MX23RW : Saturday, November 23 21:57:28| >> :60:838:838:

Ten-man Arsenal hold on for victory over Sunderland

A first-half goal from Santi Cazorla is enough to give Arsenal a 1-0 victory over Sunderland.

Santi Cazorla's strike in the first half secured 10-man Arsenal a 1-0 victory over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

Arsenal's manager Arsene Wenger during his side's game with Sunderland on February 9, 2013© PA Photos

Arsenal quickly took control of the game early on, with Theo Walcott twice being denied by Simon Mignolet inside the first 10 minutes.

Chances were hard to come by for the hosts but Steven Fletcher could have given his side the lead when he found space inside the box; however, his header was comfortably saved by Wojciech Szczesny.

Arsenal's Santi Cazorla scores during his side's match at Sunderland on February 9, 2013© Owen Humphreys / PA Photos

Cazorla opened the scoring with a drilled effort following good work from Walcott and Jack Wilshere as Arsenal finally got the reward their pressure deserved.

Aaron Ramsey could have doubled his side's lead shortly before the interval but the midfielder lacked composure in front of goal, firing his shot straight at Mignolet.

Arsenal were dealt a blow early in the second period when Wilshere suffered an injury and had to be replaced by Abou Diaby.

Sunderland improved following the departure of Arsenal's influential midfielder and Fletcher sliced a shot into the side-netting despite finding himself in some space inside the area.

Arsene Wenger's side's hopes of holding on for a victory looked bleak when Carl Jenkinson was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Stephane Sessegnon.

Sunderland applied plenty of pressure onto the Gunners after the red card and Fletcher was once again denied by Szczesny as the Black Cats searched for an equaliser.

Arsenal managed to secure the three points, with Szczesny making his best save of the match from the head of Fletcher as the game entered its final stages.

ID:68474: cacheID:68474:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4217:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Santi Cazorla
Read Next:
Half-Time Report: Cazorla puts Arsenal ahead
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
10Fulham125341717018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Crystal Palace121561017-78
19Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
20Southampton11119721-144


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!