The latest Premier League points report Arsenal wins key battles to lock in Champions League qualification, dark horses stop the decline and catch up with Manchester City

In the early morning of May 19, there were 5 more games in the 37th round of the 2024-25 Premier League. After a fierce battle, Nottingham Forest defeated West Ham United 2:1 away, Everton defeated Southampton 2:0 at home, Fulham defeated Brentford 3:2 away, Arsenal defeated Newcastle 1:0 at home, and Ipswich lost to Leicester City 0:2 away.

The goal of Arsenal this season is to win the second place in the Premier League. At one time, their desire to win the second place was even greater than that of the Champions League championship. Today, with Newcastle at home, it is a key battle. If you win, you will basically lock in the runner-up. If you lose, you may even be in danger of fighting for 5 in the end. After the opening, the two teams launched a counterattack. In the 5th minute, goalkeeper Raya almost gave a super gift. He made a random shot and was cut by Tonali. Tonali intercepted the ball and made a clear pass. Wilson received the ball in the penalty area and got rid of the defense to make the ball. Guimaras followed up and shot very close. Raya made up for the mistakes and saved the ball. Then Barnes's shot was also saved by Raya. In the 12th minute, Arsenal pressed on the left, Trosad showed off. He forced himself to pass the two players and double-teamed them into the penalty area and shot strongly from close range. The ball was blocked and slightly higher than the crossbar and went out of the baseline. Then Arsenal had a corner kick opportunity on the right side. Saka took the penalty and passed it in front of the goal. Thomas headed the ball from a very close distance, and goalkeeper Pope saved the ball. In the 15th minute, Newcastle counterattacked quickly in the middle. Barnes dribbled the ball and broke the ball at high speed to the top of the penalty area with his left foot and shot hard. Raya rushed for a hard time, and the ball almost rubbed against the outside of the post and went out of the baseline. In the 17th minute, Newcastle had a corner kick opportunity from the left. Bourne grabbed a small penalty area and turned back from the moon to the header from a very close range. Raya blocked the ball with a magical pounce, and Botman's shot in front of the goal was also saved by Raya. In the 24th minute, Arsenal counterattacked on the right, White dribbled the ball and broke through and two double-teamed into the penalty area, which was suspected to be tackled by Bourne from behind, and the referee did not call a penalty. In the first half, Raya made key saves and saved the city gate. The two sides exchanged 0:0 in half.

The two teams were still in an offensive situation. In the 54th minute, Arsenal quickly counterattacked from the right, Odegao dribbled the ball to the edge of the penalty area and passed back to the middle. Newcastle missed a person behind the back, and Rice, who followed up in the back, had no one to guard. Rice shot directly from the top of the arc in the penalty area, and the ball went straight into the dead corner of the far end of the goal. Arsenal broke the deadlock 1:0. Newcastle, who was behind, played a bit messy after playing, and there were not many opportunities. In the 75th minute, Havertz came on as a substitute and returned after two months of injury. In the 81st minute, Newcastle pressed on the left, and Willoc dribbled into the penalty area and shot from a small distance from a close range, and the ball was slightly higher than the crossbar. After that, neither team could rewrite the score again, and Arsenal laughed 1:0 and finally won the 5th battle. In terms of the standings, Arsenal defeated Newcastle and locked in the top 5 in advance and qualified for the Champions League next season. They scored 6 points more than Manchester City and had 10 goals. Even if they lost a little in the last round, they were basically the runner-up of this season. Newcastle still lost with Chelsea, Villa had 66 points, Newcastle had the advantage in goal difference, and the initiative to compete for 5 is still in their hands, and he can still hold the top 5 if he wins in the last round. Nottingham Forest finally stopped the slump of 4 rounds of unwinding today, but their victory came a little late, and they were at a disadvantage in the goal difference. In the last round against Chelsea, they wanted to win Chelsea, and Manchester City would not win in two rounds, or one of Villa and Newcastle teams could not win, so that they could qualify for the Champions League, which was very difficult. In terms of the scorer list, Salah led the lead with 28 goals and basically got the Golden Boot. However, if he wants to compete with Mbappe for the European Golden Boot, he must work hard to score another goal. Isaac ranked second with 23 goals, Haaland ranked third with 21 goals, and Wood ranked fourth with 20 goals. Visa and Mbeumo both scored 1 goal today, and the two were still the fifth in power with 19 goals.