Arsenal didn't make any mistakes on Sunday in their pursuit of the leader Manchester City. The entertaining away game against third-place Newcastle United was impressively won 0-2 by The Gunners, preventing City from extending their lead at the top of the table. Erik ten Hag's Manchester United can take full advantage of Newcastle's dropped points later in the evening.
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The home team started convincingly and made the most claims to take the lead in the opening stages. The team featuring Sven Botman in the starting lineup was unlucky when Jacob Murphy hit the far post next to Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale after only two minutes. After less than ten minutes, it seemed that The Magpies would still have a great chance to score the opening goal when referee Chris Kavanagh pointed to the spot for a handball by Arsenal defender Jakub Kiwior. However, the VAR called him over and after reviewing the footage, Kavanagh overturned his decision.
While Newcastle failed to capitalize on their dominance, it was Arsenal who scored with their first real chance on the other end. Jorginho passed to Martin Ødegaard, and the Norwegian former player of sc Heerenveen and Vitesse took a shot from almost thirty meters out. The view of Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope was obstructed by a significant number of legs, causing Ødegaard's not even so hard shot to find the corner of the net: 0-1. The goal gave Arsenal a bit more control over the game, but Newcastle also had enough chances to score. However, Jacob Murphy, Joe Willock, and Callum Wilson all failed to convert, leaving Arsenal with a narrow lead at halftime.
Even in the second half, Newcastle kept posing a threat to the Arsenal goal, but Fabian Schär headed straight at Ramsdale from a promising position just five minutes after the restart. Schär finally scored his goal with twenty minutes left, but unfortunately for the Swiss, it was in the wrong net. After a sharp counterattack, he unluckily deflected a pass from Gabriel Martinelli, causing the ball to fly into his own goalkeeper Pope's net, making it 0-2.
With the victory, Arsenal narrowed the gap with league leaders Manchester City to just one point. However, City have played one game less, and so The Gunners must hope that Pep Guardiola's side will drop points in their remaining four games. Newcastle United's dropped points could prove to be beneficial for Erik ten Hag's Manchester United. If United wins their away game against West Ham United later in the evening, they will jump over The Magpies into third place.
Updated: 02:46, 11 May 2023
