Madueke’s 80th-minute goal gives Arsenal 1-0 win at Forest

Madueke decides it in the 80th minute

Arsenal beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 at the City Ground, with Noni Madueke scoring the only goal in the 80th minute. Declan Rice provided the assist as Arsenal moved from 0-0 to 0-1, a scoreline that held until full time.

Madueke had entered at half-time for Eberechi Eze and later became the match-winner. Arsenal also introduced Jurriën Timber, Viktor Gyökeres and Mikel Merino in the 66th minute, while Forest brought on Arnaud Kalimuendo and Ibrahim Sangaré during the closing stages. The decisive goal arrived before those late changes could alter the result.

Arsenal controlled possession but Forest stayed competitive

Arsenal had 74% possession and completed 569 accurate passes from 634 total passes, compared with Forest’s 158 accurate passes from 224. The visitors also held the advantage in expected goals, 1.09 to 0.79.

However, the scoreline was narrower than the possession gap. Forest recorded 14 shots to Arsenal’s 9, including 8 shots inside the box to Arsenal’s 7. Arsenal had only 1 shot on goal, while Forest had 2, although Arsenal’s two goalkeeper saves helped preserve the lead.

Neco Williams received Forest’s yellow card in the 17th minute, and Madueke was booked for Arsenal in the 53rd. Neither side received a red card.

Rice leads the ratings as Arsenal strengthen second place

Rice was the standout performer, earning a 7.7 rating across 90 minutes, with the assist and 3 key passes. Murillo led Forest’s ratings at 7.6.

The post-match standings list Arsenal second with 18 points from 7 games, while Forest are 18th with 5 points from 7 games. Arsenal are 13 points ahead of Forest and 3 points behind leaders Manchester City. Pre-match form had listed Forest’s latest sequence as loss, draw, draw, win, loss, loss, loss, while Arsenal’s was win, win, win, win, loss, win, win.