Gabriel Jesus shines as Arsenal thrash Crystal Palace 5-1

KATHMANDU: Arsenal secured a commanding 5-1 victory over Crystal Palace in the English Premier League, with Brazilian forward Gabriel Jesus delivering a standout performance in his return from injury.

The win helped Arsenal close the gap with the top teams.

Jesus scored twice, while Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli, and Declan Rice each netted a goal. Crystal Palace’s Michael Olise scored a lone goal for the hosts.

The match, held at Selhurst Park in London on Saturday night, saw Arsenal take the lead in the 6th minute through Jesus, who finished off a pass from Gabriel.

Since returning from injury last month, Jesus has shown he’s fully fit, starting in the first XI.

However, Palace quickly responded in the 11th minute, with Olise scoring to level the game 1-1.

Just minutes later, in the 14th minute, Jesus scored his second goal from a Thomas Partey assist, putting Arsenal back in the lead at 2-1.

Arsenal then extended their lead with three more goals.

Havertz found the net in the 38th minute to give Arsenal a 3-1 lead at halftime. In the 60th minute, Martinelli scored from a pass by Rice, making it 4-1. Rice sealed the victory with a goal in the 84th minute, completing the 5-1 win.

With this victory, Arsenal moved up to third place, narrowing the points gap with leaders Liverpool and Chelsea.

Arsenal now have 33 points from 17 games, while Liverpool have 36 points from 19 matches, and Chelsea have 34 points from 18 matches. Crystal Palace remain in 15th place with 16 points.

In another Premier League match, Alexander Isak’s hat-trick helped Newcastle United to a comfortable 4-0 win over Ipswich.

Jacob Murphy also scored once for Newcastle, who are now in 7th place with 26 points. Ipswich remain in 18th place with 12 points.

Nottingham Forest defeated Brentford 2-0, while West Ham and Brighton played out a 1-1 draw.