With a 4-1 victory over managerless Crystal Palace at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, Premier League leaders Arsenal increased their lead over second-placed Manchester City to eight points.
Arsenal vs Crystal Palace:
After a 12-game losing streak, Palace fired manager Patrick Vieira on Thursday. Interim manager Paddy McCarthy could not turn around the team’s fortunes as Gabriel Martinelli, and Bukayo Saka scored in the first half before Granit Xhaka extended Mikel Arteta’s side’s lead early in the second. Jeffrey Schlupp scored in the 63rd minute, but Palace could not capitalise, and Saka later scored to seal the victory.
“Really pleased with the performance, the energy, the determination that we showed again, and the way we controlled the game,” Arteta told Sky Sports. After playing 120 minutes the previous week, it was difficult. I was unsure of how the team would respond, but they did a fantastic job, and the crowd was once again raucous. “. After being contacted by Saka’s searching pass, Martinelli scored the game’s first goal on minute 28. The Brazil international eluded Joel Ward and fired a shot beyond Joe Whitworth and into the far corner.
We needed the victory, and Martinelli said, “We always say we approach the games as a final, and we did that today. With his assist, Saka, 21, became the first player in the Premier League to reach double digits in both goals and assists this year. On the 43rd minute, he doubled the lead held by the league leaders with a clear finish into the bottom corner after Ben White had played him in down the right. 10 minutes after the break, Xhaka scored Arsenal’s 13th goal in their previous four league games. Leandro Trossard, who contributed three assists in Arsenal’s 3-0 victory over Fulham last week, was the creator once more as he snuck past Xhaka to bundle in at the near post.
On 63 minutes, Schlupp gave Palace a chance to win when he forced the ball home after Arsenal failed to deal with a corner, but the visitors were unable to mount a comeback and suffered their fourth straight loss. When Saka converted on a first-time attempt from Kieran Tierney’s cross to score his 12th league goal of the year in the 74th minute, Arteta’s team ensured that Palace had no chance of coming back. “Even when we were struggling, we were still able to produce work quickly. However, McCarthy, the temporary Palace manager, noted that this opposition is of a high caliber. “They are at the top for a reason. I cannot criticize the guys’ effort.
They must have confidence in themselves even though they are a good group. This group has enough for whatever occurs. “. Despite only being four points above the bottom-placed Southampton, Palace is still ranked 12th in the Premier League.
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