Plenty of Arsenal fans couldn’t understand why Mikel Arteta signed Christian Norgaard last year, only to barely use him.

He arrived from Brentford for around £10million with years of Premier League experience and the captain’s armband at his old club, yet he spent most of the season on the bench.

On Saturday he finally made his Everton debut after recovering from a groin injury for months, and it didn’t go to plan.

Christian Norgaard endures nightmare Everton debut against Chelsea

Christian Norgaard came on in the 85th minute, with Everton already 1-0 down to Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. Soon after, a mix-up between him and Tyrique George almost let Chelsea in for a second goal on the counter-attack.

Then it got worse. Struggling to keep up with Cole Palmer, Norgaard pulled him back by the arm and was booked. Jordan Henderson’s free-kick hit the wall, but the ball fell to Pedro Neto, who slotted home to seal a 2-0 win for Alonso’s side.

Norgaard looked off the pace throughout. That’s perhaps no surprise for a player in his first game back from injury, but it didn’t stop Arsenal fans having their say on social media.

One wrote: “I know he’s just back from injury but maybe Arteta was correct to literally never play Norgaard.” Another said: “Norgaard, dear lord. He looks like a grandpa out there.”

Some of those who criticised Arteta last season now see things differently. “I remember how much abuse Arsenal fans gave Arteta for not using Norgaard,” one fan said. “He was Brentford’s captain, but in just one minute at Everton, he made two mistakes, one that nearly let Chelsea score their second, then he dragged a player back and gave away a free kick that led to the 2nd goal.”