Yerson Mosquera’s stoppage-time own goal handed Premier League leaders Arsenal a dramatic 2-1 victory over bottom club Wolves at Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
Mikel Arteta’s side were repeatedly frustrated by a stubborn Wolves back five and did not take the lead until the 70th minute, when Bukayo Saka’s curling corner was pushed on to the post by Sam Johnstone before rebounding off the goalkeeper’s back and into the net.
Arsenal became increasingly anxious as they tried to see the game out, inviting pressure and allowing Wolves to pump balls into the box. That approach appeared to backfire in the 90th minute when Mateus Mane crossed for Tolu Arokodare to head home an equaliser.
With supporters fearing the chance to extend their advantage at the top had slipped away, Arsenal found one final twist. Saka cut in from the right and curled a cross towards substitute Gabriel Jesus, and Mosquera, attempting to clear, glanced a header beyond his own goalkeeper to spark huge relief inside the stadium.
“It was a rollercoaster,” Arteta told BBC Match of the Day. “The longer the game went on, they had hope and we had to accelerate our game and take more risks.
“We did find a way and that’s a very positive thing, if not we’d be very frustrated and rightly so, but there are things to improve obviously.”
There was a setback for Arsenal in the first half when Ben White was forced off with a hamstring injury.
The win leaves the Gunners five points clear of Manchester City, who can close the gap against Crystal Palace on Sunday, and allows Arsenal to turn their attention to a difficult trip to Everton next week. Even so, there was a sense they had escaped against a Wolves side still without a league win this season.
Arsenal again struggled to break down a low block, failing to register a shot on target in the first half as Wolves slowed the game at every opportunity. Their opener came from a set-piece error, and the winner from another defensive mistake.
Tension grew inside the Emirates, shaped by three successive second-place finishes and heightened by recent wobbles, including draws with Chelsea and Sunderland and last week’s defeat by Aston Villa. Arsenal’s retreat after taking the lead echoed that uncertainty, and they were almost punished.
Arteta and his squad remain well placed, but the closing stages underlined the growing pressure of a title race, one that will only intensify as the season progresses.
