Arsenal’s goalscoring problems were brushed aside after they dismantled an abysmal Palace side 5-0 to go two points off Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Arsenal’s first two goals were from corners in the first half, the first of which was headed home from Gabriel and the Brazilian repeated the feat for the second goal, only this time the ball came off Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson before ending up in the back of the net.
Arsenal next scored when David Raya claimed the ball from a Palace corner and fed it to Gabriel Jesus who played it through to Leandro Trossard. The Belgian international silenced the critics by finishing the chance. Recently the Arsenal forward line has been under scrutiny for poor finishing at the Emirates Stadium.
Palace gave up in stoppage time as electric winger, Gabriel Martinelli came on and scored two goals to seal an emphatic victory for the Gunners.
With Arteta’s side claiming the 3 points, it moves them to just 2 points behind league leaders Liverpool, who travel to the Vitality Stadium to face Bournemouth on Sunday.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Arsenal as both Gabriel and Declan Rice had to go off with injuries in the second half.
Arteta then said after the game: “Rice was feeling some tightness. I don’t know what muscle it was”
“When he says that at 3-0 then we don’t want to take any risks. The same with big Gabi he had some discomfort from a tackle so we took him off.”
“I’m very pleased, clean sheet and five goals, win the game and performance. I had a really good feeling after we left the stadium after Liverpool, the performance was there but the results were not.”
“Today we were much more efficient in the opponents’ box particularly than the last few games. Last few games we had moments playing better than today but this is about scoring goals.”
“Set-pieces are a big part of us, especially against teams that want to defend deeply. It is a good way to win games. The success of last season was the amount of players who scored more than 10 goals and we are going to have to do that again.”
“We used moments of the game we knew could exploit really, really well. The subs did really well and had a big impact. Everyone was really focused.”
“This is the second part of the season and we want to tackle it with a lot of aggression and motivation. I would like to play three days after but it is what it is. We will keep preparing and we must continue to do better and improve as a team.”
Palace manger Roy Hodgson was left slightly infuriated after the games as he felt that one of the Arsenal goals shouldn’t have stood as Dean Henderson appeared to have been fouled. He said:
“They were good set-pieces of course but if you speak to our players, they will be a little bit aggrieved that there were infringements for both the goals. We weren’t lucky enough to have those infringements recognised by the referee so we find ourselves 2-0 down.
“Then, to compound things, we gave them the goal that really puts the game to bed from one of our corner kicks. Suddenly we’re 3-0 down. That ended all hope of us getting back into the game.“
“The real disappointment is the last two goals, but I must take responsibility for that. Players were tiring and we needed, we thought, some fresh legs.”
“The fresh legs were the young lads and it was too much to ask for them to go on and deal with a rampant Arsenal. As a result, we lose the game heavily.”
“I believe in the team. The fact is at the moment we are stretched to say the least, our attacking threat – when you lose Olise and Ayew at the same time – is blunted. That will change when those two players come back.”
“I don’t think in the last games we’ve been outplayed that often. We’ve been in games, even against the Liverpools, Chelseas, Brightons and the Arsenals.”
“Today we were outplayed, in particular, towards the end of the game. Up to that period, the players stuck to their task. They showed that they’re still committed and want to deal well for the club.”
“The result decides everything – those last two goals bring about the doom and gloom of the situation as 5-0 is a bad defeat at any level.”
Arsenal next head to Nottingham Forest on January 30 before hosting title rivals Liverpool on February 4.
Crystal Palace host Sheffield United next on January 30 before travelling to rivals Brighton on February 3.
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