Nottingham Forest v Arsenal Live Commentary & Result, 20/05/2023, Premier League

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	PTS	Form
1	MCI Manchester City	37	28	5	4	94	32	+62	89	D W W W W
2	ARS Arsenal	37	25	6	6	83	43	+40	81	L L W W L
3	MUN Manchester United	37	22	6	9	56	42	+14	72	W W W L L
4	NEW Newcastle United	37	19	13	5	67	32	+35	70	D W D L W
5	LIV Liverpool	37	19	9	9	71	43	+28	66	D W W W W
6	BHA Brighton & Hove Albion	37	18	8	11	71	51	+20	62	D W L W L
7	AVL Aston Villa	37	17	7	13	49	45	+4	58	D W L L W
8	TOT Tottenham Hotspur	37	17	6	14	66	62	+4	57	L L W L D
9	BRE Brentford	37	14	14	9	57	46	+11	56	W W L W W
10	FUL Fulham	37	15	7	15	54	51	+3	52	D W W L L
11	CRY Crystal Palace	37	11	11	15	39	48	-9	44	D W L W L
12	CHE Chelsea	37	11	10	16	37	46	-9	43	L L D W L
13	WOL Wolverhampton Wanderers	37	11	8	18	31	53	-22	41	D L W L W
14	WHU West Ham United	37	11	7	19	41	53	-12	40	W L W L L
15	BOU AFC Bournemouth	37	11	6	20	37	70	-33	39	L L L W W
16	NFO Nottingham Forest	37	9	10	18	37	67	-30	37	W D W L W
17	EVE Everton	37	7	12	18	33	57	-24	33	D L W D L
18	LEI Leicester City	37	8	7	22	49	67	-18	31	D L L D D
19	LEE Leeds United	37	7	10	20	47	74	-27	31	L D L L D
20	SOU Southampton	37	6	6	25	32	69	-37	24	L L L L L

That's all for today, goodbye.

Forest will head into their final game of the season against Crystal Palace knowing they are safe because Southampton, Leicester City and Everton cannot catch them. As for Arsenal, their faint title aspirations are now over after winning just two of their last eight games. They will be looking to end the season strongly when they face Wolves.

Nottingham Forest beat Arsenal to ensure they remain in the Premier League, crowning Manchester City as champions in the process. The City Ground erupted when Awoniyi scored the decisive goal of the game. Arsenal were starting to get into the game after being put under pressure in the opening exchanges but lost the ball when Odegaard played a loose pass straight to Gibbs-White. He raced through the middle of the pitch before laying a pass into the feet of Awoniyi. Gabriel went sliding in to take the ball away from the striker, but he hit it against the foot of the Awoniyi, with it going over Ramsdale and into the net. Jesus had a couple of chances to score but headed an effort over before driving a potential equaliser straight at Navas. The Gunners struggled to get past Forest's resolute defensive shape and had just five shots after the break. Jorginho and Odegaard missed the target, with Saka's blasted attempt pushed behind. Gibbs-White had a chance to double Forest's lead after dancing past a couple of Arsenal players outside the box but stroked his effort straight at the goalkeeper.

90' + 10' FULL-TIME: NOTTINGHAM FOREST 1-0 ARSENAL

W. Hennessey

K. Navas

90' + 9' Navas is injured and needs to come off. Hennessey is given the final few seconds.

90' + 7' Arsenal work one last chance in the final minute of the game. Saka has the ball on the right before moving inside. He then curls a left-footed cross into the air and to Navas, who claims the ball before hitting the deck. He needs to come off. Thankfully for Forest, they have not used all of their substitutes.

90' + 5' Odegaard shows a sign of frustration and flashes a shot from a distance wide of the post. Navas was happy to watch it go past his post.

90' + 3' Gabriel floats a cross into the box looking for Nketiah but it goes straight past him and to Navas in the Forest goal. They have had just three shots in this half despite having 81 per cent of possession.

90' + 1' There will be seven minutes of additional time.

90' Excellent from Gibbs-White. He spins past Odegaard outside the box before shifting the ball past White and driving his effort straight at Ramsdale. Arsenal look to build from the back, but he makes the most of a loose touch and sends the ball out for a throw-in before encouraging cheers from the crowd.

89' Forest win another free-kick in their own box. This time Saka brings down Yates and slows down the game. There was very little contact, but it was enough for the referee to stop the game.

87' Everybody apart from Ramsdale is inside Forest's half. Arsenal are playing the ball quickly around the Forest players in front of the box but are struggling to break the deeper layer of their defence. Every Forest player is doing their job to block paths to pass and move. This has been a disciplined performance from the home side.

85' Vieira rushes down the left side of the box and lofts a cross into the heart of the box. However, Navas claims it and calms the pressure.

