Noni Madueke came off the bench to secure a 1-0 victory for Arsenal against Nottingham Forest after his deflected effort found the back of the net.
Match Report
Arsenal had an underwhelming performance at the City Ground on Sunday but eventually secured all three points thanks to their quality in the decisive moment.
The first half produced few clear-cut opportunities, with Kai Havertz heading over from Declan Rice’s free-kick as one of the notable moments.
Forest, without the injured Morgan Gibbs-White, started the second half brightly, with Liam Delap nearly creating an opportunity for Neco Williams.
Gabriel Magalhaes subsequently headed over from a corner, while Rice fired above the crossbar from inside the Forest penalty area.
Arsenal finally broke the deadlock in the 80th minute through Madueke, who came on for Eberechi Eze at half-time. The winger cut inside from the left, took on Daniel Munoz and aimed for the far corner, with his effort taking a significant deflection off Jair Cunha before entering the net.
Oliver Glasner’s side pushed forward in the closing stages in search of an equaliser. Rice prevented Chris Wood from getting a free shot, while Murillo, making his 100th appearance for Forest, fired narrowly over after an impressive run.
Forest’s hopes were ultimately ended when Ezri Konsa produced an excellent recovery challenge on Delap, leaving the hosts with a third consecutive defeat.
Madueke Continues His Impressive Away Record
Madueke has scored 13 of his 17 Premier League goals away from home, accounting for 76 per cent of his total, including all four goals he has scored for Arsenal.
This represents the highest proportion of away goals by any player with at least 15 goals in Premier League history.
The England winger has also demonstrated his ability to deliver in crucial moments, with three of his last five top-flight goals opening the scoring.
The match was far from entertaining, with both sides managing only one shot on target each. Forest had two of the game’s limited clear opportunities, but Arsenal made their decisive effort count, benefiting from Cunha’s deflection.
Arsenal created slightly better chances, finishing with 1.07 expected goals (xG) compared to Forest’s 0.75. However, manager Mikel Arteta will recognise that his team is capable of delivering a much stronger performance.
Nevertheless, narrow victories have become a familiar feature of Arteta’s tenure. Since taking charge in December 2019, Arsenal have recorded 32 1-0 Premier League wins, the joint-highest total alongside Everton.
Forest, meanwhile, remain in the relegation zone with just five points from seven matches. Their struggles at the City Ground have continued, with the club recording only one victory in their last 15 Premier League home games, alongside eight draws and six defeats.
