BRIGHTON, England (AP) — Arsenal stretched its Premier League lead to seven points with a 4-2 win at Brighton on Saturday capped by a well-worked breakaway goal from Gabriel Martinelli.
Goals from Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Eddie Nketiah had Arsenal 3-0 up by the 47th minute and seemingly cruising to an easy win, but Kaoru Mitoma kept Brighton in the game with a goal 25 minutes from time.
Odegaard then provided a sublime throughball for Martinelli to race half the length of the field and poke in a fourth to restore the three-goal advantage.
Brighton substitute Evan Ferguson claimed his first Premier League goal in the 77th and Mitoma thought he had set up a tense finish with an 89th-minute strike, but it was disallowed for offside.
Despite an unnecessarily nervy end, the win meant Arsenal took full advantage of City's slip-up earlier as the defending champion was held to a 1-1 draw at home against Everton. Third-place Newcastle, meanwhile, saw its six-game winning streak end with a 0-0 draw against Leeds.
Brighton had won three of its last four but Saka put the visitors ahead after just a little more than a minute when he reacted quickly to control a deflected shot from Martinelli before sidefooting into the net.
Odegaard was once again Arsenal's main orchestrator in midfield and nearly set up Martinelli for a second with some remarkable footwork in the area but ended up doubling the lead himself in the 39th. The ball fell to the Norway international in the area after a corner and, while he scuffed his shot into the ground, it bounced perfectly to sail into the net.
Nketiah then seemingly put the result beyond doubt just after the restart when he was on hand to send in a rebound after another shot from Martinelli, making it two goals in two starts for the Arsenal academy product in the absence of injured striker Gabriel Jesus.
Brighton refused to surrender, though, and Mitoma stayed just onside to collect a pass in the area and slot a shot past Aaron Ramsdale to give the hosts some life.
Suddenly Brighton was pouring forward, but Odegaard made them pay with a perfectly weighted first-touch pass that set Martinelli clear on the counter. The Brazilian outpaced Tariq Lamptey from halfway before finishing low under Robert Sanchez for the fourth.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta exuberantly celebrated the goal on the touchline, but there was still plenty of drama for him to endure.
Poor defending from William Saliba allowed 18-year-old striker Ferguson to sneak in and poke a milestone goal through the legs of Ramsdale.
The Gunners then looked to be in real danger of throwing away two points when Mitoma diverted his second of the game into the bottom right corner.
But the jubilant atmosphere was swiftly quelled by VAR intervention before the visitors navigated six minutes of added time to tighten their stranglehold on first place.
Manchester United 1, Wolverhampton 0
In London, after sleeping in late, Marcus Rashford helped Manchester United come awake in the Premier League.
Rashford was dropped to the bench for disciplinary reasons after being late for a team meeting but responded by coming off the bench to give a sluggish United side the spark it needed, scoring the only goal in United's 1-0 win at Wolverhampton on Saturday.
It was enough to lift United into the top four for the first time this season, with Erik ten Hag's side ending the year on a high after three straight wins.
Ten Hag's decision to drop Rashford looked to have backfired as United struggled in attack, but the England forward came on after halftime and scored a well-taken goal in the 76th minute. And, unlike Cristiano Ronaldo earlier in the season, he had no problems with the manager's decision.
"I was a little bit late for a meeting. I slept in, overslept, but it can happen," Rashford said. "I'm obviously disappointed not to play but I understand the decision and I'm happy we managed to win the game anyway. I think we can draw a line under it and move on."
Ten Hag also seemed ready to move on, having seen once again how important Rashford is to his team's attack.
"Everyone has to match the standards and rules. We have to have consequences and it is what I expect on the pitch. He gave the right answer," Ten Hag said of Rashford. "I was not satisfied with the performance in the first half. We have to be more clinical and we know Rashy can score the goals and that's what he did."
Rashford netted his 11th goal of the season after he collected the ball on the left before cutting inside and swapping passes with Bruno Fernandes, then dribbled his way past two defenders to sweep it past goalkeeper Jose Sa.
It was a rare bit of quality for United, with striker Anthony Martial and winger Antony both struggling to make an impact. But after a terrible start to the season, United has now lost just one of its last 15 games since a humiliating 6-3 derby loss to Manchester City in October. And with the Ronaldo saga finally concluded — the Portugal star joined Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr on Friday after being released by United in November — Ten Hag's team looks ready to challenge for a Champions League place again.
"It's the first time we are in the top four," Ten Hag said. "But it means nothing because it's a long way to go."
Manchester City 1, Everton 1
In Manchester, Demarai Gray scored a spectacular equalizer as struggling Everton had an unexpectedly happy end to the year with a 1-1 draw against Manchester City.
Erling Haaland looked to have put the defending champions on course for victory in a scrappy Premier League contest at the Etihad Stadium with his 21st league goal.
The prolific Norwegian struck in clinical fashion after 24 minutes but Gray responded with a sublime curling effort from the edge of the area just after the hour.
John Stones had earlier hit the post against his former club but Everton showed great resilience to hang on and limit City’s formidable Haaland-led attack.
It ended a run of three straight league losses for Everton and eased some of the pressure on manager Frank Lampard.
Haaland, as ever, had looked like he would make the difference early on. He threatened for the first time when he latched on to a fine throughball from Kevin De Bruyne and rounded Jordan Pickford but fired into the side-netting.
City claimed the lead when Riyad Mahrez slalomed his way through the area and pulled back for Haaland, who finished clinically on the turn.
Everton had welcomed Dominic Calvert-Lewin back into their side after a number of injuries but struggled to provide him much service.