83' Forest are doing everything right. This time Aurier matches the run of Tierney, who rushes down the left and towards the byline. The former Celtic man tries to send a cross into the box, but Aurier gets in the way to block, with the ball coming off Tierney and behind for a goal-kick.

81' Gibbs-White has a throw-in before giving it to Niakhate. His long throw-in is cleared to the edge of the box and Arsenal look to break through Vieira. However, the ball hits the referee and the game stops.

W. Boly

Felipe

79' Substitution at centre-back for Forest. Felipe is replaced by Boly.

B. Johnson

T. Awoniyi

79' Cooper makes two changes. Awoniyi may have scored the winner that keeps Forest in the division. He is on his way off and is being replaced by Johnson. He will be able to stretch the pitch with his pace.

M. Gibbs-White

Yellow Card

78' Yellow Card Morgan Anthony Gibbs-White

Gabriel Magalhães

Yellow Card

78' Gibbs-White controls the ball on the halfway line and turns past Gabriel. The centre-back knows that he has gone past him and trips the Forest man. They clash heads before being separated.

77' Gibbs-White's deep free-kick from the right just inside Arsenal's half is cleared away by Gabriel. The ball rolls out to the right but the referee stops the game for a free-kick. The away side now have possession again.

75' Odegaard lifts a cross into the box but Aurier heads it away. Arsenal have looked better since the introduction of Nketiah, with the striker happy to receive the ball inside the box and connect the attack.

C. Kouyaté

Danilo

73' Danilo is making his way off the pitch slowly. Cooper is looking to keep the clean sheet and adds a more defensive midfielder to the side, bringing on Kouyate for the final 17 minutes.

72' Lodi gets forward down the left flank and gets on the end of a pass from Danilo before dragging his shot across the goal and wide.

Fábio Vieira

L. Trossard

70' Arsenal make a change during the stop. Trossard has been one of Arsenal's main creators since joining the club but has not been able to make an impact today. Vieira is on.

69' Gibbs-White and Gabriel clash outside the box, with the ball bouncing out to Jorginho just outside the box. The Italy international lashes his effort just wide of the target. Gibbs-White is still down and needs medical attention.

67' WIDE! Gibbs-White with a huge chance. Partey has the ball inside his own half and drills a pass back into the feet of White, who is unable to control it. Gibbs-White comes away with it and powers into the box before firing a low effort wide from a narrow-angle.

65' Forest are winning a few free-kicks in their half and are doing well to break any momentum that Arsenal are creating. Danilo hits the floor this time after struggling from an earlier challenge from Jesus and might not be able to continue. Kouyate is getting ready.

K. Tierney

J. Kiwior

63' Kiwior did not look comfortable in the left-back position and is now coming off. Tierney takes his place.

E. Nketiah

G. Xhaka

63' Arteta has seen enough and is making a couple of changes. He adds another attack to the mix, with Nketiah replacing Xhaka

61' SAVE! First chance for Arsenal since the restart. White curls a pass down the right flank towards Saka who rushes forward. The winger blasts an effort towards the near post, with Navas getting down to push it behind.

60' Anthony Taylor stops the game because Mangala is on the floor. After a quick discussion with the referee, he is back on his feet and the game continues.

58' Despite a half-time talk from Mikel Arteta, Arsenal look no closer to finding a solution in the attack. Forest are not offering a lot going forward but they have no need to with a lead to protect.

56' Frustrating couple of minutes for Arsenal. Odegaard and White try to curl a pass down the right but nobody makes the run to get on the end of the pass. Forest are being aggressive and Arsenal are reacting to it.

Gabriel Jesus

Yellow Card

54' Jesus has his hands in the air and is looking at the referee and the linesman. He tries to get on the end of a throughball from White, but his shirt is pulled by Worrall. He is shown a yellow card for his complaints.

53' Arsenal are passing the ball neatly around the Forest box but cannot find there way inside. Every time they try and drill a smart pass into the feet of Jesus, he is unable to keep it under control and Forest come away with it. The forward is getting crowded out.

51' Arsenal have lost their final away league game in two of the last three seasons (winning one), as many times as they had in their previous 18 campaigns (winning 11, drawing five).

49' A heart in mouth moment for Ramsdale. He looks to catch Lodi's inswinging corner from the right, momentarily losing control of the ball before claiming it on the second attempt.

48' Gibbs-White chips a free-kick into the box towards Felipe, who heads the ball from left to right. Yates attacks it, but Jorginho is there to head it away.

47' Arsenal will not be too worried at the moment. They have only lost one of their previous five Premier League matches in which they trailed at half-time (v Man City in April), with the Gunners coming back to win three of those five games (drawing one, losing one).

