Premier League leaders Arsenal overcame a two-goal deficit to defeat Bournemouth thanks to a remarkable 97th-minute strike from Reiss Nelson.
Philip Billing gave Bournemouth the lead after just 9.11 seconds, and Marco Senesi’s header gave them a 2-0 advantage.
Before Nelson scored, Thomas Partey and Ben White for Arsenal had evened the score.
In the seventh minute of stoppage time, the winger, playing for the first time since November 12th, crashed in from 25 yards.
When it appeared as though they might lose ground to Manchester City, who defeated Newcastle in the early kickoff, Arsenal’s advantage in the Premier League has been restored to five points.
While Bournemouth threatened a massive shock and started off quickly, they nevertheless find themselves in the relegation zone.
Billing’s goal was the second-fastest in Premier League history; Shane Long’s goal for Southampton against Watford in April 2019 took just 7.69 seconds to score.
Before being brought in as a second-half replacement here by Mikel Arteta, Nelson had only played 64 minutes of Premier League football this season due to thigh issues.
The indigenous talent, though, emerged as the surprise hero by collecting a partially cleared corner beyond the area and beating Bournemouth goalkeeper Neto with a spectacular shot.
Following the game-winning goal, there was a tremendous outpouring of passion; the Arsenal bench was nearly cleared as everyone ran to join the celebration.
Prior to that, Nelson almost made his first Premier League touch of 2023 by assisting White to tie the score.
After Takehiro Tomiyasu experienced a pathetic 45 minutes, White was introduced as a halftime substitution. White connected with Nelson’s long cross first time, and his effort was palmed away by Neto from behind the line, with referee Christopher Kavanagh confirming it via goalline technology.
What’s astonishing is that Nelson would have been extremely unlikely to make it to the field had Arsenal’s plans gone according to schedule. Leandro Trossard’s injury in the first half required him to replace Emile Smith Rowe, who had been a substitute himself.
Yet, championships are frequently won with unforeseen turns, memorable moments, and great goals.
Arteta would have liked his team to get off to a quick start in order to reclaim the lead against City. He received the complete opposite.
Dango Ouattara received a pass from Joe Rothwell that was wide from the kickoff, and his low ball across the box was dummied by Dominic Solanke and missed by Gabriel because he let it go beneath his studs. Billing got through William Saliba’s careless marking and completed beneath Aaron Ramsdale.
A win, or even a point, would have given Bournemouth a significant boost in their fight against relegation since the performance that gained Gary O’Neil the permanent manager’s position is now a distant memory and they have only one win in their previous 12 games