Nottingham Forest vs Arsenal 0-1: Madueke's late winner keeps Arsenal three points off City

Nottingham Forest 0-1 Arsenal: substitute Noni Madueke scored the only goal in the 80th minute at the City Ground on Sunday, keeping Arsenal second in the Premier League and within three points of leaders Manchester City, Reuters reported via ARY News.

Madueke, who replaced Eberechi Eze at half-time, cut in from the left and hit a powerful drive that deflected past Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels. It was Arsenal's first shot on target of the match.

How it was won

For 80 minutes Forest kept Arsenal quiet. Mikel Arteta's side had no shot on target in the first half, something the manager said the players discussed at the break. He turned to his bench: Madueke for Eze at half-time, then Mikel Merino, Viktor Gyokeres and Jurrien Timber in the second half. The changes gave Arsenal the edge late on.

"We had to earn it until the last second," Arteta said. "We stayed focused and the finishers made a huge impact. Noni obviously the highlight because he scored the goal and that's the difference."

Forest's afternoon

Forest defended deep and in numbers, and for most of the match the plan worked: Arsenal had plenty of the ball but little in front of goal. The deflection that beat Sels was the kind of moment that decides tight games, and Forest could not find a reply in the last ten minutes.

Where it leaves Arsenal

• Form: six wins in seven league games and three in a row since the 3-0 defeat at Brighton on 19 September.
• Table: second, three points behind Manchester City.
• Next: Bayern Munich away in the Champions League on Wednesday, after a 3-0 win over Lille in the last round.

The result follows Arsenal's 2-1 comeback win over Leeds and their 3-0 Champions League win over Lille.

For Pakistani fans

Arsenal have a big following in Pakistan, and the title race with Manchester City is now a straight two-horse chase at the top. Elsewhere in Spain on the same weekend, Real Madrid beat Sevilla 4-1, the most searched match in Pakistan on Sunday night.