Jesus shines for Arsenal again
Crystal Palace 1 - 5 Arsenal
Gabriel Jesus delivered a stellar performance, netting twice as Arsenal thrashed Crystal Palace 5-1 at Selhurst Park, moving to within three points of Premier League leaders Liverpool.
The Brazilian forward has been in scintillating form, taking his tally against Palace to five goals in just one week after a hat-trick in Wednesday's Carabao Cup quarter-final.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta expressed his hope that Gabriel Jesus' hat-trick in the midweek match against Palace would provide the 'spark' he needed to regain his scoring form in the Premier League. Arteta's optimism paid off, as Jesus appeared revitalized, scoring his first Premier League goals in nearly 11 months.
This Arsenal victory came with a setback as Bukayo Saka was forced off with an injury in the first half.
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A closer look at the first-half fireworks
Jesus set the tone early, scoring in the sixth minute after Saka’s deflected cross fell into his path, allowing him to fire past Dean Henderson at the near post.
Palace responded swiftly, levelling the score just five minutes later when Ismaila Sarr curled a stunning strike into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Arsenal reclaimed the lead three minutes later through Jesus again, who curled a sublime effort into the top corner following a scrappy corner. The Brazilian came agonisingly close to another hat-trick in the same week when his header hit the post, but Kai Havertz was on hand to tap in the rebound and make it 3-1.
Both teams created more chances in a thrilling first half. Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta saw a close-range shot saved by David Raya, while Gabriel hit the bar with a header from Martin Ødegaard’s corner.
Palace 1 - 5 Arsenal Highlights here from the official Arsenal YouTube account - youtu.be/cJj3i-O61No?... More reaction coming here - eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com/p/premier-le...
— European Super Football (@superfootball.bsky.social) 22 December 2024 at 11:16
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Palace rue missed chances
Crystal Palace began the second half brightly but failed to convert their chances. Arsenal extended their lead when Gabriel Martinelli diverted substitute Declan Rice’s effort into the net.
Rice then put the finishing touches on an impressive team performance, curling a superb strike into the top corner to secure Arsenal’s fifth goal of the game.
They came into this match in decent form, having recovered well from a difficult start to the season.
With just one loss in their previous eight Premier League games, confidence was growing, but they were comprehensively outplayed on this occasion.
It’s been a challenging week for Crystal Palace. They largely relied on the same squad that featured in Wednesday’s EFL Cup defeat, while Arsenal, in contrast, had the luxury of rotating with eight changes to their starting line-up.
The best reaction
Far too easy for Arsenal against Crystal Palace. eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com/p/premier-le...
— SuperNewsAffiliate (@supernewsaffiliate.bsky.social) 22 December 2024 at 11:10
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I spoke to a number of other Arsenal fans after the match. Frankie Leach told us: "It has been a very good week for players, fans and the manager. It's always strange to face the same opponent twice in just three days. We started strong, but then we conceded a goal; however, the team reacted exceptionally well. Scoring five goals away from home in this league is never easy."
