Madueke scores late winner as Arsenal beat Nottingham Forest

Noni Madueke scored a second-half winner for Arsenal against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Sunday, earning his side three points in their defence of the Premier League title. The England international, introduced at half-time, has scored two goals this season in all competitions.

Madueke has started just one top-flight game this season, a 2-1 win over Leeds that was Arsenal's last Premier League outing before they beat Oliver Glasner's side on Sunday. Arsenal's summer activity included a search for an elite forward and the left wing was identified as a key area, but bids for Vinicius Jr and Julian Alvarez were unsuccessful. The only arrival to cover that position was Christos Tzolis, signed to replace the outgoing Leandro Trossard, and Tzolis began the season as Mikel Arteta's first-choice winger. As a result, Madueke and Eberechi Eze have had most of their minutes from the bench or in the Carabao Cup.

Tzolis suffered a hamstring injury while playing for Greece, which opened an opportunity for Madueke to stake a claim for more starts. Arteta had singled Madueke out after his start against Leeds, praising him as the club's best player during the international break and saying the winger "grabbed it (the start) with both hands". Madueke also started on the right wing against Lille in a Champions League win on Tuesday, supplying the assist for the opening goal.

Arteta brought Madueke on at half-time against Forest and the winger said he carried the manager's instructions onto the pitch: "Hang in there, stick to the game plan, go out there and try to attack the opposition, be dangerous, be yourself and be good defensively as well." He scored in the 80th minute with a deflected shot after cutting in on his weaker right foot; speaking about the finish, Madueke said: "I'd beaten him on the outside a couple of times so I thought I'll come inside and just let rip."

Madueke has not always been universally accepted by Arsenal supporters since his move from Chelsea, with a 'No to Madueke' petition launched after his signing and ongoing criticism of inconsistency. Since his £48.5m arrival he has contributed as Arsenal lifted their first title in 22 years and played a significant role as the club reached the Champions League final. Last season he scored eight goals and provided four assists in 43 appearances in all competitions, though questions over his end product have persisted; the article adds that he is "one of Arsenal's most direct players and England manager Thomas Tuchel and his staff also rate the winger as one of the best players in one-versus-one situations."

Arteta spoke about Madueke's personality and recent form, saying: "Noni, look at me, a smile on my face because he is a special character," and adding that players named Madueke as someone they would call if they had a problem. "He is just a special guy," Arteta said, before noting: "He is in a good moment." He also commented: "After the break, he is showing something else, another level of anger, another level of conviction as well as in his actions and he is becoming decisive in matches, which is what we expect from a player like him." On positional flexibility, Arteta said: "He is a player that doesn't really mind left or right, but he has played many more minutes on the right side. The team needs him there at the moment and he is doing well."

Arteta has labelled his substitutes "finishers" to underline squad importance, and since the start of last season Arsenal substitutes have contributed to 26 Premier League goals, more than any other side. The article cites examples, saying Bruno Guimaraes scored the winner against Leeds from the bench last time out in the league while substitutes Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and captain Martin Odegaard played a major role in the last two goals in the win over Lille. Arteta rejected the notion Arsenal were overly reliant on bench players, saying: "There have been other games as well that we have had to score in the first half," and "We have played 11 competitive matches and we won 10. We are getting a variety of ways to win in many different contexts." He also reflected on the Forest match: "I had the belief that the moment the physical level was going to drop, the spaces would be a little bit bigger, the timing more and we would be more efficient there. And the finishers delivered because the context of the game changed a little bit."

Madueke's late strike secured three points that contribute to Arsenal's defence of their Premier League crown and come as the club have won 10 of their 11 competitive matches this season, according to Arteta.