NEW DELHI:
Arsenal
secured a vital 2-1 win against
Nottingham Forest
, courtesy of goals from
Gabriel Jesus
and
Bukayo Saka
, in a gripping
Premier League
encounter on Tuesday night. The victory catapulted Mikel Arteta's side into second place, just two points adrift of table-toppers Liverpool.
The breakthrough came in the 65th minute when Gabriel Jesus exploited Forest's defensive lapse, firing the ball through the legs of goalkeeper Matt Turner.
Momentum firmly in their favor, Arsenal extended their lead in the 72nd minute as Jesus orchestrated a lightning-quick counter, setting up Saka for a clinical finish across the goal.
Mikel Arteta, speaking to BeIN Sports, emphasized the importance of the team's recent resurgence, stating, "We have to do what we have to do. Perform the way that we were doing last year and start of this year because performances were there, results not. Results are going our way now. We have some momentum; let's go for it."
Despite battling with fluid on his knee, Jesus epitomized determination, earning high praise from Arteta: "When someone has the desire with the ability he has, good things are going to happen."
Nottingham Forest, languishing in 16th place with 20 points, now face heightened relegation concerns under manager Nuno Espirito Santo.
The statistics reflected Arsenal's dominance, with 19 shots to Forest's nine, both sides managing three efforts on target. However, a late twist unfolded in the 89th minute as Forest substitute Taiwo Awoniyi found the net, injecting late drama into the match.
In the dying moments, Arsenal's goalkeeper David Raya made a crucial save to secure the win, with the crowd at the City Ground, including Arsenal legend Robert Pires, witnessing the nail-biting conclusion.
With this triumph, Arsenal surged past Manchester City into second place with 46 points from 22 games. Liverpool, the league leaders, were poised to play their game in hand against Chelsea on Wednesday.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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