Arsenal were held to a goalless first half by Nottingham Forest at the City Ground, with neither side managing a shot on target in a dull opening 45 minutes.
The Gunners returned to Premier League action on the banks of the River Trent looking to avoid successive away defeats, having lost 3-0 at Brighton a month ago. Mikel Arteta’s side arrived in good spirits after beating Lille in midweek to continue their perfect start to the Champions League league phase.
Team news and injury blows
Preparations were disrupted by a fresh injury blow to Piero Hincapie following last weekend’s win over Leeds, though Martin Zubimendi could return. Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard were expected to start.
Forest began the day a point clear of the relegation zone after back-to-back defeats either side of the international break. Oliver Glasner hoped to have influential midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White available for selection.
First-half action
Arsenal dominated possession but created little. Havertz broke into the box and fired into the side netting, while a Forest free kick from a threatening position was struck straight into the wall by Williams, with Guimaraes down after taking the ball to the face.
At the interval, the score remained 0-0. Matt Verri reported from the City Ground that it was an “incredibly dull 45 minutes,” with Arsenal doing “basically nothing” with the ball.
Second half underway
Forest made a change at the break, with Madueke replacing Eze. Early in the second half, Havertz was penalised for handball as McAtee tried to hit a volley, giving Forest a free kick in a good position.
Verri noted that Arsenal had been much better in the second half of matches this season, but added that today’s set of “finishers” did not look quite so dangerous, with all their best attackers and Guimaraes already on the pitch.
