Jake O'Brien should start for Everton vs Arsenal after teammate raises alarm bells

Jake O'Brien should be one of the first names on David Moyes' teamsheet when Everton line up to face Arsenal next.

The Gunners have just proven against Nottingham Forest that, even when not playing well, they can grind out a positive positive result.

Until facing Chelsea on Saturday, 17 October, the Toffees had the best defence in the Premier League, mostly thanks to James Tarkowski, Jarrad Branthwaite and Jordan Pickford.

Moyes' side were picked apart by a Pedro Neto brace at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, though, and that is very bad news ahead of a trip to North London.

While Everton's summer transfers left a lot to be desired, the manager still has a handful of selection headaches, one including O'Brien.

The Ireland international was a regular last season, but so far this term, he's accumulated just 28 minutes of football in the Premier League.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles can't start vs Arsenal

O'Brien's ability to feature anywhere across the back line makes his absence all the more questionable, but it can't last any longer.

One player who stood out against Chelsea for all the wrong reasons was Ainsley Maitland-Niles, who was hooked after just 55 minutes.

Moyes brought on Tyrique George, pushing Merlin Rohl into the right-back spot. That should really say everything about Maitland-Niles' display.

In 55 minutes, the 29-year-old created no chances, was dribbled past twice, won zero per cent of his ground duels, and committed two fouls [FotMob].

The right-back had a great start to life on Merseyside after arriving in the summer, but his most recent performance will raise huge question marks ahead of Arsenal.

Which other Everton players should be axed?

Frustratingly for Moyes, there aren't many other changes that he can make to the squad ahead of next weekend, mainly due to the transfer failures.

Thierno Barry desperately needs a rest, but unless an academy product is called up or someone is played out of position, that isn't going to happen.

George definitely deserves a start, so Rohl may have to be sacrificed, while Harrison Armstrong might be viewed as a liability against the Gunners.

He could have been sent off against Chelsea, and that really would have opened the floodgates for Xabi Alonso's side to exploit.