Idrissa Gueye did curl in one dangerous cross but Calvert-Lewin was unable to make clean contact with his header.
The second half got off to a slow start, not helped by a lengthy holdup for one of the assistant referees to have his communication equipment repaired.
When play restarted it was Everton which surprisingly clicked into gear first, bringing the visitors an unlikely equalizer just after the hour.
City backed off as Gray charged into the area, and although he slipped as he tried to cut back inside Manuel Akanji, he quickly regained his composure to curl a shot into the top corner.
Everton’s attempts to disrupt the flow of the game then began to frustrate City. De Bruyne shrugged off some crude challenges but Jack Grealish and Haaland got some rough treatment.
City piled on the pressure in the latter stages but Pickford saved well from Mahrez in a goalmouth scramble and numerous other attempts on goal were blocked.
With 11 minutes of stoppage time played, it was a nervy finish for the visitors but they held on with some dogged defending.
Fulham climbed to seventh place with a 2-1 win over Southampton, while Crystal Palace earned a 2-0 victory at Bournemouth.
Newcastle 0, Leeds United 0
In Newcastle, Fabian Schar wasted three good chances as Newcastle’s six-game winning streak in the Premier League was halted by a 0-0 draw against Leeds.
Schar and fellow defender Dan Burn had the best chances for Newcastle, but neither was able to break the deadlock despite Eddie Howe’s team dominating much of the game without finding a way past goalkeeper Illan Meslier.
As a result, Newcastle had a disappointing finish to 2022 but still sit in third place in the standings ahead of Tuesday’s trip to leader Arsenal. Meanwhile, the result could ease a bit of the pressure on Leeds' American manager Jesse Marsch after two straight losses.
After a bright start from Leeds, Newcastle eventually took control in the game with the link-up between Kieran Trippier and Miguel Almiron down the right starting to pay dividends, and it was the fullback who handed Schar the chance to open the scoring from a 21st-minute corner, although the Switzerland international’s downward header flew just wide.
Brenden Aaronson saw a dangerous shot blocked seconds later, but the Magpies might have gone ahead when Joelinton headed Trippier’s 24th-minute corner back across goal only for Burn to miss his kick.
The home side’s frustration continued immediately after the break when Schar recycled another corner from Trippier beyond the far post, only to blast his shot over, before Chris Wood was denied by Meslier after running on to Burn’s knockdown.
Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope was forced into his first genuine save 12 minutes after the restart, diving to his right to turn away Rodrigo’s well-struck effort and Newcastle stepped up a gear to pin Leeds back deep inside their own half.
Meslier repelled Schar’s 62nd-minute header and Sean Longstaff fired over after Joelinton’s enterprising run seconds later, prompting Howe to introduce Callum Wilson and Allan Saint-Maximin.
Longstaff cleared the crossbar once again after good work by Almiron as an increasingly fractious contest entered its final quarter, but the visitors held firm.
Fulham 2, Southampton 1
In London, Joao Palhinha's late goal gave Fulham a 2-1 win over Southampton, leaving the visitors stranded at the bottom of the Premier League.
James Ward-Prowse thought he had secured a first point under new Southampton manager Nathan Jones after making up for an own-goal in the first half by equalizing from a free kick in the 56th minute.
But Palhinha struck a minute from time with a far-post header to leave Southampton in last place, despite Fulham's top scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic then missing a stoppage-time penalty.
The win meant Fulham climbed above west London rivals Chelsea and Brentford into seventh place.
It was Fulham's first home match since the death of 1966 World Cup-winning fullback George Cohen, and a tribute was paid before the game with former manager Roy Hodgson and Cohen’s son Anthony laying down wreaths.
Pele was also remembered before kickoff, and Saints striker Che Adams immediately tried to emulate the Brazil great with a shot from near the halfway line as Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno was out of his goal. Just like Pele’s famous effort against Czechoslovakia, the ball drifted wide.
Fulham’s Brazilian, Willian, was then teed up by Andreas Pereira and fizzed a first-time shot into the side-netting.
Fulham took the lead in the 33rd minute.
Willian lifted a corner to the edge of the penalty area from where the lurking Pereira hit a volley which deflected off Ward-Prowse’s shin and looped into the net.
Pereira almost doubled the lead after the break when he met Bobby Decordova-Reid’s cross at the near post, but he could not steer it on target.
Instead Southampton equalized after Decordova-Reid fouled Adams in the perfect range for Ward-Prowse.
The England international curled a superb effort from 22 yards over the wall and past the diving Leno.
Kenny Tete could have put Fulham back in front after a spill by Saints keeper Gavin Bazunu, but the full back shanked his shot wide.
Both teams pressed for a winner, and it was Fulham that scored it when Tete headed on Pereira’s corner and Palhinha nodded it home.
Dan James was then fouled in the area in stoppage time but Bazunu kept out Mitrovic’s spot kick.
Crystal Palace 2, Bournemouth 0
In Bournemouth, Crystal Palace picked up three points in its final game of 2022 with a 2-0 win at Bournemouth.
Jordan Ayew opened the scoring when he rose highest to meet Michael Olise’s corner and cushioned a header into the bottom right corner from the edge of the six-yard box in the 19th minute.
The midtable Eagles extended their lead in the 36th after Olise once again set up a teammate from a perfectly placed corner. This time it was Eberechi Eze, who wasted no time in curling a right-footed effort into the bottom left corner from close to the penalty spot.
Both teams paid tribute to soccer great Pelé with a minute’s applause before the egame started under heavy rain.
New Bournemouth owners Bill Foley and actor Michael B. Jordan were introduced on the field before kickoff.
Bournemouth is 15th, three points above the relegation zone.
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