46' Arsenal get the ball rolling again. If everything stays the same, Forest will be safe in the Premier League and Manchester City will be champions.

Forest have defended phenomenally. They are sitting in a strong shape and are not letting the Arsenal wingers get involved in the game. Saka has regularly been forced back with possession or inside where it is compact. When he has been able to run at Lodi, the Atletico Madrid loanee has stopped him every time. As for Arsenal, they are 45 minutes away from losing the Premier League title to Manchester City. They must be more urgent on the ball and look to hit Forest on transition when they are out of their usual formation. Partey has been fine, but he does not look comfortable when dribbling down the right. Smith Rowe or Vieira should come on to add an extra creator to try and make something happen for the away side.

Forest are close to securing Premier League survival, with Awoniyi's first-half strike giving them the lead at the break. Odegaard was unusually loose with the ball and sent a pass straight into the feet of Gibbs-White. The former Wolves man drove forward with possession before sending a pass down the right towards Awoniyi with Gabriel's sliding challenge connecting with the ball before rebounding off the foot of the striker and past Ramsdale. Arsenal had six shots before the break but were unable to truly test Navas. Jesus headed an effort over before hitting a tame shot straight at the goalkeeper. Saka also found Trossard with two corners but he missed the target with volleys.

45' + 4' HALF-TIME: NOTTINGHAM FOREST 1-0 ARSENAL

45' + 4' Saka wins a late corner after his right-footed cross is deflected behind. He drives a cross towards Trossard on the edge of the box, but he volleys his effort well over and the whistle sounds for half-time.

M. Niakhaté

Yellow Card

45' + 2' Niakhate goes into the book after spending too much time over a throw-in inside the Forest half.

45' There will be four minutes of additional time.

44' Saka tries to test the Forest defence with another inswinging cross from the left, but he sends the ball out for a goal-kick. He is not happy as nobody made a run towards the ball.

43' Saka cuts the ball onto his right foot and sends a powerful cross into the box. it takes a defection on the way through and spins into the air, with Navas punching it clear under pressure from Odegaard.

42' Niakhate has caused a lot of problems with his throw-ins into the middle of the Arsenal box, but he sends this one straight to Ramsdale.

41' White looks to chip a pass from deep into the Forest box towards Xhaka, who rushes forward to make an option. However, Felipe gets his body in front of the ball and allows Navas to collect it.

40' Though they haven't beaten Arsenal at home in the league since December 1996, Forest have won their last two meetings with the Gunners overall at the City Ground, winning FA Cup ties in 2018 and 2022. They last won three in a row against them between 1984 and 1986.

38' Saka has struggled so far. He is finding it difficult to compete with the physicality of the Forest defence and has not been able to get past Lodi on the right.

36' Danilo breaks down the left and curls a pass into the path of Awoniyi just outside the box. Ramsdale spots the problem and rushes out to slide the ball away. The offside flag then goes up.

34' Danilo has been brilliant since joining Forest in January but wastes a chance for Forest. Mangala does well to spin past a couple of Arsenal players and sends a pass down the left to Danilo. He is up against White and looks to go past him, but the right-back is quick to stop the danger.

32' Arsenal are trying to create an attack inside Forest's half, with Odegaard letting the ball go through his legs and into the feet of Saka. However, he was not thinking the same as the Norway international and Lodi comes away with it. Saka then trips the left-back and gives away a foul.

30' Gibbs-White sends a deep free-kick into the box, but referee Anthony Taylor stops the game before Forest can attack the ball. Free-kick to Arsenal inside their own box.

29' Partey drives a pass into the feet of Jesus, who spins past Niakhate before playing a quick one-two with Odegaard. Jesus then makes space for himself outside the box and shoots over.

27' Partey gets to the byline and wins a corner off Niakhate. Saka then curls the ball into Trossard who makes a late burst into the box, but his volley goes well wide.

T. Awoniyi

Yellow Card

25' Awoniyi scored the opener and now has a yellow card for elbowing the face of Gabriel.

22' Jesus looks for an immediate response, protecting the ball from Felipe inside the box before hitting a tame effort straight at Navas.

20' Awoniyi has scored five goals in his last three Premier League appearances, one more than he had in his first 23 games in the competition combined (four).

T. Awoniyi

Goal

19' GOALLLL! AWONIYI SCORES! 1-0 FOREST! A huge goal for Forest in the battle against relegation. Odegaard gives the ball straight to Gibbs-White, who drives through the middle of the pitch before sending a throughball into the feet of Awoniyi inside the box. Gabriel comes across to put a tackle in, but the ball hits the striker and goes past Ramsdale in the Arsenal net.

17' OVER! Saka's inswinging corner is knocked towards Jesus by Aurier. The former Manchester City man rushes in at the back post but heads his effort over the bar.

