FOOTBALL – ARSENAL banked another three points in their Premier League title defence as their trademark persistence paid off in a 1-0 home win over stubborn Hull City but Manchester City suffered a third successive league defeat, 3-1 at Nottingham Forest yesterday.
It was not fluent or convincing but Martin Odegaard’s poacher’s goal in the 72nd-minute earned Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal side a sixth league win by a single-goal margin this season.
City’s early-season flourish is now a fading memory as they head into the international break six points behind Arsenal.
Enzo Maresca’s side were two down inside 20 minutes at the City Ground as goals by Jair Cunha and Liam Delap lit the fuse for a Forest side who began the day 19th after taking one point from their last five games.
Rayan Cherki halved the deficit early in the second half but Forest weathered the storm and Delap broke away to smash his second goal of the game to spark delirium inside the stadium.
Arsenal have 27 points from 10 games, six clear of City whose defeat left neighbours Manchester United in the relegation zone ahead of their Sunday clash with Aston Villa.
Brighton & Hove Albion could cut Arsenal’s lead to five points if they beat Brentford today.
Arsenal showed last season a champions knack for picking up wins without hitting top gear as they claimed the title for the first time in 22 years and it was very much in evidence against a Hull side who provided a stiff test.
Captain Odegaard had not scored since September but was on hand to snaffle a rebound after Noni Madueke’s shot had been saved by Hull keeper Konstantinos Tzolakis. They have now equalled their best ever start to a Premier League campaign after 10 matches, although manager Mikel Arteta would prefer wider winning margins.
Whatever fate awaits City after being found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges in relation to breaking Premier league financial rules – charges they strongly deny – the fact is they are struggling on the pitch.
The fragility that seeped in during Pep Guardiola’s final season in charge at the Etihad Stadium has continued and it was evident against Forest in a dismal first-half display.
Jair Cunha punished sloppy defending after six minutes and Delap powered through to make it 2-0 with a fine finish past Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Cherki’s thunderbolt seemed to have given City a lifeline but Delap finished them off in style with a rasping shot from an angle that cannoned in off the post.
Forest moved up to 16th place with nine points, leaving Manchester United in 18th on seven.
Resurgent Tottenham Hotspur were seeking a fourth successive league win but substitute Noah Okafor drove home a low shot from the edge of the area in the 79th minute to give Leeds United a deserved 1-0 victory at Elland Road.
It ended a five-match winless league run for Leeds and moved them above Tottenham into eighth place with 14 points.
The big talking point, though, was Leeds’s Jaden Bogle avoiding a red card for his rash lunge on Mathys Tel which resulted in the Tottenham winger being forced off with an ankle injury – the VAR check on the challenge taking four minutes.
Fulham and Newcastle United shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw at Craven Cottage, Jacob Murphy giving the hosts a late lead only for Rodrigo Muniz to equalise.
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