With a thrilling 4-3 victory over Luton Town, Arsenal went five points ahead atop the Premier League table. Declan Rice headed home the winning goal deep into stoppage time.
Gabriel Martinelli gave the Gunners the lead after 20 minutes when he tucked in a cut back from Bukayo Saka. However, Luton equalised five minutes later with a strong header from Gabriel Osho.
At the break, Mikel Arteta’s men were looking to restore their dominance when Jesus nodded them back in front.
But the hosts weren’t to be demoralised, as they shocked the flying visitors by turning the tide of the match with goals from Elijah Adebayo and Ross Barkley, who took advantage of careless mistakes made by custodian David Raya.
After excellent work from Jesus, Havertz’s goal on the hour restored parity, and the Gunners remained a serious danger in the attacking third. Luton managed to hold on for the last 20 minutes, but they suffered heartache as Rice headed in a magnificent cross from Martin Odegaard to send the visiting supporters into raptures.
With the outcome, Arsenal has now won six straight games in all competitions, and they lead second-place Liverpool by five points going into Wednesday’s trip to Sheffield United.
Although Luton is in 17th place, a victory at Newcastle on Thursday may send them into the drop zone. Next up on Saturday night is Arsenal’s visit to Aston Villa. On Sunday, Luton will play champions Man City.
Following a captivating ninety minutes, Luton supporters’ anguish and Gooners’ euphoria were the main talking points. It was the kind of thrilling, late victory that teams tend to remember as important if they go on to win the championship.
Even with the three points, though, the visitors’ goals will raise questions, and David Raya, the Gunners’ custodian, had yet another forgettable evening. The custodian has undoubtedly established himself as Arteta’s number one, but he has had a challenging start to life at The Emirates due to a number of missteps.
It was the same with this contest. After being left flapping at a corner for Luton’s second goal of the night, he somehow let Barkley’s meek, low shot go under him.
Even if his teammates were able to save him, Raya still appears flimsy, and with a player like Ramsdale on the bench, it seems odd to be obstinate, especially if it will ultimately cost the team points down the road.
Declan Rice- Even if this wasn’t the midfielder’s greatest game, he came up when The Gunners needed a hero badly and provided a header that gave them a commanding lead in the Premier League.