The Nation Newspaper

Tag: arsenal

  • Arsenal beat Chelsea to keep hope alive

    Adeyinka Akintunde

     

    Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-0 to leapfrog Manchester United to fifth place in the Premier League table, and keep their hopes of a top four finish alive.

    Alexander Laccazette gave the Gunner the lead in the 14th minute, clearing the ball off Pedro before drilling the ball past goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga from a tight angle.

    Laurent Koscielny got the second goal in the 38th minute after connecting to a Sokratis ball, and scored, getting the header wrong, but the ball touched his shoulder and got to the top corner of the net.

    Hector Bellerin ended his game 69 minute after going down without contact when chasing the ball . He was stretched out of the field eventually.

    The Gunners however ended the game with 39% of ball possession as against Chelsea’s 61, with nine shots on target for the blues as against seven for Arsenal. Chelsea were however slow in the first twelve moniues of the game.

    Earlier on, current African footballer of the year, Mohammed Salah was on song as Liverpool came from behind to beat Crystal Palace 4-3 at Anfield.

    This win gives the Reds a seven-point gap over second place Manchester City.

    The 26-year old Egyptian found the net after half time to draw level after Andros Townsend had given Palace the lead in the first half. The Reds went ahead with Roberto Firmino, but  Crystal Palace had other plams, with James Tomkins capitalizing on a poor defending to equalize from a corner kick for his side.

    An error from goalkeeper Julian Speroni gifted Salah a second goal and Senegalese forward Sadio Mane made it 4-2 in injury-time

    Ole Gunnar Solskjaer recorded his seventh victory in seven matches for Manchester United with a 2-1 victory over Brighton at Old Trafford.

    Paul Pogba put the Red Devils in front after winning and converting a penalty in the 27th minute, and Marcus Rashford scored a second three minutes to half-time with a beautiful solo goal.

    The Premier League table as it stand sees Liverpool top with 60 points after 23 matches, with Manchester City second with 53 points after 22 matches.

    The defending champions visit Huddersfield on Sunday for their fixture.

  • Arsenal face Manchester United in FA Cup 4th Round, Liverpool ousted

    Arsenal will host Manchester United in the English Emirates FA Cup fourth round, according to the draw held Monday night.

    The Gunners have won the competition a record 13 times, while United are 12-time winners.

    Premier League champions Manchester City are at home to Burnley, while Tottenham face a tough trip to Crystal Palace.

    Holders Chelsea have an easier task with Sheffield Wednesday or Luton to travel to Stamford Bridge.

    Wolves’ reward for beating Liverpool 2-1 on Monday is a trip to either Shrewsbury or Stoke.

    Read also: Arsenal’s youngsters have added pace to team, says Iwobi

    However, league leaders, Liverpool are out of the tournament after suffering a shock 2-1 loss in the hands of fellow premier leaguers, Wolverhampton Wanderers.

    Liverpool, without most of the first team players, were one goal behind Wolves in the first half at the Molineux Stadium after the 38th minute goal by Raul Jimenez.

    In the second half, Divock Origi equalised for the visitors in the 51st minute, but four minutes later Ruben Neves slammed in the winner from outside the box.

    The draw for the fourth round took place moments after at the same stadium with Nigeria’s Carl Ikeme, also involved.

    All the pairings;

    FA Cup 4thh round pairings

    The matches will take place between 25 and 28 January.

  • Arsenal, Leicester table N17b for Chukwueze

    Villarreal of Spain winger, Samuel Chukwueze has gained another heavy transfer boost to his growing value, as sports247.ng learnt he is now on the radars of Arsenal and Leicester City for a fee of N17b (£36m).

    So soon after reports emerged that former La Liga champions, Atletico Madrid are also interested in snatching Chukwueze from Villarreal, the Chile 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup revelation is now wanted in England.

    Though Chukwueze poured cold water at the weekend in the transfer link with Atletico, it is left to be seen what his reaction will be for the double focus coming his way from the English Premier League.

    Incidentally, both Leicester and Arsenal have very strong Nigerian connections, which could be instrumental in the possibility of the youngster opting out of Villarreal in the summer.

    Arsenal Nigerian connections, which began with Nwankwo Kanu in 1997, continue with Alex Iwobi on their cards, plus other youngsters in their youth teams, across all age-grade levels.

    Similarly, Leicester, who once had the duo of Yakubu Aiyegbeni and Ahmed Musa, still have Wilfred Onyinyen Ndidi and Kelechi Iheanacho in their main squad as well as some Nigerian-born kids in the youth squad.

    Dramatically, though, Arsenal turned down the opportunity of getting Chukwueze for a cheaper fee soon after the Cadet Mundial in 2015.

