Arsenal moved level on points with Manchester City in the Premier League after securing a 2-0 victory over Everton, capitalising on Enzo Maresca’s  side 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa earlier on Saturday.

Mikel Arteta’s side took advantage of City’s slip to strengthen their title challenge, with goals from Viktor Gyökeres and Gabriel Magalhães sealing a crucial victory over Everton.

Both Arsenal and Manchester City are now on 21 points after eight round of matches. But City lead the league standing on better goal difference ahead of Arsenal.

Gyökeres opened the scoring in the seventh minute, giving Arsenal an early advantage as they looked to make the most of City’s defeat at Villa Park.

Everton, however, remained in contention for much of the contest, with Vitaliy Mykolenko receiving a yellow card in first-half stoppage time as the visitors sought to contain the hosts.

Arsenal went into the interval with a 1-0 lead before increasing their advantage in the 68th minute through Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhães, who finished off a move involving Ben White.

The second goal gave Arteta’s men breathing space as they closed out the match to claim all three points.

The result came after Manchester City suffered a 2-1 defeat against Aston Villa, presenting Arsenal with an opportunity to draw level with Enzo Marrsca-led squad in the league standings.

Arsenal’s victory keeps the pressure on City in the race for the Premier League title, with the Gunners needing to maintain their consistency as the campaign progresses.

For Everton, the defeat was a setback as they failed to prevent Arsenal from capitalising on the champions’ earlier loss.