Month: February 2023

Mikel Arteta believes managing the minutes of Gabriel Martinelli gave the Brazilian the energy to score the winner for Arsenal at Leicester City on Saturday.

In Arsenal’s previous four games, Martinelli had either been substituted for new arrival Leandro Trossard, or in the case of the 4-2 win at Aston Villa, came off the bench for the Belgian.

Both started the 1-0 victory at King Power Stadium though, and it was Martinelli who scored the only goal of the game in the first minute of the second half to cement the Gunners’ place at the top of the Premier League.

“Sometimes you have to give someone a breather to come back with even more energy and enthusiasm,” Arteta said, adding he was “delighted” that Martinelli had recently signed a new deal until 2027.

Arsenal otherwise struggled to get going in the game in an attacking sense, but impressively restricted the hosts to just one shot overall and none on target.

Arteta was pleased with the performance and the win, which increased his team’s lead at the top of the league to five points prior to Manchester City’s visit to Bournemouth.

He added: “We dominated the game almost from start to finish. In general, I think our play and understanding of spaces was excellent. 

“We just lacked that final pass to score more. We had the decision with [Bukayo Saka’s] disallowed goal, which was frustrating to take, but to restrict Leicester to one shot at home is great.”

Leaders Arsenal have two home games next week against Everton and Bournemouth as they bid for a first league title since 2004.

Victor Osimhen hit his 10th Serie A goal since the turn of the year as leaders Napoli stretched their advantage to 18 points by winning 2-0 at Empoli.

The Nigerian has scored in his last eight domestic league games, with his efforts bringing a long-awaited Scudetto ever closer.

An early own goal from Ardian Ismajli gave Napoli a strong start, and Osimhen soon doubled the lead with an easy finish.

The victory on the road was tarnished by Mario Rui petulantly kicking out at Francesco Caputo and receiving a red card following a VAR check, but with games running out the Naples giants are looking unstoppable.

A 17th-minute breakthrough arrived when Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s ball from left to right was volleyed across goal by Piotr Zielinski, and Ismajli bundled the ball into his own net from close range.

It was 2-0 in the 28th minute and again Kvaratskhelia was involved, with his skidding shot parried by Guglielmo Vicario to the lurking Osimhen, who had a simple task of tucking past the floored goalkeeper.

Napoli moved in for the kill, and Kim Min-jae hit the underside of the bar from close range with an attempted header that turned into an effort off his shoulder.

Empoli won the corresponding game 3-2 last season after being 2-0 down, sealing a league double, so Napoli knew they had to be wary of a fightback from the mid-table hosts.

Osimhen thought he had scored again just before the hour when he ran in behind the Empoli defence and tucked home while stumbling under pressure, but he was narrowly offside when the pass was played.

The task was complicated for Napoli when their former Empoli left-back Rui was red-carded for his cheap shot at Caputo, catching the striker in a tender spot.

With a quarter of the game remaining, Napoli boss Luciano Spalletti responded by bringing off forwards Kvaratskhelia and Hirving Lozano, replacing them with midfielder Eljif Elmas and defender Mathias Olivera. In truth, Empoli never looked like taking advantage of their extra man and repeating last season’s comeback heroics, having been firmly put in their place this time.

What does it mean? Different story for Napoli this season

Spalletti has turned Napoli into a winning machine, so when they burst into a 2-0 lead here it was inconceivable this game would go the same way as last season’s fixture at the Stadio Carlo Castellani. Duly Napoli saw it out, fuss-free apart from Rui’s moment of idiocy.

Second-placed Inter play at Bologna on Sunday, so Napoli came off the field knowing their 18-point lead might not last the weekend, but performances such as this are giving the distant chasing pack not a hint of encouragement. 

That first Serie A title since the 1989-90 season is in Napoli’s crosshairs, surely now a matter of time. They can stumble to the finish line now, such is their cushion.

Osimhen’s happy new year

He didn’t find the net in Napoli’s first game of the year, a 1-0 reverse to Inter that remains their only league loss of the 2022-23 campaign. But Osimhen has struck in every league match since that setback, and at 24 years and 58 days he has become the second youngest player in the league’s three points for a win era – since 1994-95 – to score in eight consecutive Serie A games. 

Only Roberto Muzzi (23 years, 165 days for Cagliari in 1995) has had such a run at a younger age. Osimhen has 19 Serie A goals this season now.

Mario madness not Rui-nous for Napoli

Although they lost their starting left-back, Napoli still kept a clean sheet, their fourth in a row in Serie A, extending their run to 417 minutes without conceding in the league. 

