Nottingham Forest 0-1 Arsenal: Madueke strikes late to keep Gunners in the hunt

Arsenal left it late at the City Ground, but a moment of quality from substitute Noni Madueke 10 minutes from time secured a 1-0 Premier League win over Nottingham Forest and kept the Gunners pressing at the top of the table.

In a match of fine margins — Forest actually edged total shots 14-9 — Arsenal dominated the ball with 74% possession but created just one big chance, which Madueke buried after 80 minutes following an assist from Declan Rice. The visitors' xG of 1.07 against Forest's 0.75 told the story of a contest that was tighter than the shot count suggested.

How the goal came

Introduced at the interval for Eberechi Eze, Madueke grew into the game and punished a tiring Forest defence, sweeping home Rice's pass to break the deadlock. Mikel Arteta's side then saw the game out with typical control, while Forest — now 18th with five points from seven games — were left to rue a fourth defeat in five.

Forest barely troubled David Raya in the closing stages, managing only two shots on target all afternoon, and their winless run against Arsenal stretched further: the head-to-head now reads five Arsenal wins in the last eight meetings.

Arsenal climb to 18 points from seven matches, while Forest stay second-bottom and rooted in the relegation zone after a fifth game without a win.