Danny Welbeck's powerful header gave Arsenal a 1-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion on Saturday as the london club hit back after back-to-back Premier league losses.
Welbeck scored in the 60th minute when Santi Cazorla ran toward the byline and chipped it back in front of goal. Welbeck soared above the West Brom defense and headed past Ben Foster despite the goalkeeper getting a hand to the ball. "The clean sheet is very important and we always believed in ourselves to score goals so it was a vital three points for us," Welbeck said.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger praised Cazorla for setting up Welbeck and securing the win, which leaves Arsenal fighting for a place in the Premier league's top four with 20 points after 13 matches. "Cazorla's class got us that goal," Wenger said. "He had a few opportunities in the first half. He cannot finish at the moment, but in providing he is still top class."
For West Brom, it was a third successive loss and the team failed to score in all three defeats. The team sits close to the relegation zone with 13 points. The Baggies did, however, give Arsenal a couple of scares toward the end at the Hawthorns. Saido Berahino's header crashed against the crossbar in the 81st and a shot by Craig Gardner flashed just wide of the near post in the 90th.
Berahino started the match despite being charged with drunk driving and not informing his club about it until around a month later. Arsenal's win came after a 2-0 victory against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions league on Wednesday. Prior to that win, Arsenal lost to Manchester United and Swansea in the league. Midfielder Aaron Ramsey hopes the team can now generate momentum after two consecutive clean sheets.
liverpool end losing streak
liverpool: Glen Johnson scored a late header to give liverpool a 1-0 win over Stoke in the Premier league on Saturday, ending a three-match losing streak.
Johnson's goal came in the 85th minute after Paul lambert's looping header came off the crossbar. Johnson raced to the rebound and headed it into goal. Stoke forward Bojan nearly equalized with a volley in added time, but goalkeeper Simon Mignolet's fingertips came to the rescue and the ball was diverted out for a corner.
After a poor first half with no shots on target, both teams hunted for a goal with a series of end-to-end chances in the second interval. liverpool moved into 11th place in the league with 17 points, just ahead of Stoke, which has 15 points.
Rooney, RvP score
Manchester: Robin van Persie answered his critics with a first Premier league goal in a month as Manchester United cruised to a 3-0 victory over Hull to remain in the top four on Saturday. Defender Chris Smalling and striker Wayne Rooney also scored as United completed a hat trick of wins for the first time under louis van Gaal.
After a slow start to the season, United's bid to return to the Champions league appears to be on track. United is two points behind Manchester City, which plays at second-placed Southampton on Sunday. Hull is only out of the relegation zone on goal difference.
The only downside for United, in a season that has already been blighted by injuries, was the loss of record signing Angel di Maria early on with a hamstring problem, while Rooney limped off after taking a blow in stoppage time.