Rui’s red card was Napoli’s first of this league campaign and their first in the competition since October 31, 2021, when Kalidou Koulibaly was dismissed against Salernitana.

The dismissal was the fourth in Rui’s Serie A career, and a first since September 2018.

What’s next?

Napoli host Lazio on Friday, while Empoli head to Monza the following day.

Barnet ended their run of three consecutive National League losses after beating Aldershot 4-1.

The Bees made a bright start with Ryan De Havilland hitting the post from a free-kick in the 12th minute, but Harry Pritchard made no mistake just one minute later, chipping the ball from the edge of the box to take the lead.

Henry Ochieng had a chance for the Shots that flew just over the bar before Barnet piled on the pressure again and Pritchard’s header was saved.

Aldershot levelled in the 59th minute when Haji Mnoga pulled the ball back to Ryan Glover who smashed the ball into the top corner, but Harry Smith restored Barnet’s lead six minutes later with a header at the back post.

Idris Kanu added their third in the 76th minute, slotting the ball underneath goalkeeper Luca Ashby-Hammond and substitute Courtney Senior then made an instant impact from the bench in the 82nd minute.

Promotion-chasing Northampton secured their first win in five Sky Bet League Two matches with a hard-fought 1-0 success at Colchester.

Louis Appere’s first-half goal proved decisive as the Cobblers climbed to fourth in the table.

The Essex side almost went ahead early on when Northampton defender Sam Sheering deflected Noah Chilvers’ curled effort just past his own post for a corner.

The visitors made the decisive breakthrough in the 42nd minute when Appere swept home a loose ball from close range, after Colchester had failed to clear Marc Leonard’s corner.

Appere hooked a decent chance wide at the far post in first-half stoppage-time from another Leonard corner, as the visitors went in at the break ahead.

Tom King denied Kwesi Appiah early in the second half and seconds later the Northampton goalkeeper palmed defender Connor Hall’s 25-yard strike away for a corner, as the hosts pressed.

But Colchester goalkeeper Kieran O’Hara twice saved from Appere and Wood cleared substitute Will Hondermarck’s effort off the line, before Jon Guthrie headed just wide from a corner.

O’Hara denied Jack Sowerby deep into stoppage-time, as Northampton claimed a welcome victory.

Cheye Alexander scored the winner against his former club as Gillingham came from behind to win 2-1 at home to AFC Wimbledon.

The highlight of a goalless first half came when Dons goalkeeper Nik Tzanev diverted Alex MacDonald’s goal-bound effort on to the bar eight minutes into added time.

But the second period was just seven minutes old when Iraqi forward Ali Al-Hamadi beat the offside trap and finished from an acute angle to put the visitors in front.

But after Tzanev had brilliantly tipped Shaun Williams’ header on to a post, stand-in captain Max Ehmer bundled the ball into an empty net to score his first league goal for the Gills since December 2019.

Alexander, who spent two seasons with the Dons before being released last summer, then became the unlikely match-winner when he spectacularly volleyed home in the 66th minute.

Gillingham’s sixth victory in eight games moves them seven points away from the relegation zone, while Johnnie Jackson’s Dons sit in 15th spot, having now won just once in nine matches.

Barnsley leapfrogged Derby in the League One table with a thumping 4-1 win at Oakwell.

The Tykes made it an impressive seven games without a defeat against Paul Warne’s side, climbing over them into fifth.

An opener was found in the 21st minute, as chaos in the Derby defence gave Devante Cole his ninth goal of the season with a simple close-range strike.

Adam Phillips then scored his third goal in three games, a pass from Jordan Williams finding him outside the box for a right-footed strike to the bottom corner.

The Rams answered back a couple of minutes later with a fabulous finish from David McGoldrick, making it 17 goals this season.

But morale dropped even further for the 5000-strong Derby supporters after fantastic ball movement led to Cole scoring his second goal.

Barnsley secured three points as a fourth goal in added time by Luke Thomas stabilised their play-off position, while Derby now hold the final play-off spot.

Paul Simpson marked his first year back in charge at Carlisle in fine style as the Cumbrians strengthened their promotion hopes with a thumping 5-2 win at Crawley in Sky Bet League Two.

The Cumbrians were 4-0 ahead by half-time, on the way to their best away victory of the season.

Crawley, winners now of only one of their last 10 games, remain second to bottom following a third successive defeat.

Carlisle went into the clash as the joint highest scorers in League Two and it took the only 15 minutes for them to go in front when the recalled Joel Senior scored at the far post, netting with a downward header after a cross by Jon Mellish.

