Arsenal came from behind to beat Leeds United 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium, moving level with Manchester City on 15 points at the top of the Premier League.
James Justin put the visitors ahead shortly after the break, but a Riccardo Calafiori header and a stunning Bruno Guimaraes strike earned the Gunners all three points.
Slow Start and Leeds' Golden Chance
Arsenal had three weeks to dwell on their heavy defeat to Brighton before the international break, but they hardly flew out of the traps against the determined and unbeaten visitors.
With the Emirates crowd growing increasingly frustrated, Leeds had a golden chance to open the scoring. After Anton Stach was picked out free at the back post, his effort was blocked by his own player Jayden Bogle.
That was a theme for much of the first half, where despite dominating possession, Arsenal failed to land a glove on Daniel Farke's charges.
Second-Half Response and Stunning Winner
It was much of the same after the break, so much so that when James Justin's opener came, it was richly deserved.
Arteta demanded a response from his players on the sidelines and got the perfect one after the hour mark when Riccardo Calafiori headed the Gunners level.
With Arsenal back on the front foot, they got themselves in front with a sublime team goal. Bukayo Saka found Martin Odegaard, who in turn found Declan Rice. It was then Rice's intricate flick that teed up Guimaraes to fire the Gunners ahead.
That goal appeared to break Leeds' resistance, with Arsenal able to hold on to join Manchester City on 15 points.
Gyokeres Benched Again
If Mikel Arteta was ever going to start Viktor Gyokeres, this felt like the time. During the recent international break, the Swede scored four in four matches, helping his nation to three victories and a draw.
Conversely, Kai Havertz managed 29 minutes for Germany before suffering an injury which kept him on the sidelines for the rest of the break.
Gyokeres also has good memories against Leeds, having scored three times against them last season. So it was all set up for him to finally start in the Premier League and kick-start his second season in the top flight. Or so we thought.
Instead, with Havertz deemed fit enough to start, Gyokeres had to be content with a spot on the bench yet again.
Sat on that bench he must have been looking at the pedestrian Arsenal attack in the first half and wondering just how far his stock had fallen to not get the nod.
It is only a little over 12 months since Arteta handpicked Gyokeres as the final piece of the Gunners jigsaw. A year on, and after a summer in which Arsenal publicly pursued his replacement, his future at the Emirates appears bleak.
Arteta finally turned to the striker after the hour mark, but it was hardly a vote of confidence for a player so desperately in need of one. And when he did finally come on, he failed to do much convincing and looked a different player to the one with such swagger that we see in a Sweden shirt.
The Arsenal boss clearly does not trust him to regularly spearhead the attack, and unless there is a major U-turn in the coming weeks, his days in North London look numbered.
Title Race and Leeds' Credentials
Make no bones about it, for 63 minutes of this one, Arsenal were bereft. The players were flat, the crowd were flat, and for a while it had all the trademarks of a sleepy Saturday lunchtime performance.
Leeds were full of confidence and their lead was completely warranted when it came. But when Arsenal needed to punch back, they found their second wind.
To say the Man City saga has opened the door in the title race would be an understatement…it has blown it off the hinges completely.
That would have made a second successive defeat very difficult to take. Instead, Arsenal steadied themselves and earned the kind of result that could be very important in seven months' time.
This time last year, Farke was under huge pressure at Elland Road and looked to be nearing the exit door.
Leeds stuck with their man and how they have been rewarded. They headed to the capital unbeaten, but for an hour, this was a statement performance.
Yes, their unbeaten run is over. But it is difficult to imagine Farke being too downtrodden about what his side offered at the home of the champions.
There is quality throughout their team, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin one of the in-form strikers in the entire division as the focal point.
Leeds' season will not be defined by results against the likes of Arsenal on the road, but this was a display that bodes extremely well for the rest of their season.
