LONDON : Arsenal returned to winning ways in the Premier League with a confident 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest but Aston Villa's winless streak continued when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home to lowly Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Goals by Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey and teenager Ethan Nwaneri got the Gunners back on track after four league games without a win in manager Mikel Arteta's 250th game in charge.
Arsenal stayed in fourth spot, level on 22 points with third-placed Chelsea who began the day's action with a 2-1 victory away at Leicester City. Leaders Liverpool have 28 points ahead of their Sunday clash with bottom club Southampton.
Second-placed Manchester City, who like Arsenal have been enduring a poor run with four successive defeats in all competitions, were hosting Tottenham Hotspur in the late game.
Arsenal began the day level on points with surprise package Forest but outclassed the Midlands club in the London rain.
The returning Saka and captain Martin Odegaard were hugely influential for Arsenal as both looked back to their best.
They combined after 15 minutes for Saka to clip a superb left-footed drive high past Forest keeper Matz Sels.
Partey curled in Arsenal's second after 52 minutes and 17-year-old Nwaneri, on as a substitute, put the icing on the cake with his first Premier League goal late on.
"It's not a coincidence. The team flows in a different way when (Odegaard) is playing," Arteta said of his skipper who returned from a long injury lay-off earlier this month.
"When he is on the team you sense something different even if it's hard to put your finger on it."
Goals by Nicolas Jackson and Enzo Fernandez secured the points for Chelsea as their manager Enzo Maresca returned to haunt his former club.
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