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Arsenal’s title hope under threat, drop points in Wolves draw

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Arsenal’s Premier League title hope under threat after it suffered a major blow as they squandered a two-goal lead and conceded a stoppage-time equaliser in a damaging 2-2 draw at rock-bottom Wolves on Wednesday.

Mikel Arteta’s side were on course to move seven points clear at the top after Bukayo Saka’s early opener and Piero Hincapie’s second-half strike put them in control at Molineux.
But Arsenal collapsed in the closing stages as Hugo Bueno reduced the deficit before Riccardo Calafiori turned Tom Edozie’s shot into his own net in the final seconds after a mix-up between goalkeeper David Raya and centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes, to leave the visitors shell-shocked.
For a second successive league game, the Gunners had failed to hold onto a lead following their 1-1 draw at Brentford last Thursday.

Failing to kill off bottom-of-the-table Wolves was a devastating setback for Arsenal, who have won just two of their last seven league matches, offering renewed hope to second-placed Manchester City in the title race.
City are just five points behind Arsenal and have a game in hand on their rivals, as well as a home game against the Gunners in April.
Having wasted commanding leads in two previous title fights with City, Arteta’s men are in danger of being haunted by the ghost of their past failures.
Arsenal looked increasingly nervous as the minutes ticked down against Wolves in a clear sign that the league leaders are feeling the pressure of their bid for a first English title since 2004.

Adding to Arteta’s anxiety, Saka was forced off in the second half with a possible knee injury.
Losing the England star, who this week signed a new contract making him the club’s highest-paid player, for a sustained period would be a hammer blow to Arsenal’s title dreams.
Sitting 17 points from safety with only 11 games left, Wolves remain almost certain to be relegated, but they can take heart from a stunning fightback.

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Arsenal Stunned
Once again playing as Arsenal’s number 10 after shining in that position against Wigan last weekend, Saka took just five minutes to show how comfortable he is away from his usual berth on the right wing.

Declan Rice flighted a pinpoint cross towards Saka, and he timed his run perfectly to guide a stooping header past Jose Sa from close-range.
It was Saka’s first goal in 15 matches in all competitions, dating back to December 3, ending his longest drought as an Arsenal player.

Arsenal’s best period of an inconsistent performance came in the first 20 minutes when Rice fired just wide before Noni Madueke’s drive forced a good save from Sa.

But as freezing sleet and snow gusted across Molineux, Arsenal were almost caught cold when Wolves midfielder Andre fizzed a fierce strike narrowly wide.
Wolves threatened again immediately after half-time as Adam Armstrong went close from distance.
Shaken out of their slumber by those escapes, Arsenal doubled their advantage in the 56th minute.

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Gabriel slipped a precise pass through to Hincapie, and he fired into the roof of the net.
An offside flag initially disallowed the goal, but Hincapie was able to celebrate after a VAR check showed he was onside.
Just as Arsenal looked set to cruise to victory, Bueno reduced the deficit with a stunning strike — the left-back curling into the top corner from the edge of the area for his first Premier League goal.
Arsenal’s underachieving striker Viktor Gyokeres was hauled off by Arteta after just 11 touches and no shots.
Unable to finish off Wolves, the Gunners were punished in farcical fashion in stoppage-time.
Gabriel got in the way of Raya catching the ball, and when it fell to Edozie, the teenager rifled his shot in off Calafiori to leave Arteta in disbelief.

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Just IN: Argentina Cruise Past England To Set Up 2026 Final World Cup Showdown With Spain

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England had been on course to reach their first World Cup final since 1966 after Anthony Gordon fired them into the lead 10 minutes after half-time in the semi-final in front of 68,239 fans in Atlanta.

But the great rivalry between these nations has produced several memorable contests on the World Cup stage down the years, and this will be remembered as the stuff of legends in Argentina as the South Americans denied England with two late sucker punches.

Messi set up Enzo Fernandez to fire in an 85th-minute equaliser and then, with extra time looming, crossed for substitute Lautaro Martinez to head in the winner in the second minute of stoppage time.

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It was maybe not quite up there with Diego Maradona’s legendary display in putting England to the sword in 1986, but the goals this time brought Argentina back from the dead and kept alive their hopes of winning back-to-back World Cups.

Argentina are in the final of the World Cup! The defending champions fought back from one goal down to defeat England and book a date in Sunday’s game.

Argentina will face Spain in the final on Sunday, July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

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World Cup: Ahead England, Argentina clash FIFA makes major VAR decision

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World football governing body, FIFA, has made a key video assistant referee, VAR decision ahead of the much exected World Cup semi-final match between England and Argentina.

The match will be played in Atlanta on Wednesday.

FIFA has opted to deploy an on-site VAR team for this high-profile encounter.

Previously, the VAR team had been functioning from a central hub located at the International Broadcast Centre in Dallas, regardless of the venue of each match.

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However, for this particular game, the on-site officials will act as a backup in the event of any technical or communication difficulties.

Dan Hunt, a member of the Organising Committee, elaborated on the decision to have VAR operate on-site for the second semi-final as reported by Sport Bible.

He said, “There is a significant amount of drama that occurs during these matches. Moreover, when only four officials are tasked with overseeing the action on a field that is considerably larger than an American football field, it becomes quite challenging

“I am pleased that there will be on-site officials. I am uncertain about how the communication will be managed.”

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FIFA has faced considerable criticism for the inconsistent VAR decisions throughout the tournament, with the defending champions Argentina benefiting from favorable calls without any against them, while England has experienced the opposite, resulting in a net negative outcome.

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Arsenal legend, Henry reacts to France World Cup defeat, says Spain was far more superior

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Arsenal legend, Thierry Henry, has reacted to the Les Bleus’ World Cup semi-final 2-0 defeat to Spain.

Henry said that the La Roja were far superior to France during the encounter.

Spain defeated France on Tuesday to qualify for the World Cup final, thanks to goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro.

“Too little from France at the end of the day. Spain controlled the game on and off the ball,” Henry said on Fox Sports.

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“They showed why they are European champions, they are showing why they are going into the final.

“Nothing to add, they were far superior, and there is nothing to say about it. Spain, congratulations. you deserves to go to the final,” he said.

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