Arsenal’s Alexandre Lacazette celebrates after scoring against Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Emirates Stadium, London February 24, 2022. — Reuters pic
LONDON, Feb 25 — Arsenal staged a dramatic late comeback to beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1 on Thursday with Nicolas Pepe and Alexander Lacazette scoring the goals to boost their hopes of securing a top-four finish in the Premier League.
Wolves, who began the evening one place behind Arsenal, looked to move into fifth spot as they defended tenaciously to preserve the early lead given to them by Hwang Hee-Chan.
But the home side’s often desperate pressure was finally rewarded in the 82nd minute when Pepe turned well in the box and fired a shot past Wolves keeper Jose Sa.
In a frantic finale, Pedro Neto shot agonisingly wide for Wolves and Martin Odegaard went close for Arsenal before Lacazette scored from close range in the fifth minute of stoppage time to send the home crowd wild.
The win lifted Arsenal into fifth place with 45 points, one behind Manchester United but having played two fewer games.
Wolves remained seventh with 40 points. — Reuters