Same old Arsenal. This may have been their first game for two-and-a-half weeks, a few days of which they spent in Dubai, but they ended it with a fourth red card in six matches.

If ever there was an episode that epitomised what threatens to undermine Mikel Arteta’s attempt to restore Arsenal to the Champions League, it arrived with 21 minutes left to play. Wolves, for all of their good intent, were at arm’s length, but then Gabriel Martinelli picked up two yellow cards in a matter of seconds – the first for obstructing a throw-in and the second for a hot-headed trip on Chiquinho – and the visitors were reduced to 10 men. It ensured a nervy crescendo for an Arsenal side that looked comfortable after opening up a first-half lead through Gabriel.

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