Premier League: Arsenal beat Nottingham Forest 1-0, Brighton thrash Crystal Palace 5-0

LONDON: In the English Premier League, defending champions Arsenal beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 to strengthen their position in the title race. Brighton and Hove Albion thrashed Crystal Palace 5-0. The match between Manchester United and Leeds United ended in a 1-1 draw, while Bournemouth beat Sunderland 2-0 for their first win of the league season.

Arsenal win

According to media reports, Noni Madueke scored the decisive goal for Arsenal in the 80th minute. His shot deflected off an opposition player and went into the net.

Arsenal held more than 70 per cent of possession, but managed only one shot on target in the entire match. With this win, Arsenal have 18 of a possible 21 points and are 3 points behind leaders Manchester City.

Brighton’s big win

Brighton and Hove Albion scored 3 goals in the first 10 minutes against Crystal Palace and gave the opposition no chance to recover. An own goal by JD Canott in the fourth minute put Brighton ahead, while in the seventh minute Diego Gomez scored a superb goal from nearly 50 metres. Yasin Ayari scored the third in the 10th minute.

In the second half, Charalampos Kostoulas scored the fourth and Jack Hinshelwood the fifth to secure Brighton’s big win.

Other matches

The tough contest between Leeds United and Manchester United ended 1-1. Manchester United’s Bryan Mbeumo put his side ahead, but Leeds’ Dominic Calvert-Lewin equalised in the 51st minute.

Bournemouth beat Sunderland 2-0 through goals from Marcus Tavernier and Evanilson, and recorded their first win in the league. Following the result, Sunderland have dropped to second from bottom in the points table.