It was far from pretty, but three points are three points.
Arsenal edged Nottingham Forest 1-0 at the City Ground on Sunday, with substitute Noni Madueke scoring the only goal. The win keeps the Gunners close behind leaders Manchester City and improves on last season’s draw at the same ground.
The Nottingham Forest vs Arsenal meeting was always likely to be tight. Forest arrived with one of the league’s meanest defenses and sat deep from the start. Arsenal dominated the ball but managed just one off-target attempt in the opening half hour. David Raya was called upon once, tipping a Forest effort around the post after a Riccardo Calafiori error.
Half Time Change Pays Off
Mikel Arteta replaced a quiet Eberechi Eze with Madueke at the break, and the game opened up at both ends. Viktor Gyokeres, Mikel Merino and Jurrien Timber joined on 65 minutes, and Declan Rice fired over from a slick team move soon after.
The breakthrough came from a Forest misjudgment on the edge of the box. Rice pounced and switched play to Madueke, who drove at his marker and let fly. A heavy deflection left goalkeeper Matz Sels stranded.
Late Pressure Tests the Defense
Forest pushed hard in the closing stages. Rice blocked a clear chance to equalize, Murillo dribbled past several defenders before curling wide in stoppage time, and Ezri Konsa recovered to make a vital sliding block on Liam Delap.
The Nottingham Forest vs Arsenal result showed the Gunners can grind out wins when their attack is quiet. A midweek meeting with Bayern Munich comes next.
