Dress rehearsal for Bayern Munich clash: Arsenal labour to a hard-fought win away at an underdog

Arsenal kept up the pressure on league leaders Manchester City thanks to a solo effort from substitute Noni Madueke.

The English champions, with international Kai Havertz in the side, beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 (0-0). It was their sixth win in seven Premier League matches and a successful dress rehearsal for Wednesday's Champions League showdown at Bayern Munich (9pm/DAZN).

Arsenal stayed second on 18 points, ahead of Brighton & Hove Albion, who sit third, two points behind the Gunners, after beating Crystal Palace 5-0.

"Sometimes it can be frustrating against a team that is so hard to break down. We didn’t have a shot on target in the first half, and we had to address that," said Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. "We had two good chances in the second half, but the only shot on target went in – and it was slightly deflected."

How did Kai Havertz fare against Nottingham Forest?

For the seventh league match in a row, Havertz started under Mikel Arteta. Before the match, Arteta had strongly pushed back against doubts about the goalscoring ability of the 27-year-old, who last scored more than a month ago: "He needs the number of games. He has the ability to be a top striker."

Havertz was largely quiet as Arsenal offered little in attack, with a header (37) his only notable first-half contribution. Arteta brought on Madueke at half-time.

In the 66th minute, Arteta took Havertz off. Madueke (80) scored the winner against Oliver Glasner's Nottingham with the visitors' first shot on target of the match.

Bayern Munich, Arsenal's opponents on Wednesday, had already made their case for the meeting with an attacking display on Saturday evening. Harry Kane scored as Bayern thrashed RB Leipzig 6-1 (3-0) at Leipzig's home ground.