Arsenal player ratings vs Burnley: One more game! Kai Havertz soars high to put Gunners on cusp of long-awaited Premier League title

It was far from pretty, but Arsenal are one game away from the Premier League title after holding their nerve to edge past already-relegated Burnley on Monday night, courtesy of Kai Havertz's towering header from yet another set piece. The German forward rose to meet Bukayo Saka's corner shortly before half-time, although he was fortunate not be sent off later in the game. The 1-0 win means the Gunners will be champions if Manchester City drop points at high-flying Bournemouth on Tuesday.

Predictably it was attack vs defence from the outset as the Clarets sat in a low block and tried to stifle the wannabe champions, but it always looked like a matter of time before Arsenal found the net. Leandro Trossard almost did the business as he smacked the base of the post after some neat combination with Eberechi Eze after a quarter of an hour, and Saka's floated a dangerous cross right across the face of goal.

The Gunners were convinced they should have had a penalty in the 34th minute when Saka went down in the six-yard box when it looked easier to tap in Havertz's low cross. Replays showed he had connected with Lucas Pires' leg as he went to shoot, and the VAR didn't overturn the decision not to award a spot-kick.

Arsenal seemed to lose their way in the second period on what became another tetchy occasion at the Emirates. Eze squandered two big openings in the space of two minutes not long after the restart, including a volley that was feathered onto the crossbar by the Burnley goalkeeper.

Havertz was then at the centre of another flashpoint with around 20 minutes to play, although this time for the wrong reason. He escaped a red card despite lunging in on Lesley Ugochukwu and catching him high on the back of his leg as the referee and VAR deemed that it didn't represent serious foul play.

Arsenal breathed a sigh of relief and weathered a nervy, scrappy conclusion to the game to claim a vital three points. The result means the north Londoners will be champions if City drop points against Bournemouth on Tuesday, otherwise they may well have to beat Crystal Palace on the final day as City face Aston Villa.

GOAL rates Arsenal's players from the Emirates...

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Goalkeeper & Defence
David Raya (6/10):
Basically a spectator, although did have to scramble across his goal to watch an early shot go wide.
Cristhian Mosquera (6/10):
Actually did quite well offensively as he looked to combine with Saka. Defended watchfully on the few occasions he was required to.
William Saliba (6/10):
Pass, pass, pass. Did well in the battle against the physical Zian Flemming, too.
Gabriel Magalhaes (6/10):
Basically played as an auxiliary midfielder as he stepped forward to help build attacks.
Riccardo Calafiori (6/10):
A no-frills performance from the Italian, who got into a couple of decent positions offensively.

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Midfield
Declan Rice (7/10):
Did his usual work and made a huge intervention inside the penalty area to protect the lead.
Martin Odegaard (6/10):
Guilty of taking too many touches at times but he was trying to play forward at every opportunity.
Eberechi Eze (6/10):
Always looked to make something happen. Spurned two decent openings and was lucky not to be punished for a loose pass, drawing the ire of the home support.
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Attack
Bukayo Saka (7/10):
Perfect corner delivery for Havertz's header, and went so close to scoring a wonderful goal himself. Worked hard defensively.
Kai Havertz (7/10):
Snatched at one half-chance before soaring to nod Arsenal in front. Very fortunate not to have seen red later on before being hooked.
Leandro Trossard (7/10):
Unlucky to thump the post with a fierce low drive. Plenty of intelligent footwork and movement.

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Subs & Manager
Piero Hincapie (6/10):
Probably didn't have the same influence as Calafiori but his job was to see it out.
Viktor Gyokeres (6/10):
Ran hard but couldn't find the opening to put the game beyond Burnley.
Myles Lewis-Skelly (6/10):
Got involved in the midfield battle as it became a bit of a scrap.
Gabriel Martinelli (N/A):
Thrown on in stoppage time.
Martin Zubimendi (N/A):
Same as Martinelli as Arteta looked to see out the game.
Mikel Arteta (6/10):
It really wasn't pretty, but it was all about the result for Arteta and his side. They will take the 1-0 all day long. One more game to go.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Midfield

Attack

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Subs & Manager