Gunners climb to 2nd with 1-0 win over Ipswich

Arsenal moved up to second in the Premier League and within six points of Liverpool after a largely trouble-free, if slightly pedestrian, 1-0 win at home to struggling Ipswich Town on a chilly night in north London on Friday.

A first-half goal from Kai Havertz, who pounced on a smart pull-back from Leandro Trossard, proved the winner although the hosts should have scored more as the Gunners’ performance failed to provide many pre-New Year fireworks.

Lacking the creativity of the injured Bukayo Saka, it took 19 minutes before Arsenal mustered their first shot although four minutes after that Havertz netted his sixth of the season in all competitions by tapping in Trossard’s whipped cross. Ipswich had a spell of pressure after 10 minutes of the second half but it proved fleeting and Arsenal should have comfortably put the game to bed after that.

The win lifted Arsenal to 36 points behind Liverpool, who have 42 and a game in hand, and meant the Gunners leapfrogged Chelsea and Nottingham Forest.