Mikel Arteta praises Arsenal duo for unbelievable challenges

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has heaped praise on Ezri Konsa and Declan Rice for their last-ditch challenges against Nottingham Forest in the Premier League.

The Gunners registered a hard-fought 1-0 win over Forest at City Ground earlier on Sunday. Forest largely looked out of sorts upfront but stepped up towards the end.

Forest had three big chances in the closing stages. Rice produced a fine block to deny Chris Wood, while Konsa made a fine tackle to deny Liam Delap in stoppage time.

Speaking after the game, Arteta praised the unbelievable defensive contributions from the pair as the Gunners secured a sixth victory of the top-flight campaign.

He said: "Unbelievable. Ezri’s and Declan’s, I think we had another one - that showed spirit and was a really good example of how much we want to win."

Arsenal had some luck on their side at City Ground. Noni Madueke scored the only goal of the game with the help of a huge deflection.

Forest lacked the cutting edge in the final third, but Murillo was just a whisker away from crossing a brilliant equaliser for them.