    Back then, Arsenal failed to reach an agreement with Chukwueze’s agent on a £4m deal, as they preferred 2015 Eaglets’ skipper, Kelechi Nwakali.

    Chukwueze is now rated £36m and The Gunners have joined the chase for the Diamond Academy product, who has four goals in 13 matches across all competitions for Villarreal this season.

    The 19-year-old, who debuted for the Super Eagles in a friendly match against Uganda in Asaba, was promoted to Villarreal’s main team in the summer, after impressive performances with their Segunda Liga squad.

    He could be on his way to Emirates Stadium in 2019, as Arsenal are determined to make up for what they missed in 2015.

    Where they missed out back then, though, The Gunners are back in the picture, as they aim to right all wrongs, but Leicester are also lurking.

  • Former Arsenal Chairman dies at 82

    Former Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood has died at the age of 82.

    Hill-Wood, who became the chairman of the club in 1982 after joining its board in 1962, presided over the appointments of George Graham and Arsene Wenger as managers.

    They went on to win five league titles, five FA Cups, the League Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup between them.

    The club, in a statement on Friday said, “It is with deep regret that we announce the death of former chairman, Peter Hill-Wood, at the age of 82.”

    Read Also: Man Utd fights back to draw with Arsenal

    Ill-health forced Hill-Wood to step down from the position in June 2013.

    Arsenal said he was also ‘instrumental’ in the successful move from Highbury to Emirates Stadium in 2006.

    “Peter and his family’s influence on the club cannot be understated… Our thoughts are with his wife Sally and his children Sarah, Julian and Charles,” the statement, posted on the club’s website, concluded.

    Born in Kensington, London, on Feb. 25, 1936 and died on Dec. 28, 2018, Hill-Wood attended Eton College.

    NAN

  • Aubameyang brace gives Arsenal win over Burnley

    Arsenal forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang shot to the top of the Premier League scoring charts with two goals in Saturday’s 3-1 home win over struggling Burnley.

    The victory returns Arsenal to winning ways after two straight defeats.

    The Gabon forward gave Arsenal the lead in the 14th minute, knocking in a pass from Sead Kolasinac after a classy ball from Mesut Ozil.

    He then smashed high into the net in the 48th to complete an impressive counter-attack from Unai Emery’s side.

    Burnley, 18th in the table and without an away win since September, hit back with a scrappy goal from Ashley Barnes.

    Barnes had spurned a good chance to take an unlikely lead at the start of the game when Ashley Westwood was denied by the feet of Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno.

    Substitute Alex Iwobi restored Arsenal’s two-goal cushion with a simple finish in stoppage-time, helped by another clever move from German playmaker Ozil.

    Ozil, Arsenal’s captain for the day, was left out of the team for Wednesday’s 2-0 League Cup defeat by Tottenham Hotspur.

    Aubameyang’s brace moved him on to 12 goals for the season, leapfrogging Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah as the league’s top scorer.

    His goals also take fifth-placed Arsenal on to 37 points, level with Chelsea who play Leicester City later.

    Arsenal’s 22-game unbeaten run in all competitions was halted on Sunday with a 3-2 defeat at Southampton.

    They were also knocked out of the League Cup at the quarter-final stage with a painful home loss to north London neighbours Tottenham. (Reuters/NAN)

  • Arsenal’ll recover quickly after Southampton loss – Iwobi

    Arsenal attacker, Alex Iwobi has declared that the Gunners will work hard to recover fast from their 2-3 loss to Southampton, as he believes they can go on another unbeaten run.

    Footballlive.ng reports that Iwobi admitted it was disappointing seeing the Gunners’ long run in all competitions ended by The Saints, with a 3-2 scoreline on Sunday, but the Super Eagles’ star insists his team will dust themselves up very quickly and try to go on another run, as they host Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup tomorrow

    Charlie Austin’s late goal ensured Ralph Hasenhuttl picked up a crucial first win as Saints’ boss.

    Iwobi admitted Arsenal lacked concentration against Southampton and lamented his side’s lacklustre performance.

    Iwobi: “Southampton deserves credit. They had a game plan and they stuck to it, but it’s disappointing by us. We weren’t focused through the 90 minutes. There were spells where we didn’t defend well as a team.

    “We’re frustrated the unbeaten run is over. We had chances to win the game. But we should give ourselves some credit for going on the run. Now we have to keep going and try to go on another run.”

  • Man Utd fights back to draw with Arsenal

    Manchester United and Arsenal have played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in Wednesday’s Premier League clash at Old Trafford.

    Arsenal twice led through goals from Shkodran Mustafi and Alexandre Lacazette, but Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard earned a share of the spoils for the home side.

