Arsenal player ratings vs Nottingham Forest: Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard offer title hope | OneFootball

Gunners captain lights up the Emirates Stadium on his first home appearance since August following injury

Arsenal closed the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to six points by beating Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

The Gunners ran out 3-0 winners at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to goals from Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey and Ethan Nwaneri.

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard was the star of the show, though, and he impressed on what was his first appearance at the Emirates since August.

The Norwegian has been out with an ankle injury, but his return will give Arsenal belief that they are still in the title race.

Simon Collings was at the Emirates Stadium to see Arsenal in action...

David Raya 6

An easy afternoon for the goalkeeper, who literally did not have a save to make all game. Solid and steady with his distribution.

Jurrien Timber 7

Had a goal ruled out early on after Mikel Merino was ruled offside in the build-up. A tireless performance and looks set for a good run in the team with Ben White out.

William Saliba 8

Did not give Taiwo Awoniyi a sniff and, at times, bullied him - which takes some doing. Oozed composure and class all game.

Gabriel 7

Unable to catch the eye as much as Saliba, but this was a steady performance as Arsenal kept a first clean sheet in the league since the middle of September.

Riccardo Calafiori 7

Made his first appearance since October 22 after being out with a knee injury. Put in a steady showing and kept Anthony Elanga quiet.

Martin Odegaard 9 | Star player

A dominant performance from the Arsenal captain, which underlined how badly they have missed him. Created the opening goal after a lovely give-and-go with Saka and the pair looked so sharp all game.

Jorginho 6

Handed just a third league start of the season and put in an assured display. Booked inside the opening 25 minutes and was taken off at the break, perhaps because he was on a yellow.

Mikel Merino 7

Still looks like he is getting used to the way Arsenal play, but this was a solid performance. The defensive side of his game was really good, especially in the air, and did a lot of dirty work.

Bukayo Saka 9

Opened the scoring with a brilliant finish into the top corner. Almost grabbed a second before the break, but Matz Sels made a top save. Grabbed an assist for Arsenal’s second to wrap up a great performance.

Gabriel Jesus 6

A surprise starter over Kai Havertz. Began the game brightly and went close with a curling effort. Faded and just lacked a bit of sharpness at times.

Leandro Trossard 7

Struggled for form lately, but was better today after being deployed on the left flank. Denied by a great save just before half-time.

Subs

Thomas Partey (Jorginho 45’) 8

On at half-time and doubled Arsenal’s lead within minutes thanks to a curling effort into the corner. Playing the best he has for years.

Oleksandr Zinchenko (Calafiori 67’) 6

Steady, which was what Arsenal needed at 2-0 up when he came on.

Ethan Nwaneri (Odegaard 82’) 7

A special moment for the 17-year-old as he came off the bench to score his first Premier League goal.

Raheem Sterling (Saka 82’) 7

Off the bench and made an immediate impact by setting up Nwaneri.

Jakub Kawior (Timber 89’) N/A

Subs not used: Neto, Rice, Martinelli, Havertz.