Arsenal secured a comfortable 2-0 victory over relegation-threatened Luton Town on Wednesday, despite fielding a much-changed side. Captain Martin Odegaard fired the hosts into the lead in the 24th minute, before Japan defender Daiki Hashioka inadvertently put past his own keeper Thomas Kaminski in the 44th minute while trying to stop Reiss Nelson after Emile Smith Rowe was afforded too much space in the penalty area.
Luton’s Resilience and Arsenal’s Return to the Top
Luton suffered from a significant number of injuries during their match against Arsenal, to the point where they had a 16-year-old schoolboy defender, Christian Chigozie, on the substitutes bench. Despite this, they managed to prevent Arsenal from dominating the match. Additionally, Arsenal’s goalkeeper, David Raya, was required to prevent Ross Barkley’s free-kick from scoring at the end of the first half. Arsenal returned to the top of the Premier League with this win, moving on to 68 points – one point clear of Liverpool, who play bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United at Anfield on Thursday.
Line-ups
Arsenal
Arsenal lined up in a 4-3-3 formation against Luton. They started with Raya in goal, White, Saliba, Gabriel, and Zinchenko in defense, Ødegaard, Partey, and Smith Rowe in midfield, and Nelson, Havertz, and Trossard in attack. Tomiyasu, Martinelli, Nketiah, Jorginho, Fábio Vieira, Kiwior, Rice, and Ramsdale were on the bench.
Luton
Luton played in a 3-4-2-1 formation against Arsenal. They started with Kaminski in goal, Hashioka, Mengi, and Kaboré in defense, Onyedinma, Mpanzu, Barkley, and Doughty in midfield, and Townsend, Clark, and Morris in attack. Chong, Berry, Woodrow, Shea, Krul, Johnson, Chigozie, Nelson, and Piesold were on the bench.
Live Text
The match between Arsenal and Luton Town ended with a score of 2-0 in favor of Arsenal. The second half of the game had no goals, and Arsenal maintained their lead from the first half. Here are some of the key moments from the second half:
- Ross Barkley of Luton Town missed a header from the center of the box, which was assisted by Daiki Hashioka with a cross.
- Luke Berry of Luton Town also missed a header from the center of the box, which was high and wide to the right. Issa Kaboré assisted with a cross.
- Arsenal was awarded a corner after Thomas Kaminski of Luton Town conceded.
- Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal’s right-footed shot from outside the box was saved in the bottom left corner. Jorginho assisted.
- William Saliba of Arsenal won a free kick in the defensive half.
- Carlton Morris of Luton Town fouled Saliba.
- Daiki Hashioka of Luton Town’s right-footed shot from outside the box was blocked.
- Emile Smith Rowe of Arsenal was replaced by Jorginho.
- Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal won a free kick in the defensive half.
- Daiki Hashioka of Luton Town fouled Nketiah.
- Gabriel Martinelli of Arsenal fouled Alfie Doughty of Luton Town, who won a free kick in the defensive half.
- Andros Townsend of Luton Town was replaced by Luke Berry.
- Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal won a free kick in the attacking half.
- Daiki Hashioka of Luton Town fouled Nketiah.
- Takehiro Tomiyasu of Arsenal’s right-footed shot from outside the box missed to the right. Leandro Trossard assisted.
- Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal fouled Ross Barkley of Luton Town, who won a free kick in the attacking half.
Overall, Arsenal’s victory over Luton Town was a comfortable one, with Luton Town struggling to create many clear-cut chances throughout the match.