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Arsenal rallied over Wolves in the second half and won 1–0 in the West Midlands to keep them in title contention.
The Gunners’ task was made more difficult on Saturday afternoon when Miles Lewis-Skelley was sent off for a hard tackle towards the end of the first half, but Joao Gomes gave Arsenal the three points by leaving Michael Oliver no choice. Playing field in the middle of the second half.
Riccardo Calafiori’s strike proved to be the difference between the two sides in what has been a contentious but low-quality relationship. The result means Arsenal’s deficit to Liverpool is still six points, while the situation has not changed for Wolves at the bottom of the table.
How the game unfolded
Arsenal were hit by some major defensive injuries ahead of the contest, with Mikel Arteta welcoming back William Saliba and midfielder-left-back Louis-Skelley back into his XI. Vitor Pereira, meanwhile, surprisingly named an unchanged team from Monday night’s defeat at Chelsea.
There was early Gunners possession, but Wolves looked lively in the early stages as they settled into the duel and transitioned with pace. Pablo Sarabia had the first big chance of the contest after meeting Nelson Semedo’s cross on the wall, but his effort went wide.
The hosts were often the architects of Arsenal’s first-half success as they were constantly in trouble. The visitors seized on Wolves’ build-up weaknesses, but once again lacked the ruthless edge to punish. Kai Hewert should twice have given the hopefuls the lead, but he sent a header wide and another was brilliantly saved by Jose SA.
There were two moments of note for Arsenal in that opening period, with Martin Odegaard’s absence only adding to the monotony. A rather stale first half towards its conclusion was enlivened by Michael Oliver, who sent on Lewis-Skelley to bring down Matt Doherty as he tried to break down the Irishman.
Looking on the offensive, Arsenal didn’t cave early in the second half, with Gabriel Declan Rice’s stinger coming close before the palms of SA captained both sides to a strong start on the day. However, it didn’t take long for Wolves to gain the upper hand with the man advantage as Matheus Cunha’s influence increased. The Brazilian came close to opening the scoring from a set-piece.
However, Joao Gomes’ dismissal dented Wolves’ momentum after leveling the game. Arsenal immediately took advantage and broke the deadlock with the contest heading into the final 15 minutes. Half-time substitute Calafiori crashed into the box and scored his second goal for the club, curling a classy finish into the corner.
Then Division’s stout defense had to shut down a team that lost its target man to injury in the opening period to see out an important victory. Wolves had a moment, but Ryan Ait-Nouri shot over after David Ray burst from behind. Otherwise he didn’t break a sweat to protect his advantage.
Liverpool will never lose at home to Ipswich (and they weren’t), so Arsenal had to win here to keep at least some pressure on the league leaders.
Lewis-Skelley’s red card reduced their chances of victory, but Gomes’ performance was full of bravery and character even before he was dismissed. He remained intent on pressing high up the pitch and was able to fashion opportunities for the home team with regularity.
Once it was ten-on-ten, there would only be one winner. The momentum was on Arteta’s side, and they struck immediately. Calafiori’s goal was well taken after Arsenal tested the Wolves defense with another cross, and the Italian celebrated as he went off at the Etihad in September.
Their resilience and Calafiori have resulted in their deficit to the Reds remaining at six points.
Wolves entered the gameweek with the Premier League’s worst defense and conceded the highest percentage of goals from set-pieces (17 out of 51 to choose). Their inability to defend set plays was a big issue under Gary O’Neill, with Pereira doing plenty to toughen his team up from such situations.
However, Chelsea’s success from the dead ball on Monday night highlighted that those issues remain and the signs were ominous for the hosts on Saturday as the division’s most famous set-piece outfit visited Molineux.
On average, Wolves concede the most corners per game in the Premier League, but Arsenal registered just one in the opening period – and the delivery was poor. The state of the game meant that Pereira’s side were not subject to a barrage, and while the Gunners created most of their chances from crosses, they did not capitalize on obvious mismatches from set-pieces.
Molineux has something about Michael Oliver and Arsenal. Remember when Gabriel Martinelli received two yellow cards in quick succession to his marching orders from Oliver?
Arsenal supporters have since held a vendetta against the official, and it would not have gone into the Gooners’ good books after sending off the brilliant teenager Lewis-Skelley on Saturday afternoon.
The entire stadium was in anticipation once Doherty collapsed to the turf, but Oliver went one further and sent Lewis-Skelley over. The challenge was crude, no doubt, but the fact Doherty was held by Lewis-Skelley’s studs above the ankles. That is considered the ‘serious foul play’ threshold.
Would anyone have batted an eyelid had Lewis-Skelley been warned? Gomes’ second yellow card challenge was nastier!
