In a match that Arsenal could not afford to lose, they managed to get a narrow 1-0 win against Newcastle United at the Emirates Stadium, continuing their excellent home record against this team and giving themselves a chance again in the Premier League title race.
After a tough time when they lost the lead at the top of the table, Mikel Arteta’s team was under great pressure to respond, and they did it very soon, as Eberechi Eze scored the only goal after a smartly set-up short-corner routine, emphatically finishing into the top corner after a great pass from Kai Havertz.
Newcastle did not have much success in making clear chances in the first half, though on one occasion, Sandro Tonali almost caught David Raya unawares with a very powerful long-range shot that he had to make a very good save to stop. Arsenal’s run of play was halted when Havertz was injured and had to leave the pitch just before the break, and the problems grew when the goal scorer Eze was forced to come off the pitch shortly after the second half had started.
The Gunners had a hard time getting back control, and it was only a disputed block by Sven Botman that stopped a goal-bound shot by Gabriel Martinelli. Newcastle tried hard till the end and even got quite close through Wissa and Burn, but they missed the goal and so never equalled the score.
As a result of their victory, which was not very convincing, Arsenal climb three points above the rest at the top of the league, while Newcastle, who have now lost four in a row, are really stuck in the middle of the table.
