Arsenal beat stubborn Hull 1-0 to stretch their lead at the top of the Premier League to six points on Saturday with Manchester City falling to a third straight defeat while Tottenham’s recent revival was halted by Leeds.
Mikel Arteta’s Gunners were strongly tipped to get the better of the visitors, who have not won in the league since August, but were made to sweat despite dominating the match.
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Captain Martin Odegaard finally broke the deadlock for the champions and title favourites in the 72nd minute to give Arsenal their ninth win in 10 league games.
City could have closed the gap to three points in the late kick-off, but Liam Delap’s double lifted Nottingham Forest out of the relegation zone with a 3-1 win at the City Ground.
Manchester United have dropped to 18th as a result, but the Red Devils are still to play this weekend as they host Aston Villa on Monday morning Australian time.
Arsenal, who bossed possession at the Emirates, had a claim for a penalty in the closing minutes of the first half after Kai Havertz had his shirt pulled by Nobel Mendy.
But VAR ruled that the German forward was in an offside position in the build-up.
Frustration mounted as the second half unfolded but Odegaard came to Arsenal’s rescue, scoring his first goal since early September with a poacher’s finish.
Noni Madueke cut in from the right before unleashing a left-footed shot that Hull goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis spilt and Odegaard fired home from close range.
Arsenal manager Arteta said he was happy with the performance but wanted his team to be more clinical after they recorded a third 1-0 win in four league games.
“I think it is time to praise my players. What they have done not only today but after the international break is remarkable because of the games,” he told the BBC.
He added: “We have some great moments, we need to put the chances we are creating against the opponent into the scoreline. That is what we need to improve.”
For Hull, Australian youngster Lucas Herrington came off the bench in the 69th minute and completed 13 of 15 passes, won both of his duels and made four clearances.
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– City falter again –
Oliver Glasner’s men had not scored at home at all this season, but pounced on City’s defensive errors to strike twice in the first 20 minutes through Jair Cunha and Delap.
Rayan Cherki’s stunning strike gave City hope, but their title challenge is rapidly wilting even before the potential effects of a major points deduction.
Delap sealed just Forest’s second win of the season with an incredible strike in off the post on the night that could launch his career for the two-time European champions, after a difficult start since his club-record £50 million ($67 million) move from Chelsea.
Defeat leaves City six points adrift of leaders Arsenal and with questions over whether the uncertainty surrounding the club is playing a part in their on-field slump.
Found guilty on over 100 Premier League charges of breaking financial rules, the 10-time English champions face a severe points penalty unless they can overturn that verdict on appeal.
Glasner warned his players he would make big changes after a disappointing start to his reign saw them start the match in the bottom three.
The Austrian got the response he craved as Forest burst out of the blocks to pounce on City’s sloppiness at the back.
Cunha robbed Josko Gvardiol midway inside the City half and was allowed to bear down on goal before slotting past Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Forest’s first home goal in 511 minutes was celebrated wildly at the City Ground with owner Evangelos Marinakis jumping out of his chair in celebration.
Elliott Anderson had a night to forget on his first return to Forest since a reported £116 million move to City.
Xaver Schlager beat Anderson to the ball in midfield and set Delap running from inside his own half before unleashing an unstoppable drive past Donnarumma for his first home goal for the club.
Maresca became the first Premier League manager to win his first seven games in charge of a new club in a blistering start to the daunting task of succeeding Pep Guardiola.
However, he has been hit with the task of trying to keep his players motivated when they do not know if they will even be in the English top-flight next season.
Maresca showed his frustration with a double change at half-time with the introduction of Nico O’Reilly and Matheus Nunes helping to spark a brief City rally.
Cherki smashed home a sweet strike from Jeremy Doku’s deflected cross to halve the arrears.
Erling Haaland then nearly levelled when the Norwegian flashed a shot just wide. City, though, remained vulnerable to the Forest counter-attack and were picked off again for the decisive goal 15 minutes from time.
Morgan Gibbs-White fed Delap who drilled another brilliant finish past the helpless Donnarumma, this time on his left foot.
The only crumb of comfort for City is that Forest’s victory dumps Manchester United into the relegation zone ahead of their clash against Aston Villa on Sunday.
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– VAR controversy –
In the early kick-off, Leeds struck in the 79th minute through substitute Noah Okafor to end Tottenham’s three-match winning run.
The major talking point in the first half was a challenge by Leeds defender Jayden Bogle on Spurs winger Mathys Tel, which was reviewed for a potential red card by VAR officials before eventually being cleared.
Tel had to leave the field shortly before half-time.
Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi, disappointed by his team’s second-half showing, refused to be drawn on the incident, which was not reviewed on the pitchside monitor by referee John Brooks.
“In the first situation of Mathys Tel I didn’t see, I can’t say nothing,” he told TNT Sports after the 1-0 defeat.
He added: “I have big confidence in the referee. Nothing changes if he goes to watch the clip or not. I think there was the VAR and if they didn’t take the right decision, I don’t know, but we have confidence.”
Defeat is a bitter blow for Spurs, who arrived at Elland Road in buoyant mood after recovering from a shocking start to the season.
Leeds manager Daniel Farke said his team, who had been winless in five league games, had shown “great spirit, great commitment, great unity”.
Elsewhere, Jacob Murphy put Newcastle on course for a much-needed win with a spectacular strike in the 80th minute at Craven Cottage but substitute Rodrigo Muniz levelled just three minutes later to earn a 1-1 draw.
City, who won their first seven Premier League matches under new manager Enzo Maresca, know that even if they keep pace with Arsenal it might ultimately all be in vain.
The Etihad club are still waiting to discover their fate after being found guilty of more than 100 breaches of Premier League financial rules — with a huge points deduction one potential punishment.