Soccer

Arsenal thrash Nottingham Forest to go top as Bukayo Saka limps off injured

Leg injury casts doubts over Saka’s availability for England at next month’s World Cup

Arsenal's Thomas Partey (right) celebrates with team-mate Granit Xhaka after scoring his side's fourth goal during the Premier League match against Nottingham Forest at the Emirates Stadium. Photograph: John Walston/PA Wire
Simon Mail at the Emirates Stadium
Sun Oct 30 2022 - 16:21

Arsenal 5 Nottingham Forest 0

Arsenal reclaimed top spot in the Premier League after sweeping aside Nottingham Forest but this rout may have come at a cost after Bukayo Saka was forced off in the first half. Saka was hampered by a leg injury and his early exit casts doubts over his availability for England at next month’s World Cup.

Despite only lasting 27 minutes, Saka still created the opening goal with Gabriel Martinelli heading home to cast aside any suggestion of travel fatigue from Mikel Arteta’s pacesetters. Reiss Nelson proved a more than handy replacement for Saka with the winger, who spent last season on loan at Feyenoord, scoring two goals in the space of three minutes at the start of the second half.

Thomas Partey then electrified the Emirates with a thumping strike for the hosts before Martin Ødegaard added the fifth goal to complete a ghastly afternoon for Forest. Steve Cooper’s team never threatened Arsenal and the chasm was predictably wide between the league’s top- and bottom-placed clubs.

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[ Premier League table ]

Arteta reverted back to the team which started in the draw at Southampton last weekend following their midweek Europa League defeat by PSV Eindhoven. Forest’s only change from the side which stunned Liverpool was Renan Lodi promoted to the defence in place of Neco Williams.

Arsenal opened the scoring with their first attack of the game with Forest’s game plan going out the window within five minutes. Saka curled in a deft cross from the right and Martinelli planted his header past Dean Henderson. Martinelli raced away to the corner flag and held up a shirt with Pablo Marí's name on it in a heartfelt tribute to the Arsenal defender following his stabbing in a Milan supermarket on Thursday night.

[ Pablo Mari discharged from hospital after supermarket stabbing ]

Forest were braced for a long afternoon and Gabriel Jesus curled a shot narrowly past the far post. Cooper knew chances were likely to be scarce and Remo Freuler’s long-range shot was fired straight into the arms of Aaron Ramsdale.

Saka appeared to be struggling with a knock, after falling awkwardly under a challenge by Lodi, but the England attacker carried on after treatment.

Martinelli was denied a second goal, after Granit Xhaka had teed him up, with the Brazilian’s low shot blocked on the line by Lodi. Saka blasted the rebound over the bar but still looked aggravated by his injury. It was not long before he went down again and Nelson replaced him midway through the half.

Forest’s struggle to make any attacking inroads was summed up by Jesse Lingard’s wild strike which careered hopelessly away from the target. Ødegaard set up Jesus for another attempt but his fierce strike rose harmlessly over Henderson’s crossbar.

Arsenal ran into trouble of their own making before the break, with Gabriel Magalhães’s wayward pass straight into the path of Lingard, but his shot was charged down by Takehiro Tomiyasu. Xhaka required treatment after a late challenge from Morgan Gibbs-White which resulted in a booking for the Forest attacker.

Arsenal made an explosive start to the second half with Xhaka releasing Jesus before he played in Nelson. His first attempt was parried by Henderson but the rebound fell perfectly for Nelson to tuck home the rebound.

Nelson’s remarkable impact off the bench, in his first Premier League appearance since the opening day of last season, was rubber-stamped within a couple of minutes, with the 22-year-old volleying home his second goal from close range after Jesus’s delivery.

Arsenal were rampant and Forest had no answer to the wave of attacks. Partey was next in on the act, firing a stunning strike from the edge of the area past the flailing arms of Henderson after Nelson turned provider.

It should have been 5-0 shortly afterwards but Jesus missed the target after bearing down on goal. He was handed another opportunity to score but Henderson raced off his line to block the effort. Arsenal did not have to wait long for a fifth goal, with Jesus teeing up Ødegaard and the captain rifled a shot into the roof of the net.

There have been some horror shows already this season from Forest – conceding six goals at Manchester City and losing 4-0 at struggling Leicester – with this another to add to the list. Their recent defensive improvements were exorcised by Arsenal’s swaggering display.

This was target practice for Arsenal and Ben White’s header from a corner almost enabled Jesus to score the goal he merited but the striker was unable to get a touch on the ball at the far post. For Forest, it was a chastening experience and Arsenal will have few easier afternoons as they extended their unblemished record at the Emirates this season. – Guardian