Bukayo Saka marked his return from injury with a crucial goal as Arsenal secured a 2-1 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage.
However, the win was overshadowed by a worrying injury to defender Gabriel Magalhães, raising concerns ahead of Arsenal’s upcoming clash with Real Madrid.
Mikel Arteta’s side started brightly but faced resistance from a disciplined Fulham defense.
Their breakthrough came late in the first half when Ethan Nwaneri set up Mikel Merino, whose deflected strike beat Bernd Leno for his sixth league goal of the season.
In the second half, Gabriel Martinelli continued to trouble Fulham’s backline, but it was substitute Saka who sealed the win just seven minutes after coming on.
Merino played a lofted ball into the box, flicked on by Martinelli, allowing Saka to finish clinically.
Fulham had a late opportunity to set up a tense finale when Adama Traoré’s pinpoint cross found Rodrigo Muniz unmarked, but the Brazilian shockingly missed.
He later redeemed himself as his shot deflected past David Raya to pull one back, but Arsenal held on for all three points.