It got better for the visitors just five minutes later when Joel Lynch gave the ball away and Owen Moxon threaded the ball through for Omari Patrick to fire his fourth goal of the season.

Midfielder Moxon forced the ball home to make it 3-0 in the 26th minute, beating three defenders before planting the ball into the net in front of the travelling fans.

Crawley’s disastrous first half continued in the 38th minute when, from a free-kick by Moxon, captain Morgan Feeney forced the ball in at the second attempt at the far post after his initial attempt was parried by goalkeeper Ryan Schofield.

Carlisle’s hopes of a 14th clean sheet of the season ended five minutes after the break when substitute Aramide Oteh scored from close range after an attempt by Nick Tsaroulla.

However, the travelling fans were celebrating again in the 57th minute when Mellish forced in a corner from Jack Armer to make it 5-1.

Substitute Kristian Dennis threatened to add to the tally when through on goal but he was foiled by Schofield, before Dom Telford scrambled a second for struggling Crawley six minutes from time after a flurry of late substitutions by the visitors.

Daryl Dike struck an early double at The Hawthorns to force West Bromwich Albion back into the Championship play-off mix – and dent Middlesbrough’s bid to reel in Sheffield United and the automatic promotion spots.

USA international Dike found the net in the eighth minute when teed up by Jed Wallace, and two minutes later John Swift was the provider as Dike delivered a cushion for Albion.

Boro, who had been in rampant form prior to this, were comparably modest in the final third and they now find themselves seven points behind the second-placed Blades after going down 2-0.

The opening goal was expertly created. Swift picked up the ball on the left and slipped Wallace, who had held his run to avoid the offside flag, in down the wing. His centre was delicately turned in beneath compatriot Zack Steffen.

Things got even better for the American almost immediately after with another beautifully crafted move – this time it was Wallace who found Swift, and he in turn laid it onto Dike. In on goal, he needed two attempts to beat Steffen.

The high-flying visitors began to settle after their early setback and started applying pressure around the hosts’ penalty area, but Albion continued to have them at an arm’s length.

Indeed, it was they who looked more likely to add a third goal. Wallace skied an opportunity at the back post after Grady Diangana and Conor Townsend had combined to good effect, and Dike came close to completing his hat-trick when the ball was taken off his toes by the alert Jonny Howson.

Boro, who possess the division’s highest scorer in Chuba Akpom, finally tested young goalkeeper Josh Griffiths when Marcus Forss sent a stinging drive towards the top corner. Griffiths, at full stretch, was able to to tip it over the bar. Akpom then warmed his gloves with a header on target.

The game ought to have been over as a contest a little over five minutes after the second half started. Substitute Marc Albrighton found Dike in the penalty area with his back to goal, and he rolled Paddy McNair before jinking past the last man.

With only Steffen to beat, the goalkeeper produced a big save with his legs to deny him.

It became apparent quickly that McNair, having gone to ground, required treatment and, after a lengthy stoppage, he was carried off on a stretcher to applause from both sets of fans.

Dara O’Shea, the West Brom captain, went close when he rose highest to meet a Swift corner from the right but he nodded his effort down and just wide of the far post.

Boro, by comparison, still saw plenty of the ball but they were largely kept at bay by a dogged Baggies defence – and Griffiths again, who was on hand to repel Izzy Jones at the back post deep into stoppage time.

Devarn Green’s early strike was enough for Oldham to return to winning ways with a 1-0 victory against promotion-hopefuls Chesterfield.

Oldham took the lead six minutes in when Ellis Chapman crossed into the box and Green fired the ball home.

Ryan Colclough had a good chance for Chesterfield when his close-range effort went over the bar and the midfielder then set up Bailey Clements, but his header went just wide.

Ollie Banks had a good chance for the Spireites five minutes after the break but his curling effort went just over the bar and Paul McCallum forced Latics goalkeeper Magnus Norman to make two good saves.

Norman then made another great save to deny Liam Mandeville in the final 10 minutes for Oldham to claim the three points.

Paul Mullin extended his remarkable recent scoring run to seven goals in five National League games as Wrexham kept up the pressure on leaders Notts County with a 3-1 home win over Dorking.

The hosts went close in the early stages, with Elliot Lee’s ninth-minute header hitting the crossbar.

But Lee could not be denied three minutes later as he opened the scoring with a fine finish.

Wrexham’s top scorer Mullin made it 2-0 in the 41st minute, with Sam Dalby adding a third 10 minutes after the break.

Jimmy Muitt pulled a goal back for Dorking as he headed home in the 75th minute.

The win sees Wrexham move within two points of County, who take on Dagenham in the evening kick-off.