Gyokeres Reaffirms Arsenal's Title Belief After Dominant Fulham Victory

Viktor Gyokeres emphasized that Arsenal’s confidence in their Premier League title pursuit remains unshaken following a commanding 3-0 win over Fulham, which extended their lead at the top to six points.

Gyokeres netted twice and provided an assist for Bukayo Saka as Arsenal comfortably secured victory at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, intensifying the pressure on second-placed Manchester City. City, who have two games in hand, face Everton on Monday. If both teams win their remaining fixtures, the title will be decided by goal difference.

Arsenal’s momentum had been disrupted last month by consecutive defeats to Bournemouth and City, which saw their nine-point lead evaporate and briefly cost them top spot. However, Gyokeres told Sky Sports after the match that the squad never lost belief.

"The performance and the result were both important. We controlled the game very well," the striker said. "At this stage, we have to win the remaining matches, and today we showed we can deliver a strong performance and secure the three points. We always enter games believing we’ll play well and create chances. Today, we did that and enjoyed it. We’ve never stopped believing, and we won’t. There’s still a lot to play for, and now we focus on the next one. It’s been a good week with positive results. We’re on the right path and must stay there."

According to Opta, Arsenal’s first-half non-penalty expected goals (xG) of 2.39 against Fulham ranks as the third-highest in the Premier League this season, behind only Bournemouth vs. Chelsea (2.77) and Manchester City vs. Leeds United (2.67).

Gyokeres became directly involved in three goals in a single match for Arsenal for the first time, while also scoring and assisting in the first half of a league game for the first time since his stint with Sporting CP against Farense in September 2023. His 21 goals across all competitions this season mark the highest tally by an Arsenal player in their debut campaign since Alexis Sánchez’s 25 in 2014-15.

Arsenal have now won 15 of their last 19 Premier League home games (D2 L2), recording two more wins and four more clean sheets (11) than any other side at home during that period (since their final home match of 2024-25).

Manager Mikel Arteta praised his team’s resilience, particularly after a grueling 1-1 draw against Atlético Madrid in the Champions League semi-final first leg.

"I’m extremely happy. It was a tough match to play. We returned from Madrid late on Thursday and gave everything in that game, then faced a team in good form," Arteta told BBC Match of the Day. "The team played incredibly well—we dominated and showed the hunger we discussed beforehand. We have the chance to win two major competitions. We’re close, and the players feel privileged to be in this position. They demonstrated the kind of team we are."

Fulham manager Marco Silva dismissed illness in his squad as an excuse for their poor performance.

"That’s the easiest excuse, but we started with 11 players," Silva told Sky Sports. "As a team, we should have done much better. If you don’t do the basics well, you can’t compete. You have to handle difficult moments in a match, but the fundamentals—like defending your box—must be there. We weren’t strong enough defensively and fell short today."