FIT and the sacking of Bukayo Saka showed England what they weren't really missing as he fired Arsenal to a crucial win that stopped the rot.
Match report
FIT and the sacking of Bukayo Saka showed England what they weren't really missing as he fired Arsenal to a crucial win that stopped the rot.
Saka cut short international duty with a defeat in the 1-1 draw against Chelsea, which had extended the Gunners' winless run in the Premier League to four games.
But the fortnight's rest had clearly done him good as he scored the early first and set up substitute Thomas Partey for the second shortly after the break.
It was a near-perfect afternoon for Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer as they clinked their jewelery on the posh chairs.
It ended with teenage sensation Ethan Nwaneri claiming his first Premier League goal and making it three.
But this match was all about Nwaneri's predecessor as the Gunners' Academy star boy.
Had England captain Harry Kane been watching in Munich, he might have raised an eyebrow at the quality and length (82 minutes) of Saka's performance.
Kane appeared to question the efforts of the many players who failed to appear in interim boss Lee Carsley's last two matches.
Even without Saka and others, England managed to fire eight goals past Greece and the Republic of Ireland.
But it became clear once again how important Saka is to this Arsenal team.
The same goes for captain Martin Odegaard, who also shone in his first home appearance since August after the ankle injury he suffered in the first international break.
Arsenal had come close twice, even before Saka's goal.
Leandro Trossard failed to beat Matz Sels from close range within two minutes and Jurrien Timber had the ball in the net within five minutes.
But after a long delay, VAR confirmed the on-field decision that Mikel Merino had been fractionally offside following Martin Odegaard's free-kick before Timber bundled the ball home.
Both sets of fans booed at how long it took, but the home support soon cheered.
Murillo blocked Odegaard's first shot, but the Arsenal captain then exchanged passes with Saka, who slid past three Forest defenders before smashing the ball past Sels.
Arsenal controlled the rest of the half, with Saka and Odegaard to the fore
At times, Arteta's players got in each other's way in their desire to extend the lead. Gabriel Jesus shot wide when he was well placed.
Forest's only threat came from a James Ward-Prowse free-kick that Ryan Yates headed over the bar.
Trossard forced Sels into another save with five minutes left of the break, after which the Belgian made an even better stop to keep out Saka's low effort.
The home fans were furious at the yellow cards handed out to Jorginho, Jesus and Saka, while Forest players escaped the same punishment for their fouls.
Ola Aina's injury-time booking was only slight consolation as they chased referee Simon Hooper and his assistants off the pitch at half-time.
Jorginho in particular had walked a fine line with his protests against Hooper's decisions.
It was no surprise when Arteta replaced him with Thomas Partey at half-time.
Espirito Santo also made a change, bringing on Jota Silva for the ineffective Anthony Elanga.
But it was Arteta who quickly looked like a genius.
Forest looked mesmerized as Saka prowled their penalty area. He laid the ball back to Partey, who had far too much time to tap the ball out of his feet and beat Sels with a shot that the Forest keeper perhaps felt he could have done more to stop.
It took Espirito Santo another ten minutes to make further changes.
His team then had their best period of the match, without forcing David Raya into a demanding save.
Central defender Nicolas Milenkovic headed over the crossbar, but that was about as far as the half-chances were concerned.
Raheem Sterling came on for Saka as Arsenal saw the game out comfortably and fellow substitute Nwaneri had come close to a third goal before converting Sterling's cutback.
Competition events
0' The match is about to start!
2' Shot by Trossard in the penalty area, saved by the keeper
5' Timber's goal is disallowed because Merino judges it offside
15' Complicated play by Saka ends with him heading home! Arsenal 1-0 Nottingham Forest
22' Oedgaard's attempt into the penalty area is stopped by the defender as Saka passes
24' Jorginho yellow!
26' Jesus' right foot shot into the penalty area wide
31' Yellow card! Jesus booked
40' Saka's shot blocked by defender after Trossard's attempt saved by keeper
42' Saka's left footed shot inside the penalty area, saved by the keeper
44' Saka yellow!
46' Jota Silva on and Elanga off, Jorginho off and Thomas on
52' Thomas Partey increases the lead for Gunners! Arsenal 2-0 Nottingham Forest
62' Chris Wood & Ramon Sosa on, Awoniyi & Dominguez off
66' Zinchenko on, Calafiori off
70' Jota Silva's shot blocked by his own teammate
72' match event for Arsenal vs Nottingham Forest
76' Yates header off the crossbar
84' match event for Arsenal vs Nottingham Forest
86' GOAL! Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest (Ethan Nwaneri)
88' match event for Arsenal vs Nottingham Forest
Setups
Arsenal XI: Trossard, Jorginho, David Raya, Martin Ødegaard, Merino, Jesus, Gabriel, William Saliba, Saka, Jurrien Timber, Calafiori
Subs: Neto, Sterling, Partey, Zinchenko, Rice, Havertz, Martinelli, Jakub Kiwior, Ethan Nwaneri
Nottingham Forest XI: Sels, Ward-Prowse, Álex Moreno, Aina, Taiwo Awoniyi, Milenkovic, Hudson-Odoi, Ryan Yates, Dominguez, Anthony Elanga, Murillo
Subs: Wood, Boly, Harry Toffolo, Jota Silva, Neco Williams, Carlos Miguel, Morato, Ramón Sosa, Eric da Silva Moreira
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