Our Reporter, Abuja
Arsenal stretched their lead at the top of the Premier League to six points despite an unconvincing performance, edging Bournemouth 3-2 at the Vitality Stadium.
The Gunners were far from their best and were punished early on when Gabriel Magalhães made a costly mistake, misplacing a pass across his own box for Evanilson to tap into an empty net after 10 minutes. Gabriel responded swiftly, though, redeeming himself by firing in the equaliser just six minutes later following some excellent footwork from Noni Madueke.
Bournemouth, still without a league win since October, continued to impress with their high press and intensity, largely outplaying Arsenal in the first half but failing to make their dominance count. That lack of cutting edge proved costly after the break.
David Brooks missed a gilt-edged chance early in the second half, and moments later Declan Rice struck against the run of play, curling a fine effort in from the edge of the area after slick build-up involving Viktor Gyökeres and Martin Ødegaard.
Mikel Arteta raised eyebrows by leaving Bukayo Saka on the bench, but the winger made an instant impact after coming on, supplying a superb assist for Rice’s second goal. Arsenal looked comfortable until Eli Junior Kroupi reignited the contest with a stunning strike 14 minutes from time, setting up a tense finish. However, the visitors held firm to secure all three points and extend their advantage over Aston Villa, with Manchester City still to play on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, Aston Villa beat Nottingham Forest 3-1, while two more fixtures followed on Saturday afternoon.
Wolves 3-0 West Ham
Wolves picked up a crucial and long-awaited Premier League victory with a dominant 3-0 win over West Ham at Molineux, piling further pressure on their relegation rivals.
The hosts were outstanding in the first half. Jhon Arias opened the scoring inside four minutes, finishing from close range after a slick move involving Mateus Mané and Hee-Chan Hwang. Hwang then doubled the lead from the penalty spot midway through the half after Mané was brought down.
Wolves made it three before the break when 18-year-old Mané scored his first senior goal, capping a commanding display. West Ham offered little in response and, despite making changes at half-time, struggled to create meaningful chances as Wolves saw the game out comfortably.
Brighton 2-0 Burnley
Brighton ended a six-game winless run in the league with a routine 2-0 victory over Burnley at the Amex Stadium, moving into the top eight.
The Seagulls controlled the game from the outset and were rewarded just before the half-hour mark when Georginio Rutter reacted quickest to a deflected shot and finished from a tight angle. Burnley rarely threatened, though they did force Bart Verbruggen into a save late in the first half.
Any hopes of a comeback were dashed shortly after the restart as Yasin Ayari slotted calmly into the bottom corner, taking advantage of a sluggish start from the visitors to seal a comfortable win for Brighton.
