Emmanuel Adebayor scored his 21st league goal of the season as Arsenal easily beat relegation-threatened Reading 2-0 yesterday.
Gilberto Silva also scored his first goal of the campaign to make it 2-0 at halftime and the Gunners twice hit the bar and missed several more chances at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal’s second victory in nine league games puts them within four points of second-placed Chelsea and lifted some of the depression hanging over the club after last week’s loss at Manchester United that left them out of the title race.
PHOTO: AFP
Bobby Convey was back in the Reading starting lineup among six changes made by Royals manager Steve Coppell after last week’s surprise 2-0 loss at home to fellow strugglers Fulham.
Cesc Fabregas should have given Arsenal a ninth-minute lead when he was put through by a stunning pass by Alexander Hleb, but he shot weakly at goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann. Then Adebayor was allowed a free header from a Fabregas cross, but put it wide from just outside the six-yard box.
Despite the Reading defense’s use of a man-for-man marking system, Arsenal continued to create chances and Alexandre Song headed wide in the 29th minute before they took the lead.
Adebayor skillfully collected a cross from Kolo Toure and turned clear of two Royals defenders to side-foot the ball past Hahnemann in the 30th minute.
It was 2-0 eight minutes later when Fabregas slipped a pass back to Gilberto, whose powerfully struck shot from was on target but also took a deflection off the head of Reading defender Andre Bikey. Hahnemann got his fingertips to it, but could not stop the ball flying in.
Hahnemann saved from Robin van Persie and Gilberto before halftime as Arsenal continued to make chances.
In the second half, Van Persie curled a second half free-kick that almost crept in after hitting both the bar and post. Seconds later, Theo Walcott’s left-footed shot also struck the bar.
In a rare Reading threat, Convey cut in from the right and beat two defenders before Gunners goalkeeper Jens Lehmann pushed his angled, left-footed shot over the bar.
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