Arsenal vs Wolverhampton Wanderers. Premier League.
Emirates StadiumAttendance60,383.
The pressure is building on Unai Emery as Arsenal are booed off against Wolves, reports Adam Bate from the Emirates Stadium
Saturday 2 November 2019 19:49, UK
Arsenal surrendered another lead as Raul Jimenez earned Wolves a 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, handed the armband in Granit Xhaka's absence, had given Arsenal a first-half lead but Jimenez's 76th-minute header levelled things up to add to the pressure on Unai Emery.
It had already been an awkward week for Arsenal in dealing with the fall-out from Xhaka's outburst but while crowd-favourite Mesut Ozil was restored to the line-up, the Gunners were far from convincing.
Wolves had 25 shots in total and were well worth their equaliser as they extended their unbeaten Premier League run to six games in front of a subdued home support.
Arsenal's greater quality in the final third had given them the edge at the interval when Alexandre Lacazette showed great composure to feed Aubameyang for the opener.
Lacazette collected David Luiz's deflected cross and squared for his strike partner to slot the ball beyond Rui Patricio.
It should have seen Arsenal kick on from there but instead, it was Wolves who pushed for the equaliser with Matt Doherty forcing a good save from Bernd Leno just before the break.
Ruben Neves tested Leno early in the second half and the pressure continued to build before Joao Moutinho's hooked cross found Jimenez to level the scores late on.
As the Arsenal fans became increasingly agitated, Diogo Jota threatened to score a winner but both teams had to settle for a point with Emery's side being booed off, having surrendered a lead for the third time in a week.
Arsenal boss Unai Emery: "The most difficult thing is to score the first goal but we needed to score the second goal. We created some chances to score the second. We were controlling the match but we knew in one moment they could score. When they scored we started to push but we didn't create big chances. I think we deserved it more than them.
"It is disappointing. The players tried and they worked. They did all we were speaking about before the match. The players are like me. They feel the demand to win and take confidence from victory. So when they draw they are a little bit sad. But we are going to work to improve and continue our way. We can improve. We must improve."
Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo: "I expected a tough match and the reality is that it was a very difficult match. I think we started very well. The first 15 minutes we had possession and a few chances and should have punished them. After they score, everything becomes harder. But we finished on the front foot and were the stronger team in the final moments."
There was no real outstanding candidate for the man of the match in a game where both attacks looked capable of cutting through and providing the killer blow only to come up short - but nobody looked sharper than Diogo Jota. The Wolves forward was threatening throughout and seemed to become stronger as the game progressed. He almost won it for Wolves.
"He was a while out recovering from his foot," explained Nuno. "He finished the game very well. For a long time he couldn't play more than 75 minutes. So it is about managing that and improving his game time. He will improve his quality and all these aspects such as final touch."
Arsenal are in Europa League action away to Vitoria on Wednesday before facing Leicester at the King Power Stadium on Saturday.
Wolves host Slovan Bratislava on Thursday in the Europa League before facing Aston Villa at Molineux live on Super Sunday.
