Gabriel Jesus once again stole the show against Crystal Palace as Arsenal got back on track in the Premier League with a 5-1 rout at Selhurst Park.
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Jesus plundered a hat-trick against Palace in a 3-2 victory for the Gunners in the EFL Cup on Wednesday, and the Brazilian was on top form again on Saturday with a brace.
He opened the scoring in the sixth minute and put Arsenal back ahead after Ismaila Sarr had restored parity, before the striker’s header off the post set up Kai Havertz to make it 3-1 to the Gunners before half-time.
Arsenal had to rely on some sharp goalkeeping from David Raya before Gabriel Martinelli made matters even more comfortable, with Declan Rice then arrowing in a wonderful fifth.
The Gunners are now back in third, three points behind leaders Liverpool and one shy of Chelsea, having played at least one game more than both, while Palace remain 15th.
Arsenal, who wore black armbands in tribute to their former player George Eastham, who died at the age of 88, are back in third, three points behind leaders Liverpool and one shy of Chelsea, having played at least one game more than both, while Palace remain 15th.
The joy of their victory was lessened by the sight during the first half of Bukayo Saka limping off to be substituted with an apparent hamstring issue.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
15 | +18 | 36 |
| 2 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
16 | +18 | 34 |
| 3 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
17 | +18 | 33 |
| 4 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
17 | +4 | 31 |
| 5 |
Aston Villa
AVL
|
17 | 0 | 28 |
How the match unfolded
Jesus got the ball rolling in a scintillating start, tucking home from the edge of the six-yard box after Tyrick Mitchell had failed to deal with Saka’s cross. Palace were level five minutes later when Sarr drove forward from midfield and bent an exceptional low finish into the bottom-right corner.
But Jesus proved Palace’s nemesis again just three minutes later, this time with a sublime first-time finish from Thomas Partey’s layoff at a corner. Raya then had to drag Arsenal’s defence out of trouble when he denied Jean-Philippe Mateta a swift equaliser.
Jesus had a hand in Arsenal’s third in the 38th minute, as his towering header bounced off the upright for a grateful Havertz to tap in.
Sarr was twice denied a second by Raya early in the second half, and Arsenal made their goalkeeper’s work count on the hour. Jesus squandered a great chance for his hat-trick when he shot at Dean Henderson, but Martinelli made no such mistake as he turned home from Rice’s follow-up.
Rice himself added further gloss in the 84th minute, stroking home to round off an emphatic return to form and pulling off a celebration reminiscent of NBA star Steph Curry.
Game recognises game 💤
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 21, 2024
Declan Rice hit the Steph Curry celebration after scoring Arsenal's fifth goal against Crystal Palace pic.twitter.com/UkFBRcQaru
Christmas comes early for Jesus
Jesus’s opener was his first league goal since he scored against Nottingham Forest in January, ending a barren run of 23 top-flight appearances without a goal.
Having seen Jesus star in midweek, Mikel Arteta – who celebrated five years in charge of Arsenal on Friday – would have been a brave man to leave the striker out. The Brazilian struck fear into Palace’s defence in a whirlwind opening 15 minutes, with his second goal a thing of beauty as he curled home from the edge of the area.
Not that Arsenal had it all their own way, and they must be grateful to their goalkeeper for coming up big when required. After an early wobble when attempting to play it out from the back, which almost resulted in Will Hughes robbing possession in Arsenal’s area, Raya pulled off a string of top-class stops.
He made himself big to close down Mateta when Arsenal led 2-1, before producing two brilliant saves to frustrate Sarr after the break.
Arteta’s introduction of Rice just before the hour helped the Gunners regain control following those Sarr chances, and it was ultimately a comfortable victory for Arsenal, who put the past draws against Fulham and Everton behind them in style.
With Ipswich Town and Brentford to come over the festive period, Arsenal will hope any blip is well and truly over, albeit one worry for Arteta will be the fitness of Saka, after he hobbled off injured midway through the first half.
Eagles’ wings clipped
A resurgent Palace came into this London derby on the back of five games unbeaten in the league, while they had pushed Arsenal all the way at Emirates Stadium in the EFL Cup in midweek.
That strong form was on show from Oliver Glasner’s team during the first half, when they were arguably the better side in terms of creating clear-cut opportunities.
Their high press had already drawn a mistake out of Arsenal before Sarr capitalised on some unsure defending from Gabriel and William Saliba, who stood off as the former Watford and Marseille attacker approached the Gunners’ box and were duly punished by an unerringly accurate finish.
VAR may have been called into action had Mateta put away his one-on-one with Raya just after Jesus had put Arsenal back ahead, but Palace’s centre-forward should have done better regardless, even if the visiting goalkeeper did well.
There was also a chance for Jefferson Lerma, who might have done better with a header in first-half stoppage time, prior to Sarr’s chances to grab his second brace in as many league matches.
But once Martinelli put Arsenal three goals to the good, Palace struggled to assert themselves again in the match.
Eberechi Eze, out with a knock, watched on from the stands, as well as his former team-mates Wilfried Zaha and Michael Olise, and Glasner will want his talisman back to action swiftly, as Palace look to make amends for this result when they head to Bournemouth on Boxing Day.
Match reports
Palace report | Arsenal report
What the managers said
Oliver Glasner: "In football sometimes it's crazy when I compare the performance in the first half to the Emirates [in the Carabao Cup]. It was far better today but we were 3-1 down and there we had the lead so it's crazy because I thought we did many things well.
"The first goal was a cross the second was a set-play and the third was a cross where we don't mark the man - we defended the box terribly. The quality of their players they punished us. If you want to beat a team like Arsenal everything has to be almost perfect. It was not good enough today. We created chances but the result was disappointing. In the box too many times we watched the players."
Mikel Arteta: "A very good week. It is always weird to play the same opponent twice in three days. We started well and then conceded and the team reacted so well. To score five goals away from home in this league is never easy.
"You could see in the days before and after he [Jesus] was ready for it. I had no doubts. When a player is in that momentum he has to play."
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Match facts
Arsenal (W8 D2) are the first team to remain unbeaten in Premier League London derbies across a full calendar year since Chelsea in 2005, while it’s the first time the Gunners have done so since 2004.
Sarr has been involved in six goals in his last six Premier League appearances for Crystal Palace, scoring four and assisting two.
Jesus has scored five goals in his last two games for Arsenal in all competitions (all v Crystal Palace this week), as many as he had in his previous 45 appearances for the Gunners.