Premier League: Wolves 0 Arsenal 2 (Trossard 45, Odegaard 90+5)
MIKEL ARTÉTA made the strongest possible case for his defence after his side’s nerve was questioned going into the last handful of matches for the season. Even without a convincing left back, there is not a better defence in the Premier League than Arsenal’s. That is why they can face their final five games back at the top of the table and still with a chance of denying Manchester City a fourth consecutive title.
Maybe it will be the hope that kills them for Pep Guardiola’s City are rightly still favourites, as the destiny of the prize is in their hands. Arsenal, however, can create pressure of sorts in the form of a four-point gap if they beat Chelsea tomorrow before City play at Brighton on Thursday when they will have two games in hand.
The reason they have a chance is that Arteta has created the best and meanest defence in the top flight for some time. This latest away victory set an all-time club record, dating back to 1886, of six successive away clean sheets. It is a feat rarely achieved with only Liverpool matching it in relatively recent history, nine years ago.
Wolves were up for this game and created a cauldron of hate for the Londoners on what could have been a challenging Saturday night so soon after their return from Champions League disappointment away to Bayern Munich and the preceding weekend’s home defeat by Aston Villa. They looked leggy and understandably so, but they created such a strong foundation for success that they hardly gave Wolves a sniff of hope.
Gary O’Neil’s side were allowed one chance of note and Wolves had an xG of just 0.14, the lowest during Arsenal’s six-game run, with five shots in total. Not only do Arsenal keep the
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