Three and easy for the Gunners as new boys star against poor Forest

Emirates Stadium (Picture: Charlie Stong)

Arsenal 3 (Zubimendi 32, 79, Gyökeres 47)

Nottingham Forest 0

Arsenal’s new boys stole the show as Mikel Arteta’s side cruised to a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the Emirates this afternoon.

Two goals from Martin Zubimendi – the first a stunning volley from outside the area – and Viktor Gyökeres’s third strike in four games sealed a comfortable victory.

But the real headline was the dominance of Arsenal’s summer signings, with Eberechi Eze running the left side and Noni Madueke producing a man-of-the-match display on the right.

It was Madueke who fashioned the game’s first clear opening. His cross was nodded down into the path of Mikel Merino, starting in place of the rested Declan Rice, but the Spaniard fired straight at Matz Sels from close range.

In the same move, Martin Odegaard appeared to jar his shoulder – the same injury that forced him off against Leeds recently – and he was soon replaced by teenager Ethan Nwaneri.

From the resulting corner, Gabriel somehow headed wide from barely three yards out as Arsenal looked to turn their early dominance into a goal.

That eventually arrived on 32 minutes, and in spectacular fashion. Chris Wood’s defensive header dropped invitingly to Zubimendi, who crashed home a swerving volley that gave Sels no chance.

Forest, in Ange Postecoglou’s first match in charge, looked organised but created little. Their only moment of threat before the break came when Morgan Gibbs-White dragged wide under pressure from Gabriel in stoppage time.

Arsenal doubled their advantage almost immediately after the restart. A lofted pass released Eze down the left and his pinpoint cross was turned in by Gyökeres from close range. VAR checked the offside but the goal stood.

That momentarily seemed to spark Forest into life, and Wood went close with an improvised chest-flick that David Raya superbly tipped on to the bar in his 100th Arsenal appearance.

But Arsenal were soon back on the front foot. Eze and Gyökeres combined again, the Swede’s low drive cannoning off the post.

Madueke, however, was the game’s outstanding individual. Time and again he embarrassed Neco Williams, beating the full-back for fun and pulling Forest’s defence apart with his direct running.

The Gunners’ supporters took delight in taunting Postecoglou with chants of “you’re getting sacked in the morning,” as the former Tottenham boss cut an increasingly exasperated figure on the touchline.

Arteta managed his squad sensibly with tough fixtures ahead, withdrawing Gyökeres and introducing Rice with 20 minutes left. But there was still time for Zubimendi to add his second, and Arsenal’s third, heading in substitute Leandro Trossard’s cross on 79 minutes to round off a fine afternoon.

The only blemish was Odegaard’s injury, which will be a concern with Athletic Bilbao, Manchester City and Newcastle looming in a gruelling fortnight ahead.

Still, this was a performance that underlined the impact of Arsenal’s new recruits – Zubimendi clinical, Gyökeres sharp, Eze elegant and Madueke simply unplayable.

If these players continue in this vein, the Emirates could be in for a memorable season.

Teams:

Arsenal: Raya, Mosquera, Gabriel, Odegaard (Nwaneri 17), Eze (Trossard 79), Timber, Gyokeres (Rice 69), Madueke (Martinelli 79) , Merino, Calafiori (Lewis-Skelly 69), Zubimendi

Nottingham Forest: Seis, Williams, Morato, Murillo (Savana 36), Sangare (Yates 73), Hudson-Odoi (Kalimuendo 60) Anderson, Gibbs-White (McAtee 73), Wood (Bakwa 60), Ndoye, Milenkovic

Referee: Darren England