    Jose Mourinho’s side have now gone four games without a win and remain in eighth place in the standings, while Arsenal are down to fifth despite having extended their unbeaten run in the top flight to 13 matches.

    United started brightly in the North-West rain with Marcus Rashford forcing Bernd Leno into an early save from distance, but the home side failed to build on what had been an encouraging opening.

    Arsenal were not getting shots away at the other end but the Gunners were having plenty of joy down the left flank as Sead Kolasinac and Alex Iwobi overpowered youngster Diogo Dalot.

    The Gunners had slowly began to get on top and it came as little surprise when they took the lead, but their goal came as a result of a glaring error from David de Gea.

    Mustafi got away from his marker to sent a weak header towards goal and although De Gea got both hands to the German’s effort, the defender’s attempt found its way over the line after De Gea managed to fumble the ball behind him.

    However, it took United just four minutes to find an equaliser. Leno made a solid save to keep out Marcos Rojo’s free kick but Ander Herrera retrieved the ball to cross for Anthony Martial, who lashed a shot into the net from six yards out.

    Shots were few and far between for the remainder of the first half and after Rob Holding was forced off injured, five players picked up yellow cards in the space of 310 seconds for separate fouls.

  • Arsenal’s UEFA Europa League clash moved to Kiev

    Arsenal’s Europa League match against Vorskla Poltava on Thursday has been moved to Kiev, European football’s governing body UEFA has announced.

    It said in a statement that this was due to security concerns following the introduction of martial law in Ukraine.

    Politicians in Ukraine this week approved a proposal to introduce martial law in areas most vulnerable to an attack following the capture of three Ukrainian vessels by Russia over the weekend.

    Read Also: Iwobi misses Arsenal’s U-21 clash

    Arsenal was due to play their Group E clash with Vorskla in Poltava’s Oleksiy Butovsky Stadium.

    However, UEFA said that its emergency panel met on Tuesday and decided to move the match to Kiev’s Olympic stadium.

    “UEFA will continue to monitor and assess the security situation in Ukraine in the coming days before making any decision on potentially relocating other matches,” the body said in a statement.

  • Iwobi Shines in England after Helping Nigeria Secure AFCON Ticket

    Nigerian international Alex Iwobi on Sunday put in another decent showing for Arsenal in what happened to be first match for the English Premier League club since he returned from a national assignment with his Super Eagles teammates.

    The 22-year-old was in action with brilliant game play for 82 minutes in the Arsenal’s 2-1 away win against AFC Bournemouth at Vitality Stadium in England on Sunday.

    After the 90 minute action packed three goals thriller, Arsenal successfully got back to winning ways to continue their 18-game unbeaten run at the Vitality Stadium.

    Bournemouth were looking to close the gap on the Gunners in the league, and started the brighter, but fell behind to an unfortunate own goal.

    Arsenal took the lead in extraordinary fashion, when Bournemouth’s Jefferson Lerma volleyed emphatically past his own keeper.

    READ ALSO:

    Iwobi rated Arsenal’s Best Player

    The home side were soon level though, when a quick counter attack was finished off superbly by Josh King’s curler into the top corner.

    Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang then got the Gunners back in front in the second half, prodding home Sead Kolasinac’s cross from close range.

    Recall that the the Nigerian Arsenal attacking midfielder was in the last two national assignments; one of which saw the Super Eagles qualified for 2019 Africa Cup of Nation despite playing a 1-1 draw against Bafana Bafana last weekend at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.

    Despite that some key players were rested two days after Eagles picked the AFCON ticket Eagles German handler Gernor Rohr still fielded Iwobi in an international friendly match against Uganda at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba; though he was substituted in the second half.

    Rohr has since confirmed that the youngster is pivotal to his campaign at the 2019 AFCON tournament in Cameroon and would only wish Iwobi will remain fit and see more playing time to put him in shape for the forthcoming tourney.

  • Arsenal no longer priority for Dangote

    Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has said that he would turn his attention to buying another football club if Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke refuses to sell.

    Dangote does not think this is the right time to buy the Premier League club because he wants to complete one of the world’s largest oil refineries in Lagos, Nigeria.

    Read also: Dangote to sponsor 15 expatriates professors to enhance KUST academic standard

    ”I’m very attached to Arsenal but if he won’t sell, I might have to change,” Dangote told Bloomberg TV at the New Economy Forum in Singapore.

    ”I’m very much a fan of football. I have to have a club. I don’t have to own Arsenal.”

    The 61-year-old Aliko Dangote is worth $11.2 billion, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

    Arsenal is the sixth-largest soccer club in the world, generating revenue of 488 million euros ($556 million) in the 2016-17 season, according to Deloitte LLP.