Giroud shines, Arsenal close in on Man City

At St James' Park, Arsenal showed their physical weakness against Newcastle. In that situation, the Gunners had to work very hard to overcome the home team with a score of 2-1 thanks to the brilliance of Giroud. The three points won helped Arsenal continue to firmly hold the 3rd position.

Giroud scored a great goal for Arsenal

GOAL

Newcastle: Sissoko (48')

Arsenal: Giroud (24', 28')

Arsene Wenger made some changes to his starting lineup when he traveled to Newcastle. Mesut Ozil, who was showing signs of fatigue, was rested and replaced by Aaron Ramsey. Newcastle were also without a number of key players due to fitness issues.

VIDEO: Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal

However, Newcastle did not easily accept Arsenal's dominance at home. In the first 20 minutes, although the Gunners had more possession of the ball, they did not create any truly remarkable plays. In other words, Arsenal's attack had a lot of difficulty finding a way into Newcastle's goal.

In that difficult situation, the Gunners unexpectedly scored a lucky goal. In the 24th minute, Danny Welbeck's shot accidentally hit Olivier Giroud, causing the ball to change direction, leaving goalkeeper Tim Krul helpless, helping Arsenal open the scoring. Before Newcastle could recover from the first goal, they received a second cold shower. In the 28th minute, Giroud headed the ball to double Arsenal's lead.

Giroud made Newcastle's defense miserable in the first half

It was thought that Wenger's team would have an easy victory, but in the second half, the situation changed dramatically. In the 48th minute, Sissoko reduced the score to 1-2 for Newcastle. That goal helped the home team at St James' Park wake up. With the advantage of physical strength, they put Arsenal under pressure throughout the second half. Ospina's goal was put in a state of alarm many times. However, in a day of excellent performance, Ospina discouraged Newcastle's strikers. In the second half alone, Ospina had at least 3 clear-cut saves for the Gunners.

With a hard-fought 2-1 victory, Arsenal has 60 points out of 30 games and remains firmly in 3rd place on the rankings. Wenger's team is only 1 point behind 2nd place Man City. With their current excellent form, Arsenal's chances of staying in the Top 3 are extremely high. The victory over Newcastle is also a morale booster for Arsenal ahead of a very tough schedule ahead. In the next 3 games, the Gunners will face 2 very strong opponents, Liverpool and Chelsea.

LINEUP

Newcastle: Krul; Taylor, Janmaat, Williamson, Colback; Anita (Gutierrez, 72'), Sissoko; Gouffran, Cabella, Ameobi (Armstrong, 89'); Perez.

Arsenal: Ospina; Chambers, Gabriel, Koscielny, Monreal; Ramsey, Coquelin; Sanchez (Flamini, 71'), Welbeck (Bellerín, 89'), Cazorla (Rosicky, 71'); Giroud.

According to Bongdaplus