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Arsenal are off to a flying start in the Premier League as they procured their fourth victory of the season in four games on Saturday, August 27 against Fulham.
The Gunners successfully turned the game into the latter stages to win the game 2-1 after Aleksandar Mitrovic put the visitors in the lead.
The Serbian capitalized on a schoolboy error from centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes, who took way too much time with the ball. The striker pounced on the chance by winning the ball back and keeping his composure to score in the 56th minute.
The hosts bounced back eight minutes later through a swift counter attack that rounded off with a deflected finish from Martin Odegaard to draw level.
It wasn't a happy homecoming for German shot-stopper Bernd Leno, who joined Fulham from Arsenal earlier this summer.
He completely missed a corner from Gabriel Martinelli and failed to get a fist on the ball. It went on to strike William Saliba and fall kindly to his fellow centre-back Gabriel. The Brazilian made amends for his defensive error with a late goal by tapping the ball into an open net.
In this article, we shall look at the top five talking points after the table toppers successfully overcame their London rivals Fulham.
#5 Leno vs Ramsdale: There's only one winner!
Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has made a habit of bailing out Arsenal at crucial stages of the game since signing for the club from Sheffield United last summer.
The Englishman was preferred over his former teammate Leno, who was the deciding factor in today's game.
Leno was guilty for the Gunners' second goal after he failed to get a hand on the ball from the corner, which kindly fell to Gabriel.
On the other hand, Ramsdale made two crucial saves, including a late shot to prevent the visitors from equalizing. Fulham's Nathaniel Chalobah tried to steer the ball into the far post. However, Ramsdale covered up the ground to save and parry the ball into a safe area.
#4 Mitrovic looks ready for the Premier League.. finally
The misconception that Aleksandar Mitrovic might not be able to perform in the Premier League could finally come to an end. He had a prolific 43-goal season in the Championship last season. However, there were still doubts after he scored just three goals the last time he was in the Premier League (2020-21).
The striker has already scored more than his previous Premier League season's tally, scoring four goals. This includes a brace against Liverpool, a winner against Brentford, and a self-made goal against Arsenal.
The Serbia international converted the only chance he had in the game by manifesting his determination and commitment. Mitrovic kept himself busy by winning battles in Arsenal's backline.
The Fulham forward won nine duels and continuously kept troubling the hosts' defense.
He has now scored 47 goals in his last 47 league matches across the Championship and the Premier League.
#3 Skipper Odegaard steps up again for Arsenal
Martin Odegaard continued from where he left off against Bournemouth. Arsenal's skipper, who scored a brace against the Cherries last week, was once again in the thick of things. He scored a goal and created two key chances against a well-organized Fulham side.
Odegaard created a clear goalscoring opportunity for Bukayo Saka, who failed to convert despite finding himself in a one-v-one situation in the first half.
The Norwegian scored yet another important goal after he found the back of the net through a lung-bursting counter-attack in the second half. It is imperative that Odegaard continues to produce consistent displays for the Gunners.
#2 Fulham's game play nearly paid off
Fulham hardly gave Arsenal a sniff apart from the two goals they conceded throughout the game. Marco Silva's side were well-organized and produced a committed display to make things tougher for their opposition.
The Gunners took eight shots on target, but most of them were ambitious efforts from outside the penalty box.
Fulham have started the 2022-23 Premier League campaign on a positive note by acquiring five points in their opening four games. They drew against Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers and beat Brentford before losing to Arsenal.
They will be hoping to produce consistent displays to stay in the English top division.
#1 Arsenal's grit overcame the visitors
The Gunners were frustrated for most of the first half as Fulham managed to negate the home side's threats.
Despite conceding an early goal in the second half, though, they didn't let their heads down and worked hard for three points. Odegaard's immediate reply and Gabriel's persistence to score that goal after being responsible for Fulham's opener is all about Arsenal right now.
While it wasn't an eye-catching display, scrappy wins play a huge part in securing a good position in the league at the business end of the season. It is yet another three points for Arsenal as they look to finish as high as possible and finish in a Champions League spot this campaign.
