December 14, (THEWILL) — Arsenal moved five points clear at the summit of the English Premier League after two own goals gave them a fortunate 2-1 victory over bottom-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.
The Gunners failed to register a single shot on target until the 67th minute before benefiting from bizarre own goals by Sam Johnstone and Yerson Mosquera.
The match between the division’s top and bottom sides appeared destined for a stalemate despite the 31-point gap between them after 15 games.
Arsenal’s breakthrough arrived in the 70th minute when Bukayo Saka’s inswinging corner struck the far post before rebounding off Johnstone’s shoulder and into the net.
Declan Rice had forced the goalkeeper into a save just three minutes earlier with a curler aimed at the bottom-right corner.
Wolves refused to surrender and looked to have earned an unlikely point when Tolu Arokodare glanced home a delivery from Mateus Mane in the 90th minute.
Four substitutes combined in the build-up, with Fer Lopez and Jhon Arias keeping possession alive before Mane’s cross found Arokodare.
Arsenal snatched victory during six minutes of stoppage time through another defensive error. Mosquera turned a second Saka cross past his own goalkeeper whilst attempting to clear ahead of Gabriel Jesus, condemning Wolves to a heartbreaking defeat.
The Gunners will now hope Crystal Palace can do them a favour when they face Manchester City on Sunday.
Wolves risk falling 16 points from safety by the weekend’s conclusion, leaving their survival hopes in tatters after just 16 matches.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
