Sports
Not GUNNER catch us! Arsenal beat Leicester 1-0 to secure huge three points
Arsenal were resilient in the face of late Leicester pressure to secure a huge three points with a 1-0 win.
While Manchester City failed to hold on to their own 1-0 lead just up the road against Nottingham Forest last week, Arsenal managed it.
The Gunners made the trip to the King Power knowing a win would drastically help their title charge given it would extend the gap between Manchester City and themselves to five points, albeit briefly.
While it wasn’t a trademark blistering start from the visitors, Arsenal dominated possession in the opening exchanges. The Gunners thought they had opened the scoring when Leandro Trossard fired home a stunner, but VAR intervened to chalk it off after a foul on Danny Ward in the build-up.
The decision seemed to suck the life out of what was an intruiging first-half, though the Gunners felt they should have been awarded a spot-kick soon after.
The second-half started in dramatic fashion though, with Gabriel Martinelli guiding the ball home but sustaining an injury in the process after Wilfred Ndidi stood on the Brazilian’s knee-cap in the process of the winger scoring.
Arsenal’s 1-0 win means the Gunners extend their lead at the top of the Premier League to five point, for the time being at least.
With City not playing until the evening away at Bournemouth, Arteta can watch Arsenal’s title rivals in a more relaxed manner now that his men got the job done.
The Gunners now gear up for two home games in succession, with the first coming in the form of a second meeting with Everton in four weeks on Wednesday followed by the visit of Bournemouth next weekend.
As for 14th-placed Leicester, Brendan Rodgers should harbour some concerns with his side so blunt in attack for so long.
Just weeks after the Arsenal boss was left seething over the fact Brentford’s equaliser was allowed to stand, he may feel hard done by once again.
The first flashpoint came when Trossard thought he had scored the game’s opening goal with a fantastic finish from the edge of the ara, but VAR told referee Craig Pawson to take another look at it.
Upon multiple viewings, the official spotted that Arsenal right-back Ben White had held Foxes’ goalkeeper Danny Ward’s arm and prevented him from catching the ball.
Just minutes later, Saka was sent tumbling down in the penalty area by Harry Souttar who seemed to fall onto the Arsenal attacker as he was about to leap for a header.
This time, however, VAR did not intervene and deemed the incident not enough to warrant a penalty for the visitors. Arteta cut a bemused figure on the touchline.
With Eddie Nketiah resigned to a role on the bench as a result of a minor knock and Gabriel Jesus still recovering from knee surgery, Arteta had to think outside the box when it came to his forward line.
He opted to deploy January signing Leandro Trossard from the start for the second successive game and entrusted the former Brighton man to cause havoc in the false nine role.
The Belgian showed some lovely link-up play, often dropping deep to then find Saka in a threatening position out on the right-flank. Trossard thought he’d fired his side in front, but it wasn’t to be after VAR’s ruling.
What Trossard did manage was an assist, sending Martinelli through on goal with a fantastic nutmeg pass through the legs of Leicester defender Souttar.
Shortly after, he was replaced by Nketiah with 20 minutes left to play.
Arsenal cruised past Bournemouth to go four points clear at the top of the Premier League before Saturday’s later games.
With the win, Arsenal ensured they kept the pressure on Manchester City in the title race.
Bukayo Saka opened the scoring with a first-half penalty, with the Gunners totally dominant for much of the game. They had an astonishing 16 shots in the first-half alone, with the Cherries managing just one and even that was not on target.
Saka’s penalty came on the stroke of half-time after Kai Havertz trailed his leg to ensure he was brought down by Bournemouth keeper Mark Travers. While the Cherries were resurgent after the break, they struggled to create clear-cut chances.
Arsenal keeper David Raya barely had a save to make, with Leandro Trossard wrapping up the three points when he swept the ball past Travers with 20 minutes to go before Declan Rice topped the win off with an injury-time goal. Here, Mirror Football looks at the biggest talking points from Arsenal’s win.
