LEICESTER, United Kingdom: Arsenal ignored their injury woes to close the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to four points as Mikel Merino came off the bench to clinch a 2-0 win against Leicester on Saturday.
Mikel Arteta’s side were in danger of wasting a chance to put pressure on Liverpool in the title race as they labored to make the breakthrough at the King Power Stadium.
But, with his attacking options limited by a host of injuries, Arteta sent on Spain midfielder Merino to act as a makeshift striker in the closing stages.
It proved an inspired move as Merino netted twice in the last nine minutes to extend Arsenal’s unbeaten run in the league to 15 games.
“We knew it was going to be tough. The first 20 minutes, we were too sloppy. We didn’t have a real threat and we weren’t playing with enough urgency,” Arteta said.
“We were much sharper in the second half. Mikel could give us something. He has a sense of danger and great timing in the box.
“We were on the verge of a different level of anxiety. But we were composed, scored two brilliant goals and could have scored one or two more.”
Having lost 2-0 at Newcastle in the League Cup semifinal second leg before an extended break due to their early FA Cup exit, the Gunners returned to action with a vital victory that keeps them hot on the heels of Liverpool.
Liverpool, who stumbled with a draw at Everton in their game in hand on Wednesday, can increase their lead back to seven points if they beat lowly Wolves at Anfield on Sunday.
“Let’s go day by day and take a lot of positives from the second half, but also know the first half wasn’t good enough to win games,” Arteta said.
With Kai Havertz ruled out for the season after suffering a hamstring injury while blocking a shot during Arsenal’s recent training trip to Dubai, Arteta was left with a threadbare attack.
Havertz’s injury blow came just weeks after Arsenal failed to sign Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins during the January transfer window.
Gabriel Jesus, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli were already sidelined, so Arteta was forced to use Belgian winger Leandro Trossard as his central striker.
Underling the paucity of Arteta’s forward options, 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri and the out-of-form Raheem Sterling filled in on the flanks either side of Trossard.
Fortunately for Arteta, third-bottom Leicester were ideal opponents for his weakened team.
Underlying the gloom around Leicester’s relegation battle, fans staging a vocal protest against the club’s Thai owners and Foxes director of football Jon Rudkin after 14 minutes.
With the protest songs still ringing around the King Power Stadium, Declan Rice headed wastefully wide when Nwaneri’s cross teed up Arsenal’s first sight of goal.
Wilfred Ndidi was close to breaking the deadlock on the stroke of half-time when his header skidded off the rain-soaked surface and flashed just wide of the far post.
Nwaneri was one of Arsenal’s few bright sparks on a murky day in the East Midlands.
The teenager surged onto Martin Odegaard’s pass and curled just wide from 20 yards in a rare Arsenal threat.
Nwaneri was a constant menace, unloading a stinging strike that Leicester keeper Mads Hermansen tipped onto the post.
Leicester couldn’t stem the tide as Arteta’s gamble paid off in the 81st minute.
Nwaneri swung a pin-point cross into the Leicester area and Merino found space to thump his header past Hermansen from six yards.
Merino celebrated by dancing a jig around the corner flag, but he wasn’t finished yet.
Seven minutes later, Trossard whipped a cross into the six-yard box and Merino’s well-timed run eluded the Leicester defense as he slotted home to keep Arsenal firmly in the title chase.
Super-sub Merino strikes late as Arsenal sink Leicester
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Super-sub Merino strikes late as Arsenal sink Leicester
- With his attacking options limited by a host of injuries, Arteta sent on Spain midfielder Merino to act as a makeshift striker in the closing stages
- It proved an inspired move as Merino netted twice in the last nine minutes to extend Arsenal’s unbeaten run in the league to 15 games
Al-Qadsiah victory over Al-Khaleej tightens Saudi Pro League title race
- Brendan Rodgers’ side now sit fourth on 43 points, four behind league leaders Al-Hilal
- Points dropped by Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli on Monday blow the title race wide open
RIYADH: Matchday 20 of the Saudi Pro League concluded after what was arguably the most dramatic week of the season, both on and off the pitch.
Monday saw the winter transfer window come to a close with late twists — most notably the transfer of Karim Benzema from Al-Ittihad to Al-Hilal — alongside the highly anticipated clash between Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli. While all eyes were on that fixture, Al-Qadsiah quietly continued their unbeaten run with a 1-0 victory over Al-Khaleej, extending it to 10 matches.
With the campaign now beyond its halfway point, there is no telling who will become champion come end of the season. As things stand, Al-Hilal sit top with 47 points, followed by city rivals Al-Nassr on 46 points. In third place, Al-Ahli on 44 points, with Al-Qadsiah just behind on 43.
Al-Qadsiah’s win was anything but easy, however. Under Brendan Rodgers, one-goal victories had previously only come against against heavyweights such as Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad. Games against Al-Riyadh, Al-Fayha, Al-Hazem and Al-Najma — all in the bottom half of the table — were won by two goals or more.
Giorgos Donis’ Al-Khaleej presented a different challenge. Finding themselves in the upper mid-table this season thanks to stellar performances from the likes of Giorgos Masouras, Joshua King and Kostas Fortounis, it was never going to be easy for Al-Qadsiah, even in the absence of Fortounis due to injury.
It seemed like the flurry of games finally took its toll on the Knight of the East, with stars Julian Quinones and Musab Al-Juwayr looking fatigued. In the 38 days since Rodgers took charge at Al-Qadsiah, the side have played 10 matches, with five more to come in the next 23 days.
Despite 18 attempts at goal, only one came to fruition. A through ball to Quinones in the 41st minute was squared to Mateo Retegui, who finished into an open net to score the only goal of the game.
Al-Qadsiah didn’t sit back for the remainder of the game, prompting Al-Khaleej to take advantage of the spaces in behind the wing-backs to launch their own offence. Saudi national team centre-back Jehad Thekri was repeatedly left exposed, but backup goalkeeper Ahmed Al-Kassar did his best to prevent Al-Khaleej from finding an equaliser.
Despite being the week which saw the title race tighten to just four points between first and fourth, this was the second-lowest scoring Saudi Pro League matchday in history, with just nine goals across the nine games. None of the 18 teams were able to score more than one goal, with half the sides going goalless this round.
Elsewhere, just minutes away at E’GO Stadium, Al-Ettifaq managed to secure a valuable 1-0 victory against this campaign’s surprise package Al-Taawoun, after a 71st minute strike from Georginio Wijnaldum.
Meanwhile, Al-Kholood ended their streak of 18 games without a draw by grabbing a point in a 0-0 draw against Damac. The point for both sides was enough to see them end the round outside the relegation zone; Al-Kholood in 14th with 16 points and Damac in 15th with 12.
Saudi Pro League action returns on Thursday, with Al-Ahli and Al-Hilal continuing their title charges against Al-Hazem and Al-Okhdood respectively. Friday will feature the game of the round, with Al-Nassr welcoming Al-Ittihad at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh.
