Arsenal have successfully come through an edgy finale to push their Premier League lead to four points with a 2-1 win over Wolves at their Emirates Stadium home.
At the other end of the table, Everton launched their rebuilding job after the record points deduction for financial mismanagement by winning at Nottingham Forest 1-0 on Saturday. (Sunday AEDT).
With closest rivals Manchester City not playing until Sunday (Monday AEDT), the Gunners took full advantage with Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard netting in the opening 13 minutes before a late Matheus Cunha strike had them holding on for the points.
Saka needed just six minutes to open the scoring after being slipped through by Takehiro Tomiyasu, and they doubled their lead seven minutes later when Oleksandr Zinchenko squared for Odegaard to sweep home.
Arsenal missed their chances to kill the game off and the visitors made them battle for the points after Nelson Semedo nipped the ball off the toes of Zinchenko and Cunha slammed home.
Dwight McNeil proved Everton’s second-half goalscoring hero as the Merseyside club, which has been plunged into the relegation mire as a result of the 10-point penalty for breaching the league’s financial rules, outplayed Forest.
They got the goal the performance merited when a cross from the right found McNeil at the back post and the midfielder lashed a diagonal shot into the top corner in the 67th minute.
Fellow strugglers Burnley grabbed their first Premier League home win in style as they hammered rock-bottom Sheffield United 5-0 at Turf Moor.
Jay Rodriguez headed Vincent Kompany’s side in front after just 15 seconds and Jacob Bruun Larsen doubled the lead in the 28th minute, with United ending the first half a man down after Oli McBurnie collected two yellow cards in quick succession.
More pain followed for United in the second half as Zeki Amdouni and Luca Koleosho scored two in the space of three minutes before Josh Brownhill added a fifth to pile pressure on Blades boss Paul Heckingbottom.
Second-half goals from Neal Maupay, Ben Mee and Shandon Baptiste earned Brentford a 3-1 home win over Luton.
Baptiste’s strike effectively sealed the points after Jacob Brown had pulled a goal back for the visitors, but the Bees’ win could have come at a price with Kristoffer Ajer limping off during the warm-up.