Arsenal beat Crystal Palace to pick first points of campaign

Arsenal recovered from their opening-day defeat by West Ham to record a hard-fought victory at Crystal Palace.

Alexis Sanchez had three shots blocked as the Gunners began aggressively before Olivier Giroud got the opener.

The Frenchman’s superb scissor kick put away a Mesut Ozil cross but the lead lasted 12 minutes until Joel Ward’s driven shot drew Palace level.

Connor Wickham hit the post on his home debut before Damian Delaney sliced a Sanchez header into his own net.

Jordon Mutch almost inadvertently grabbed a late equaliser when the ball struck his head and went over from a corner, while Petr Cech held a Ward header in a frantic finish.

But despite Palace’s combative display, Arsene Wenger’s side ultimately deserved the three points for the quality of their movement and resilience in defence.