Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest: Mikel Arteta’s side get back to winning ways as Bukayo Saka stunner helps close the gap to Liverpool

Crisis over. Arsenal’s four-match winless run in the Premier League is forgotten thanks to this rather routine victory over Nottingham Forest.

Their nine-point lead over leaders Liverpool, at least until Sunday afternoon when Arne Slot’s team faces Southampton, has been reduced to six.

Not an optimal position to be in. But after their recent stutter, which had everyone questioning their title credentials, it’s a step towards righting some wrongs.

Whether Arsenal’s mistake early in the season did irreparable damage to Mikel Arteta’s hopes of wresting the title from Manchester City will become clearer with time.

But at least it’s a start as Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey and Ethan Nwaneri ensured the Gunners avoided another weekend of unwanted questions.

And they were certainly worth their three points here. Forest’s excellent start to the season has spiraled out of control of late; this is their second successive reversal in the Premier League.

17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri (pictured) scored his first Premier League goal coming off the bench

Mikel Arteta’s team has reduced the gap with Liverpool – who play on Sunday – to just six points

Arsenal, with gears to spare, were far too good for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side. You’d be hard-pressed to think what the outcome would have been if Arsenal had put their foot down.

The opener arrived after 15 minutes. Saka received the deftest of passes from Martin Odegaard before getting the ball out of his feet and firing a powerful effort past Mats Selz.

The ball had swung above and beyond the Ranger before he could blink. Foolproof gif from the Arsenal star.

Yet Odegaard’s contribution should not go unnoticed. What a beautiful footballer the Norwegian is to watch. Balance, poise and technique flow from his cup.

The man who makes Arsenal tick. The Gunners are a shadow of their usual selves without him.

They may sound exaggerated. Maybe that’s true. It’s also unfair to the extremely talented players around him.

But every team needs an edge. Odegaard is Arsenal’s chief conductor.

Arsenal were well worth their early lead here. Leandro Trossard missed his kick in front of goal before Jurrien Timber was denied his first goal for the club following the narrowest of VAR offside calls when Mikel Merino had strayed fractionally offside in the opening five minutes by nodding Odegaard’s free-kick.

Forest were not without their moments. Callum Hudson-Odoi struck into thin air as he caught the white of David Raya’s eye early on before Ryan Yates headed over the bar in the 25th minute.

But overall, this was a match played to Arsenal’s tune. Declan Rice’s replacement Jorginho – who was named on the bench as he recovers from a broken toe – fired an effort marginally wide after penetrating work involving Saka, Timber and Gabriel Jesus on the right.

Nwaneri was mobbed by his teammates after scoring the third goal of the match in the capital

Bukayo Saka had opened the scoring with a fine finish to ease any early nerves

When Jorginho hit the target he was denied by a smart save from Sels low to his left, before the Ranger denied Saka just before half-time.

Arsenal had created enough to have this game out of sight at halftime.

Indeed, you could sense the fear overwhelming the natives here at the Emirates Stadium whenever Forest, albeit rarely, came forward.

Four without a league win can have that effect. Now within touching distance of dethroning Manchester City, a season without another real title challenge in this region would be considered an abject failure.

The very fact that Saturday’s opponents were level on points with the Gunners going into this match illustrated their early season problems – but it would be foolish to write them off just yet.

Arteta replaced Jorginho with Thomas Partey at half-time, while Forest made their own substitution by bringing on Jota Silva.

Partey’s impact was immediate, collecting the ball from about 22 yards out before unleashing a right-foot shot that flew past Sels to double Arsenal’s lead in the 52nd minute.

Amid Arsenal’s troubles, the re-emergence of Partey’s influence in the team’s central midfield has gone largely unnoticed.

Nottingham Forest have now lost consecutive games after a good start to the season

Arsenal, meanwhile, are finally back on track and are now ready to look to the future

But for Partey there was reason for personal optimism; the injury problems that dogged his Arsenal career appear to be behind him. Arsenal certainly benefit.

It makes you wonder what Forest’s top scorer Chris Wood made of it while he was on the bench.

The 14-goal striker has been flying between Nottingham, New Zealand and Samoa on international duty in recent days.

Santo, who also had to be without Morgan Gibbs-White due to an injury, did not want to take the risk. While Partey’s goal rippled Sels’ goal, you wonder if the Portuguese coach wished he had gambled.

Forest’s head coach finally threw Wood in the 63rd minute, probably more out of hope than expectation.

Arsenal had good control of the ball, although Yates sent a header into the roof of the net, which briefly looked like Raya was worried.

And any late nerves disappeared in the wintry air as rookie Nwaneri swept in fellow substitute Raheem Sterling’s cut-back to put a fairer complexion on the score.