Two familiar faces returned to haunt Arsenal’s rivals this weekend, with Eddie Nketiah and Danny Welbeck taking points off Liverpool and Chelsea in the Premier League.
At Selhurst Park, Nketiah produced a 97th-minute winner to give Crystal Palace a deserved 2-1 victory over Liverpool, ending the Champions’ winning start to the 25/26 campaign, and making them pay for their inability to win games before the last 10 minutes.
Palace battered Arne Slot‘s side in the first half, unfortunate to go into the break only one goal up. Predictably, Liverpool levelled in the 87th minute and looked set to break Palace (and Arsenal) hearts but when Marc Guéhi flicked on a long throw into the six-yard box in the last play of the game, Nketiah was alive to the chance.
He controlled the ball with his chest before lashing an unstoppable finish through Alisson’s legs to win the game at the death. It was the kind of instinctive strike Arsenal fans have seen many times before, a poacher’s goal delivered under maximum pressure, keeping Palace’s unbeaten start to the campaign intact in a game Slot admitted Palace deserved to win.
At Stamford Bridge, Welbeck was ruthless in Brighton colours, scoring twice in 33 minutes to sink Chelsea in a 3-1 win.
His first was textbook centre-forward play, combined with awful defending, as he found acres of space in the Chelsea box to meet Yankuba Minteh’s driven cross with a powerful header that left the goalkeeper helpless. He’d only been brought on 10 minutes earlier.
10 minutes into stoppage time, Welbeck struck again when Brighton’s press won the ball back close to the Chelsea box.
A lovely pass played him in and, from a similar position to Nketiah’s goal against Liverpool, Welbz lifted the ball into the top left-hand corner, again giving Robert Sanchez no chance.
After the game at Palace, Nketiah told the media, “It was a nice flick-on, and I just tried to stay calm and focus on my first touch.
“I trust myself with both feet and it was a nice finish with my left foot, with a bit of a nervous wait for VAR!
“It is nothing less than the boys deserved. We never give up, we never stop believing.
“That’s what our fans are known for, creating a great atmosphere, and [the celebrations] shows the togetherness of the group. Anyone that’s not playing wants to come on and make an impact and help the team, and the boys that are playing are fighting and are really strong. It’s a solid three points.
“We always keep believing. There was still time to play. The Manager said to stay calm and you will get another situation, and thankfully we did and I scored.
“In the first-half we had multiple chances. There aren’t many teams who can create that much against Liverpool so credit it to us. It was a thoroughly deserved three points, so I’m happy to be able to help and contribute.”
Welbeck’s goals against 10-man Chelsea, meanwhile, ended the former Gunner’s goal-drought this season, bringing his total to four goals and two assists against Chelsea in his last five games against them.
The 34-year-old now has 39 goals for the Seagulls, along with 17 assists, more than he scored for any other side.
He turns 35 in November.