"That was a brilliant bit of management" - Danny Murphy hails Mikel Arteta's 'ruthless' decision in Arsenal's 3-2 win over Bournemouth

Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy hailed Mikel Arteta's 'ruthless' substitutions yesterday (March 4) as Arsenal produced a miraculous comeback to beat Bournemouth 3-2 at the Emirates Stadium.

The Cherries took a shock lead when Philip Billing struck after just nine seconds, scoring the second-fastest goal in Premier League history. Newly-signed Leandro Trossard limped off injured in the 22nd minute and was replaced by the returning Emile Smith Rowe.

Japan international Takehiro Tomiyasu was given a chance to impress at right-back but struggled to get into the game and was swiftly replaced by Arteta for Ben White at half-time.

The Gunners kept pushing for an equalizer but conceded a second after the break via a Marcos Senesi header in the 57th minute.

Smith Rowe provided an assist for Partey to half the deficit five minutes later but failed to be a threat down the left flank. Arteta made another bold choice by replacing him with Reiss Nelson in the 69th minute.

The move would pay dividends as Nelson teed up White to equalize before scoring a 97th-minute screamer into the top corner to seal all three points for Arsenal.

Danny Murphy was impressed with Arteta's boldness, as well as how effective his substitutions were. On BBC's Match of the Day, he said:

“He made two substitutions today that were ruthless. Tomiyasu at half time for not playing particularly well. Ben White came on and scored the goal. He brings Emile Smith Rowe off who had already come on as a sub, to sub a sub, to bring Reiss Nelson on, not thinking really about the player and the effect.

He added:

"He is thinking, ‘This is what we need for the team’. And I thought that was a brilliant bit of management.”

Arsenal maintain their lead at the top of the table with 63 points. They are currently five points ahead of Manchester City.

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta explains why he took off Emile Smith Rowe for Reiss Nelson

Smith Rowe was given barely 45 minutes of game-time against Bournemouth before being substituted for match-winner Reiss Nelson.

Arsenal boss Arteta explained why he made the move as he spoke to the media in the post-match press conference:

"We didn’t plan to throw him in so early in the game. We knew it was difficult for him to last for 70 minutes on the field after missing almost five months of football. I think he had a good impact in the game and at the end I felt we needed something else, especially on the left because we were lacking a threat and attracting more players to that side. That’s why we made the decision to bring Reiss on."

Arsenal next face Sporting CP at the Estadio Jose Alvalade in the Europa League Round of 16. Their first leg clash is scheduled to take place on March 9.