Arsenal surged to the top of the Premier League table with a commanding 3-0 victory over Fulham on Saturday, opening a six-point gap over second-placed Manchester City in the title race.
The Gunners delivered a ruthless first-half performance, scoring all three goals before the break. Viktor Gyökeres struck twice, either side of a Bukayo Saka effort, to settle the contest early at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal started with intent, and Saka created the opener in the ninth minute when he outmuscled Raúl Jiménez before laying the ball on a plate for Gyökeres to tap into an empty net. The Swedish striker turned provider just before halftime, finding Saka who beat former Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno at his near post to double the lead. Gyökeres then headed in Leandro Trossard’s cross deep into stoppage time to make it 3-0.
The second half was a subdued affair as Arsenal managed their advantage comfortably, preserving their clean sheet. The result leaves Arsenal on 76 points from 35 matches, while Manchester City have 70 points from 33 games. Fulham remain 10th with 48 points.
Elsewhere in the Premier League on Saturday, Brentford boosted their European hopes with a 3-0 win over West Ham United, Newcastle ended a five-match losing streak by beating Brighton 3-1, and Sunderland were held 1-1 by already-relegated Wolves after a controversial red card for hair-pulling.
Igor Thiago scored his 22nd Premier League goal of the season as Brentford beat West Ham 3-0 at the Gtech Community Stadium. The Brazilian converted a second-half penalty after Konstantinos Mavropanos had turned into his own net in the first half. Mikkel Damsgaard sealed the win with a composed finish in the 82nd minute. West Ham, who hit the woodwork three times and had a goal ruled out by VAR, remain 17th, just two points above the relegation zone.
At St James’ Park, Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe breathed a sigh of relief as his side beat Brighton 3-1, ending a run of five straight defeats. Goals from William Osula, Dan Burn, and Harvey Barnes secured the points, despite Nick Pope’s shaky goalkeeping and several missed chances from Brighton. Newcastle climb to 13th with 45 points, five behind seventh-placed Brighton.
In the day’s other match, Sunderland’s Daniel Ballard became the second Premier League defender this season to be sent off for hair-pulling after yanking the hair of Wolves forward Tolu Arokodare. Sunderland had taken an early lead through Nordi Mukiele but were reduced to 10 men in the 24th minute. Wolves equalized through Hugo Bueno in the second half, earning their first point since March. The draw leaves Sunderland three points adrift of the European qualification places.
