Bukayo Saka and Riccardo Calafiori enjoyed a playful exchange on Instagram following the latter’s winning goal for Arsenal against Wolves on Saturday. Having missed the last few weeks due to injury, Calafiori came off the bench and marked his return in style with a low half volley that flew into the back of the net.
Four minutes prior to that strike, Wolves joined Arsenal in having 10 players on the pitch as Joao Gomes was shown a second yellow card. Just before half-time, Myles Lewis-Skelly was sent off by referee Michael Oliver after it was deemed that his late tactical foul on Matt Doherty was reckless and endangered the opponent.
As a result, assuming the red card is upheld, he will miss Premier League games against Manchester City and Leicester along with the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg away at Newcastle. Despite playing nearly 30 minutes at a man disadvantage, still claiming all three points will be huge for Mikel Arteta and his players.
Premier League leaders Liverpool enjoyed a far less chaotic afternoon with a 4-1 victory against Ipswich Town at Anfield ensuring the gap between themselves and Arsenal remains at six points. Third-placed Nottingham Forest meanwhile, suffered a damaging 5-0 defeat to injury-ravaged Bournemouth.
Despite having numerous first-team players unavailable, the Cherries are absolutely flying and Arsenal will be hoping they can continue that excellent unbeaten run next weekend against Liverpool. A similarly difficult task awaits the Gunners however, with Manchester City as the visitors to the Emirates Stadium.
Captain Martin Odegaard is expected to return after illness saw him miss out against Wolves while Arteta may be hopeful Ben White can feature. Saka and Gabriel Jesus are among those guaranteed to not play though, with Calafiori admitting he is missing the former.
