Saka Sparks Arsenal Past Fulham 3-0 in Arsenal - Fulham

Bukayo Saka's first start since the Carabao Cup Final ended with an assist, a goal and a 3-0 win in arsenal - fulham at Emirates Stadium on Saturday. The Arsenal winger had been managing a persistent Achilles issue, and his return gave Mikel Arteta exactly the attacking lift he had been waiting for.

Saka Sets Arsenal's Tempo

Saka helped open the match in the ninth minute, setting up Viktor Gyökeres for Arsenal's first goal. He then scored himself in the 40th minute, turning a controlled first half into a statement before halftime.

Gyökeres finished the scoring in first-half stoppage time with a header for Arsenal's third. Arteta replaced Saka at halftime with Noni Madueke, but the damage was already done.

Arteta Gets the Response

Arteta said, "It certainly was one of the best, and there was a certain connection in the team that I had a feeling that it was going to provoke that" after the 3-0 result. He added, "We had some fresh legs from a few players, you could notice that big time, because the individual performance increased, and then the team flowed in a different way."

The numbers backed that up. Arsenal posted 2.39 expected goals, completed 87% of their passes into the final third, and completed 70% of their long passes while making 30 progressive passes.

Fulham Face More Pressure

Fulham manager Marco Silva said the squad had been battling a virus all week, and Bernd Leno and Raúl Jiménez were among the names in the side Arsenal controlled. The defeat leaves Arsenal with momentum before a Tuesday trip to face Atletico Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League semifinal.

The win also left Arsenal with a six-point advantage over City and a four-goal advantage over City, with City holding two games in hand. Shaka Hislop said he believes Arsenal are now the clear favourites to win the Premier League title after the victory.