham , West Ham and Aston Villa , while they drew against Fulham and Everton in that month in the following year.

Having lost to Villa and luckily scraped past Wolves in recent weeks, the signal of a recurring theme was nearby.

That has been shunted down the road — for at least a few days — Viktor Gyokeres’ penalty sealing the game for the visitors. Everton have room to feel aggrieved by referee Sam Barrott not awarding a penalty for William Saliba’s accidental kick on Thierno Barry, though the Gunners did strike the goalframe twice and could have gone further ahead on another night.

There are still games to come in this month against Brighton and Villa, yet the foundations have been laid for Arsenal to enter Christmas having learned lessons from the previous seasons.

Viktor Gyokeres fired home from the spot to give Arsenal a crucial win at Everton on Saturday

Premier League titles are won over the course of a campaign — the Gunners are top at Christmas for the third time in four years, for instance — but December has been an area Arteta has previously failed to navigate well enough; now is the time to rectify this.

They have no choice but to. The three points against Everton was made even more sweeter for Arsenal having seen Manchester City beat West Ham earlier in the day to, initially, go top of the Premier League table.

The north London club will have felt further pressure in Merseyside from this and, in terms of psyche, Man City would have smelled blood if a wobble so early in the season was detected.

Not because the campaign is anyway near its conclusion, but because of the mental scars Pep Guardiola’s team have inflicted on them in recent years.

The Manchester club’s two league scalps in the previous three seasons have involved Arsenal capitulating under pressure, none more so than the 2022-23 campaign by which the Gunners had led the way for 248 days.

Such trauma metered out by the same team doesn’t go away easily, especially when Arsenal have that thorn in their side getting close again, zeroing in on a path they’ve gone down many times.

This context made their victory, going two points clear at the top, an important one psychologically. Guardiola will know he has some fight on his hands — but one that his side are still fully in.

For Arsenal to stay on song, they’ll need their talisman Martin Odegaard at his best.

The Gunners need Martin Odeegard fit and firing if they are to hold off Man City's charge

Firstly, there was his act of selflessness, gifting Gyokeres the penalty in a similar manner as to what he did for Kai Havertz back in September 2023.

The German was on a 20-match goalless streak when Odegaard handed him a spot-kick against Bournemouth with his side 2-0 up.

Gyokeres is not experiencing that kind of drought — he’s scored seven goals so far this season — but, nevertheless, is under scrutiny after a string of underwhelming performances since returning from a muscle injury against Chelsea on November 30.

The goal will have given him that injection of confidence in a week in which Arteta had fielded multiple questions as to why his £64million man has yet to properly fire.

Odegaard’s gesture was no surprise, his effect on team bonding a trait which is part of why he is the team captain.

Arteta said: ‘Yes, I agree with that (it was a kind gesture) and as well the confidence on the player because obviously he (Gyokeres) practices every day and he's an unbelievable athlete.

‘He put the ball in the back of the net, so I love when players take ownership and decide by themselves what is the best decision. That's something really positive.’

But it is the performance aspect which still requires an extra boost that, in fairness, feels just around the corner. After a sluggish first half by which he was ineffective in the final third, he started to up the ante.

He knitted together a few neat passes forward, one of which set up Martin Zubimendi who struck a post on 69 minutes.

Odegaard is not at his best levels seen in years gone by, his season having already been interrupted by multiple injuries, but there were enough signs pointing towards the revival of a man who has been central to his team’s play in previous seasons.

When asked about Odegaard’s performance, Arteta said: ‘He was much more vertical as well (in the second half).

‘We found some spaces, and we found him to have more vertical attacks as well. The moment they (Everton) started to be more aggressive in their press, and in those moments, we should have decided the game a bit earlier.’

So Arteta can sense there is more to come from Odegaard. But for now, he can tuck into his Christmas dinner knowing his team are top, and in the process of shifting away their December hoodoo.