Arsenal are continuing to do their job in the title race, with this win moving them four points clear of Manchester City. The reigning champions play Wolves on Saturday evening, with their other game in hand coming a week on Tuesday.
The Gunners have a superior goal difference over their title rivals, which means City have to win both of their games in hand to overtake them. Mikel Arteta’s side have just two games left, against Manchester United and Everton.
That appears to be a slightly more difficult run-in compared to City, who after playing Wolves will face Fulham, Tottenham and West Ham. It means Arsenal appear to be relying on their bitter rivals Spurs to help them win the title.
It was honestly a mystery how Bukayo Saka’s penalty was the only difference between the teams come half-time. Arsenal had an astonishing 16 shots in the opening 45 minutes as they also dominated possession.
But as has happened so often this season, the Gunners struggled to convert that dominance into clear-cut chances. Just five of their shots were on target, highlighting what is likely to be Arsenal’s biggest focus in the transfer window.
Boss Arteta looks likely to target a new striker in the summer, with Kai Havertz playing through the middle against the Cherries. A proven goalscorer will be at the top of his list, given his side’s struggles to convert their chances.
Saka stepped up to score his sixth penalty of the season ( Image: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Bukayo Saka has now scored six penalties this season, his highest-ever total from the spot in one campaign. In fact, the last time he missed a penalty was over a year ago, with his last four spot-kicks coming in wins for his side.
Saka is now clearly in second in the Premier League scoring charts for penalties, a good sign for England ahead of Euro 2024. His style against Bournemouth keeper Mark Travers was typically cool and confident.
After waiting for several seconds following the referee’s whistle, Saka stuttered his run-up to allow Travers to dive before rolling the ball into the opposite corner. Saka is now clearly Arsenal’s man from the spot.
Bournemouth have been safe of relegation for some time and it showed in their trip to Arsenal. The visitors struggled to make much of an impact on the game in the first-half, with the Cherries failing to have any chances of note.
They were better after the break and were perhaps unlucky not to be awarded a penalty or a goal in the second period. But with the Cherries now 22 points clear of the relegation zone, this was a typical end of season performance from a side ready for their holidays.
Three minutes after Trossard scored Arsenal’s second, Bournemouth had the ball in the back of the net themselves. But referee David Coote ruled it out for foul on David Raya, though replays suggested the Arsenal keeper was barely touched.
Instead, it looked like the Cherries should have been awarded a penalty for a shirt pull, though VAR Peter Bankes ultimately sided with Coote. That decision allowed Raya to keep hold of his clean sheet, one which ensured has won the golden glove award.
Fourteen-year-old Daniel Anjorin, who was tragically killed in a sword attack in the UK, was honoured at Arsenal’s match against Bournemouth during a special tribute on Saturday.
The teenager, who was a fan of the North London club, lost his life horrifically while on his way to school in Hainault, east London, in broad daylight on Tuesday. Four others sustained injuries during the frenzied attack. His death has seen tributes pour in far and wide as donations reached £118,502 in two days.
The Gunners honoured the little boy’s memory before kick-off at the Emirates. Arsenal fans held a minute’s applause in the 14th minute.
Heartfelt pictures showed the moment the crowed clapped for the brave schoolboy, with another image showing fans waving a banner with the words ‘R.I.P Daniel’. Arsenal also displayed a sweet photograph of Daniel on the big screens before the game began. It is believed that the club have spoken to the family liaison officer to offer their support.
The club earlier said: “We share in the shock and sadness of Daniel Anjorin’s death earlier this week. With his family’s blessing, we will make a tribute to Daniel shortly ahead of kick off tomorrow. We ask all supporters to pay their respects to Daniel with us in this moment.”
The boy’s family told Sky News he was “a wonderful child” who was “well loved” and “hard working”, adding that his death “leaves a gaping wound in the family”. They told the broadcaster: “No family should have to go through what we are experiencing today. Any family will understand it’s an absolute tragedy.”
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