A first-half header by Gabriel Martinelli and an own goal by Marc Guehi gave Arsenal a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace on opening night of the 2022/23 Premier League season.

Mikel Arteta’s team lost last season’s corresponding fixture 3-0 away to Palace, but this was a strong start to the campaign by an Arsenal side that has improved over the summer.

Gabriel Jesus made his official debut for his new team and was sharp from early on, but it was fellow Brazilian Martinelli who opened the scoring after 19 minutes, heading home following a well-worked corner involving Oleksandr Zinchenko.

Palace pushed hard for an equaliser and forced Aaron Ramsdale into a number of saves, but Arsenal killed the game five minutes from the end when Bukayo Saka’s cross was diverted into the back of the net by the head of Guehi.- Sporting News