Published: 09:35, September 14, 2025 | Updated: 09:39, September 14, 2025
Arsenal hand Postecoglou first Forest loss, Bournemouth continue hot start
By Reuters
Arsenal players celebrate after a goal during the Premier League soccer match between Arsenal and Nottingham Forest in London, Sept 13, 2025. (PHOTO / AP)

LONDON - Arsenal ensured former Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou endured a miserable return to English football with a 3-0 victory over his new club Nottingham Forest on Saturday, while a late Brentford goal denied Chelsea moving atop the table.

Newcastle United's new signing Nick Woltemade enjoyed a dream debut, scoring in their 1-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers for their first victory of their campaign, while Bournemouth continued their strong start with a 2-1 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion, and Tottenham Hotspur cruised to a 3-0 win over West Ham United.

Fulham recorded their first win of the season by beating Leeds United 1-0 thanks to a late own goal, while Crystal Palace were held to a 0-0 draw by Sunderland and neither Everton nor Aston Villa could find the back of the net in a scoreless draw.

ALSO READ: Nottingham Forest sack manager Espirito Santo

Villa have failed to score in their opening four league games of a season for the first time in their history.

Arsenal dominated at the Emirates as Martin Zubimendi's double and Viktor Gyokeres's tap-in gave Mikel Arteta's men a comfortable home victory, condemning Postecoglou to defeat in his first game as Forest boss.

Spain midfielder Zubimendi struck a stunning volley in the 32nd minute and then Arsenal doubled their lead within a minute of the restart when Eberechi Eze, making his Gunners debut, laid it on a plate for Gyokeres to score his third of the season.

The game was petering out when Zubimendi put it to bed in the 79th minute with a simple header from Leandro Trossard's cross.

"(Zubimendi) has given us a lot of positive things: his presence, his authority on the pitch, the way he connects with the players and that composure that he's having," Arteta said.

"If he starts to add assists and goals like this, then it's another dimension of a player."

Arsenal's goalkeeper David Raya in action during the Premier League soccer match between Arsenal and Nottingham Forest in London, Sept 13, 2025. (PHOTO / AP)

Arsenal's victory provisionally moved them to the top of the table ahead of holders Liverpool who play at Burnley on Sunday.

Chelsea looked poised to leapfrog Arsenal to the top of the table after Cole Palmer scored an equaliser in his return from a groin injury to cancel Kevin Schade's first-half goal, and Moises Caicedo celebrated what he thought was the winner in the 85th minute.

But Fabio Carvalho poked home the equaliser from six yards out in the 93rd after Schade's long throw-in.

"Delighted with the approach of the group, the character we constantly show," Brentford boss Keith Andrews told the BBC.

READ MORE: Liverpool smash British transfer record to sign Newcastle striker Isak

"The equaliser came very late but it's what I felt we deserved from the game in terms of the application, the quality the players showed for large parts."

Newcastle's new club record signing Woltemade stole the show in Tyneside in their first game since their former hero Alexander Isak departed for Liverpool, scoring in the 29th minute when he arrived at the back post to send a header past Sam Johnstone.

"The fact we haven't won a game puts more pressure on you in the latter stages," Newcastle boss Eddie Howe told the BBC. "The win was all that mattered but we'd love to win in a better style and score more goals.

"It was great to see Nick score on his debut. Very strong, I was very pleased with him."

Brighton and Hove Albion's Kaoru Mitoma scores his side's first goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Bournemouth and Brighton and Hove Albion, at the Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, England, Sept 13, 2025. (PHOTO / PA VIA AP)

Tottenham left West Ham languishing in the bottom three, with the Hammers suffering another blow as midfielder Tomas Soucek was sent off for a dangerous tackle.

Pape Matar Sarr, Lucas Bergvall and Micky van de Ven all scored second-half goals in Spurs' first game since executive chairman Daniel Levy's exit from Tottenham.

"So happy that the goal came in the second half because you never know, the momentum can change after half-time but we kept going and scored a good goal after and then 3-0 done," Spurs boss Thomas Frank said.

"So a very good clear win, a good performance and I think we all know the derby and the importance of the game for the fans."

At Bournemouth, Alex Scott opened scoring with a brilliant strike from outside the box in the 18th minute.

ALSO READ: Liverpool wins crunch game, Man City loses in Premier League

Brighton drew level in the 48th on a goal from Kaoru Mitoma but Antoine Semenyo sealed the victory for Bournemouth's third win on the bounce with a penalty in the 61st after Evanilson was brought down.

"The mood in the camp is perfect. We can't ask for any more, we just have to keep going," Semenyo told the BBC.

Fulham appeared headed for another draw when Gudmundsson scored a horror own goal from a corner kick in the 94th minute, stooping to head in the ball with great force.

"An own goal in the last minute of the game so we have to feel a bit fortunate," Fulham boss Marco Silva said.

"It was important for us to keep a clean sheet because we need to create this habit and it allowed us to go on and try to win the game."