16' Arsenal won 5-0 against Nottingham Forest in the reverse fixture at the Emirates this season – only once have they done the Premier League double over Forest, doing so in 1998-99.

14' There is some concern around the City Ground as Niakhate is on the floor. Odegaard landed on him, with the Forest man needing attention. However, he will be able to continue.

13' Odegaard is in the middle of the action again and slides a pass out to the right towards Partey. The midfielder then plays a soft pass into the feet of Jesus in the box who turns and shoots. However, his low effort is blocked.

11' Odegaard has the ball on the right and plays a short pass across to Trossard just outside the box. The Brighton man has men around him but is able to slide a pass into the box and through to Jesus. He beats the offside flag but is unable to get onto the end of the pass, with Navas rushing out to claim.

10' Arsenal were under pressure at the start of the game but are slowly getting into the fixture. They have had a lot of possession but are struggling to make a breakthrough.

8' Gibbs-White rushes down the right and wins a corner off Gabriel. Lodi then puts a cross in but it is poor, with Trossard clearing it away at the first opportunity. A free-kick is also given for a foul on Jorginho.

6' Jorginho has possession in a deep position and launches a long pass into the box with Jesus running down the right side. Felipe comes across and takes him down, protecting the ball and letting it out for a goal-kick.

4' The City Ground crowd are cheering Forest on. The hosts have had most of the possession in the opening few minutes and are putting Arsenal under pressure. Cooper's side are launching the ball into the box at every opportunity.

2' Niakhate threatens the Arsenal box with a long throw-in, but the away side get the ball away. They try to hit Forest on the counter, however, Gibbs-White recovers possession and sends it all the way back to Navas.

1' Jorginho hits the floor after Yates clatters into him. He spends a short amount of time on the ground in the Arsenal half before returning to his feet.

1' Forest get this game under way. Yates with the first kick in this huge fixture.

Forest have won just two of their last 10 home league games against Arsenal (drawing one, losing seven), with this the first time they're hosting them in the Premier League since a 1-0 loss in January 1999.

Arsenal make two alterations to the side that lost to Brighton. Gabriel Martinelli’s season is over after sustaining an ankle injury and is replaced on the left by Trossard. Partey also comes in for Tierney, with Xhaka dropping to left-back.

Cooper keeps the faith in the team that drew with Chelsea and names an unchanged side. Danilo is fit and starts just behind Awoniyi and alongside Gibbs-White. Johnson is on the bench again.

ARSENAL SUBS: Matt Turner, Kieran Tierney, Emile Smith Rowe, Eddie Nketiah, Rob Holding, Fabio Vieira, Mauro Bandeira, Amario Cozier-Duberry, Reuell Walters.

ARSENAL (4-3-3): Aaron Ramsdale; Ben White, Jakub Kiwior, Gabriel Magalhaes, Granit Xhaka; Martin Odegaard, Jorginho, Thomas Partey; Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard.

NOTTINGHAM FOREST SUBS: Wayne Hennessey, Harry Toffolo, Sam Surridge, Brennan Johnson, Cheikhou Kouyate, Remo Freuler, Emmanuel Dennis, Willy Boly, Andre Ayew.

NOTTINGHAM FOREST (3-4-2-1): Keylor Navas; Joe Worrall, Felipe, Moussa Niakhate; Serge Aurier, Orel Mangala, Ryan Yates, Renan Lodi; Morgan Gibbs-White, Danilo; Taiwo Awoniyi.

Arsenal must beat Forest to go within two points of Premier League leaders Manchester City and keep their faint hope of lifting the title alive. A loss will officially end their hopes of winning the league for the first time since 2004, with a draw giving them an almost impossible challenge due to their vastly inferior goal difference. The Gunners had played an extra fixture than Pep Guardiola's men after beating Leeds United at the start of April, but they were still eight points clear of their title rivals. However, just two wins in their last seven games have dented a stealer season for Arsenal, most recently succumbing to a 3-0 loss at home to Brighton and Hove Albion.

Forest have boosted their chance of avoiding relegation after a good run of form. Steve Cooper’s men moved out of the drop zone after losing just one of their last four games, beating Brighton and Hove Albion and Southampton before collecting a point against Chelsea. They are now three points ahead of 18th-placed Leeds United and will guarantee their survival in the top-flight if they better the result of the Whites, who face West Ham United, and at least match the number of points that 19th-placed Leicester City gain against Newcastle United. Forest have won seven, drawn six and lost five of their 18 matches at the City Ground.

Hello and welcome to the live commentary for the Premier League clash between Nottingham Forest and Arsenal.

Nottingham Forest v Arsenal Live Commentary, 20/05/2023

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