With a 5-0 demolition of Nottingham Forest on Sunday, Reiss Nelson emerged as the Premier League’s improbable champion and helped Arsenal reclaim the top spot.
With a 5-0 demolition of Nottingham Forest on Sunday, Reiss Nelson emerged as the Premier League’s improbable champion and helped Arsenal reclaim the top spot. Nelson made his Premier League debut this season because England manager Gareth Southgate had to replace Bukayo Saka due to a serious injury just weeks before the World Cup. After only five minutes, Saka assisted Gabriel Martinelli’s opening goal before being replaced due to an ankle injury.
Early in the second half, Nelson scored Arsenal’s first Premier League goal since July 2020, giving them some breathing room.
Three minutes later, he added a second and set up Thomas Partey to curl into the top corner.
13 minutes from time, Martin Odegaard finished off a performance that dispelled any concerns about Arsenal’s potential to challenge for the title. He fired high past Dean Henderson.
By winning, Mikel Arteta’s team moves one point ahead of Manchester City at the top of the standings.
Before the game, the Arsenal players gathered to encourage their teammate Pablo Mari.
At a knife incident last week in an Italian supermarket that claimed one life, Mari, who is on loan at Monza, was injured.
After a 1-1 draw against Southampton last weekend and a 2-0 loss to PSV Eindhoven in the Europa League, the incident helped put Arsenal’s difficult week on the pitch into perspective.
Any worries that the Gunners were starting to tyre from their hectic itinerary were allayed by a scorching start.
Martinelli opened the floodgates by ducking to avoid Saka’s enticing cross with his head.
Another attempt from the Brazilian was blocked, and Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus, and Takehiro Tomiyasu all had chances.
But before of Arsenal’s trip to Chelsea the following weekend, Arteta is extremely concerned about Saka’s leaving.
For the first time in 23 years, Forest had started to regain some form in recent weeks, highlighted by a historic 1-0 victory over Liverpool last weekend.
However, they didn’t really pose a threat to the home team until Tomiyasu blocked Jesse Lingard’s shot at the very end of the first half.
After the half, Nelson soon put the game to rest when, after Henderson had saved his initial shot, he surged past Henderson and turned in Jesus’ cross at the near post.
Partey added another with a flourish, gliding the ball from 25 yards into the top corner.
Jesus was making every effort to break a seven-game goal drought, but he was forced to accept a second assist when Odegaard found space from his ball and scored the fifth goal.
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