As Arsenal’s top scorers won 1-0 against his former club Crystal Palace on Sunday thanks to their set-piece skill, Eberechi Eze scored their first Premier League goal.
Eze’s late goal at the Emirates Stadium made Arsenal’s recent defeats against title rivals Liverpool and Manchester City complete.
READ MORE: Cucurella Demands A Frustrated Chelsea to Display Killer Instinct
Since joining the Gunners in a £60 million ($79 million) deal in August, the England midfielder had only scored once in ten of his previous starts in all competitions.
Arsenal’s seventh win out of nine league games, which they finished third in the previous three years, added to the growing suspicion that this could be the year they finally break their title drought.
The Premier League’s Mikel Arteta side are four points clear of Bournemouth’s second-placed team, six points ahead of Manchester City and seven clear of Liverpool.
Following a fourth consecutive top-flight defeat, Liverpool’s title defense was hampered by their 3-2 defeat at Brentford on Saturday.
Arsenal has won seven straight matches in a row while chasing its first English title since 2004 and its first trophy since the 2020 FA Cup.
This season, the Gunners have only managed three goals in 13 games, including 10 clean sheets.
Declan Rice’s limping in the second half, which was his only concern, was a potential injury that made him unable to play after the break.
When Jean-Philippe Mateta raced clear, Palace threatened to explode in a blaze of glory while Jon Bon Jovi was watching from the stands, but Arsenal were able to halt the danger.
Ismaila Sarr was forced to retreat in a last-ditch block by Saliba because the Palace winger threatened to shock the visitors into the lead.
Eze impact
Apart from those initial panics, Arteta’s men dominated possession as they attempted to break through Palace’s well-drilled defense.
Leandro Trossard’s low drive from just inside the penalty area was well held by Dean Henderson, who had 33 minutes to make it a success.
However, Arsenal were nicknamed “Set-Piece FC” for their skill with free kicks and corners, and they once more made it happen.
After tormenting Atletico Madrid with dead balls in the Champions League match victory, they became the first team in Europe’s top five leagues to score ten goals from set-pieces this season.
In the 39th minute, they increased that total to 11.
After Rice curled a free-kick into the Palace area, Gabriel Magalhaes headed down to Eze, who exhibited impressive technique and guidance with a quick finish past Henderson from 12 yards.
Out of respect for Palace, Eze’s celebration, which he did by raising his arm to the sky and showing little expression on his face, was muted.
At half-time, Saliba was replaced by Cristhian Mosquera, who had just a few minutes to go to double Arsenal’s lead.
Rice, whose close-range shot was well saved by Henderson, was hit off the crossbar by Gabriel’s header.
The Arsenal forward went close by curling a shot that fell just wide when the ball was recycled to Bukayo Saka on the edge of the area.
When Gabriel headed wide from almost on the line, a miss that hurtled Arsenal because he needed medical attention after colliding with the post, Gabriel should have increased Arsenal’s set-piece goal total.
Source: Channels TV
Leave a Reply