Luton Town manager Rob Edwards admitted that his players tried to rattle Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya during their Premier League clash.
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Luton Town targetted David RayaRaya's mistake helped Barkley score the third goalArsenal edged out Luton Town 4-3WHAT HAPPENED?
Premier League leaders Arsenal managed to edge out Luton Town in a seven-goal thriller at Kenilworth Road on Tuesday thanks to a 97th-minute goal by Declan Rice. The Gunners surrendered the lead twice during the match and on one occasion, the hosts went in front when Ross Barkley slotted the ball home after a glaring mistake by Raya. Hatters manager Edwards admitted after the game that his team did try to unsettle the Spanish goalkeeper, who has faced plenty of criticism since his loan move to Arsenal from Brentford.
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Asked whether Luton's plan was to target Raya after his side's narrow 4-3 loss, Edwards told : "We tried to, we wanted to make it as uncomfortable as possible for them. We were probably going to have to be slightly different away from home when we play them again, but here we’ve got to use this place as a bit of a leveller and try to make it difficult for these top teams and not give them the game they want."
Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta, on the other hand, dodged the question on Raya's performance in his post-match press conference as he claimed that he spoke to all of his players and was happy that his team could bag the crucial three points.
Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL?
Arteta's side now have a five-point lead at the top of the table, although Liverpool do still have a game in hand. Arsenal will next face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday, before travelling to the Netherlands to face PSV in their final Champions League group game next Tuesday.