Peter Crouch loved surprise Arsenal player’s role in Martin Zubimendi’s wonder strike

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Martin Zubimendi is the talk of North London after scoring a surprising brace for Arsenal against Nottingham Forest.

The defensive midfielder scored his first two Premier League goals for Arsenal against Forest, the first being a magnificent strike from distance. 

If one of Arsenal’s midfielders was expected to score against Forest, it was Mikel Merino, who netted a hat-trick on international duty for Spain. 

Instead, the Spaniard passed the baton to his compatriot, as Zubimendi showed his capability in the final third, scoring a screamer and a header. 

• READ MORE: Four winners and one loser from Arsenal’s clash with Nottingham Forest include Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze

Peter Crouch applauded Gabriel Magalhaes’ role in Martin Zubimendi’s goal vs Nottingham Forest

Though Zubimendi showed great strength and power in his jump to convert his second-half header, it was all about his first-half strike.

The Emirates was left stunned by the summer signing’s ability to hit the ball so cleanly on the volley, but it wasn’t just the midfielder’s technique that ensured the goal was scored. 

Speaking at half-time on TNT Sports’ coverage of the game [13/09/25 13:29], pundit Peter Crouch gave a shout-out to Gabriel Magalhaes for his role in Arsenal’s opener. 

“Unbelievable technique, he’s a technician; we know how good he is as a footballer,” Crouch said of Zubimendi, before directing his attention to what he spotted from Gabriel.

“If you look at it from the second angle, all the Arsenal players flood into the goalkeeper, and it’s Gabriel; they all take him away, and the space is left for Zubimendi to have the strike.”

It was thought at one point that Gabriel had been found out during set-play, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. 

Arsenal’s Brazilian centre-back was integral to drawing defenders away from Zubimendi to give the midfielder the space he needed to execute a sumptuous strike.

Mikel Arteta taught a huge lesson by Arsenal’s set-pieces vs Forest

Zubimendi’s goal came from a corner, but not in the way that fans would’ve anticipated.

That being said, it was an encouraging outing for Arsenal in the set-piece department, particularly with both Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice missing from the starting lineup. 

The duo are Arsenal’s best corner-takers, but the threat that the deliveries caused all afternoon made it seem as though the pair were there.

Noni Madueke’s inswinging deliveries were particularly impressive from the right side, proving to Arteta that it’s not just Saka’s mastery down the flank that he can mirror.

All in all, it was a successful day at the office for Arsenal, who will carry a lot of confidence into their opening Champions League game on Tuesday.