- Oct 16, 2026
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SportsMafia Wire graphic. Team logos and player headshots via ESPN.
Arsenal secured a 1-0 victory at Nottingham Forest on Sunday, extending their strong start to the season despite a lack of attacking threat.
Noni Madueke scored the decisive goal in the 80th minute, his deflected effort taking a touch off Jair Cunha to beat Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels. The winner came after Eberechi Eze had been substituted at half-time for Madueke. The Gunners dominated possession with 75 percent, their highest figure in any league match last season, yet managed just one shot on target throughout the contest. It marked the first time in three years Arsenal had failed to register a shot on target in the opening 70 minutes of a Premier League fixture.
Declan Rice squandered Arsenal's best opportunity before the breakthrough, firing over from Jurriën Timber's cutback. Bruno Guimarães started and helped control midfield without penetrating Forest's 5-4-1 "Christmas Tree" defensive formation, which Liam Delap sought to exploit on the counter-attack.
The result leaves Arsenal with 18 points from seven Premier League matches and 10 wins from 11 games across all competitions this season, their only defeat coming at Brighton prior to the international break. It was the 32nd 1-0 victory under Mikel Arteta since December 2019, tying Everton for the most in the Premier League during that period. Arteta dismissed any suggestion of lost momentum after the international break. "You play 11 games, you win 10 and you lose momentum? So, what is it then?" he said.
Source: ESPN - Sun Oct 18, 2:58 PM ET
Written by the SportsMafia Wire desk in our own words from the original reporting (AI-assisted, checked against the source).