Arsenal’s dramatic Wolves defeat ended impressive Emile Smith Rowe Gunners record

Wolves v Arsenal: Match in pictures

Arsenal fell to a shock 2-1 defeat against Wolves on a dramatic night that saw them reduced to nine men. The Gunners headed to the Midlands after an unbeaten January had propelled them firmly into the race for the top-six.

And it looked like it would all go to plan once again, when Nicolas Pepe scored a stunning solo goal to put them in front in the first half.

In truth, the Gunners should have been out of sight by the time Pepe finally curled one into the top corner, missing a series of good chances.

Bukayo Sako thumped the post and had one disallowed, while Pepe himself had one tipped onto the crossbar by Rui Patricio.

But it was only one and as the final seconds of the opening 45, Mikel Arteta’s side were made to rue those changes as the game turned.

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Daniel Podence freed Wolves’ January signing Willian Jose who was through on goal and ready to shoot when a tangle of legs between he and David Luiz saw him fall to the floor.

Referee Craig Pawson was in no doubt and pointed to the spot and subsequently handed Luiz a red-card.

Ruben Neves would go on to slam the penalty home and Arsenal’s misery was compounded just after half-time, when Joao Moutinho completed the turnaround with a stunning strike from distance.

Arsenal remained more than competitive, despite their one-man disadvantage, but any hopes of a comeback were extinguished when Bernd Leno inexplicably handled the ball outside the box.

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Confronted by Adama Traore, the Gunners stopper made the decision to punch the ball out, leaving Pawson no choice but to brandish another red.

The defeat puts a massive dent in Arsenal’s hopes of securing European football and it also marked the end of another run.

Emile Smith Rowe, who had one of his quieter games since being brought into the line-up over Christmas, had yet to taste defeat in a game he had started.

It was a record that stood at 16 games prior to the defeat at Molineux, including their recent run of good form in the league.

Meanwhile, Arteta has hinted that Arsenal could appeal the decision to send off Luiz, suggesting there was ‘no contact’

“I’ve just seen the replay ten times in five different angles and I cannot see any contact,” he said.

Asked if they intend to appeal, he added: “If I’m sitting here now I would say yes. We have to speak with legal at the club and see what the best thing is to do.

“It’s hard enough to win football games in the league. Those big decisions are like that but it’s nothing we can change at the moment”

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