TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Bafetimbi Gomis gave Swansea an unexpected 1-0 victory over Arsenal on Monday when goal-line technology showed his late header had crossed the line to the surprise of both teams.
It seemed that Arsenal goalkeeper David Ospina had prevented the ball from going into the net in the 85th minute but then referee Kevin Friend looked at his watch and correctly awarded the goal.
Arsenal missed a chance to strengthen its hold on an automatic passage into the Champions League rather than via a playoff.
"We were unlucky I think against a team who refused to play completely and just defended," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. "We've scored plenty of goals until recently. In the last two home games we didn't score and that was frustrating when you have so much of the ball and play with such accuracy around the box."
Arsenal remains in third place with three games remaining and Manchester United is only two points behind ahead of their meeting on Sunday. United has played a game more than Arsenal.
But Swansea boosted its chances of qualifying for the Europa League by completing the double over Arsenal this season and going a point behind seventh-place Southampton.
"We could have come here and gone toe to toe but with the individual quality that Arsenal have, they could have maybe hurt us," Swansea manager Garry Monk said. "We set up well with a game plan."
Seventh place would secure a route into the Europa League if Arsenal beats Aston Villa in the FA Cup final, although Monk does not seem enthusiastic about the prospect of qualifying for the competition.
"What will be, will be and we'll just keep pushing," Monk said.
Former Arsenal goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski was in fine form on his return to his former home as he made some excellent saves to keep out late chances from Santi Cazorla, Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott.
"I was a little bit emotional before the game, but then when you step onto the pitch you just focus on the game," Fabianski said. "(I'm) just happy with the result. I think the whole team put on a massive effort to get a result and you could see (Arsenal) were more on the ball but we always looked very dangerous on the break and we're happy enough we managed to get one."
AP
