Mikel Merino and Bukayo Saka were on target as Arsenal kept the initiative in the Premier League title race with a routine 2-0 win over Brentford .

There was none of the chaos of Manchester City's 5-4 win at Fulham 24 hours earlier which moved them temporarily to within two points of the Gunners.

Instead it was business as usual at the Emirates, with Arsenal extending their unbeaten run to 18 matches in all competitions with an eighth straight home win, another clean sheet, and stretching the gap at the top back to five points.

With his side having played Tottenham, Bayern Munich and Chelsea over the past week, boss Mikel Arteta took the opportunity to give a rest to Saka, Jurrien Timber and Eberechi Eze against the Bees.

The changes worked almost immediately with fit-again No

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