Madueke strike earns Arsenal narrow win at Nottingham Forest

Noni Madueke came off the bench to give Arsenal a hard-fought 1-0 Premier League victory at Nottingham Forest and keep Mikel Arteta’s side within three points of leaders Manchester City.

Arsenal struggled to create clear openings at the City Ground and did not manage a shot on target before half-time. Arteta responded by introducing Madueke during the interval, and the winger settled the contest with a powerful effort that took a deflection on its way into the net in the 80th minute.

“We had to earn it until the last second,” said Arteta. “They are a well-coached team and hard to break down. We had to take risks; they are a dangerous team.”

The Arsenal manager was also pleased with the way his players maintained their composure against determined opponents.

“We had to manage the emotional part really well,” he added. “We stayed focused, and the finishers made a huge impact.”

Madueke was one of a number of substitutes who helped Arsenal find a way through. Mikel Merino, Viktor Gyokeres and Jurrien Timber also made important contributions after coming on.

Arteta says the depth of his squad will be increasingly important as Arsenal pursue the Premier League title while competing in Europe. Their next fixture is a Champions League trip to Bayern Munich on Wednesday.

“Some of them played three days ago, and some of them will start the next game, and they know that everyone has to be at it,” he said.

“If you are needed after 60 minutes, 45 minutes and sometimes two minutes, we have a squad now that can deliver in moments and we have to use that.”

Arteta praised the collective influence of his replacements, while acknowledging that Madueke’s goal made him the most obvious match-winner.

“Noni, Jurrien, Mikel was brilliant when he came on, and Viktor really changed the game; all of them did, and that’s what we need,” he said. “Noni obviously the highlight because he scored the goal and that’s the difference.”

The result gives Arsenal three consecutive victories since their 3-0 defeat by Brighton on September 19. Their attacking display against Nottingham Forest was not their most fluent, but Arteta was satisfied that his team secured the points.

“Sometimes you can get frustrated with teams who are difficult to break down. First half we didn’t have a shot on target and that’s something we discussed,” he said.

“We had another two big ones in the second half, but the only one on target we had was a little deflection and it’s in.”