Mikel Arteta expects Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to finally commit his future to Arsenal in the next few days after the Gabon forward's superb strike capped Saturday's 3-0 win at Fulham.

Arteta's side kicked off the new Premier League season with the kind of confident display that has become their hallmark since Arteta took charge.

Arsenal's free-flowing attack was too incisive for promoted Fulham and Alexandre Lacazette gave the visitors an early lead at Craven Cottage.&nbsp;

Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhaes scored Arsenal's second after the break in his first appearance since his close-season move from Lille.

Aubameyang added the final flourish with a typically eye-catching strike that emphasised why Arsenal are so desperate for the club captain to sign an extension to the contract which expires at the end of the season.

Gunners boss Arteta had good news for fans concerned Aubameyang might leave as he revealed their team's talisman is set to sign the contract offer.&nbsp;

"I'm really positive we are going to get it done very soon and hopefully in the next few days you will get some news," Arteta told BT Sport.

With former Chelsea winger Willian providing a pair of assists on his debut, it was the ideal way for Arsenal to start a season that appears full of promise after last season's FA Cup triumph.

Although their eighth-placed finish in the Premier League ranked as Arsenal's lowest final position since 1995, Arteta had little to do with that after taking charge in December following the dismal reign of Unai Emery.

The former Manchester City assistant coach has been a much-needed breath of fresh air for Arsenal and pushing for a place in the top four should not be beyond his revitalised team this term.

"I wanted to see my team determined to come to this difficult ground against a really good team that has been promoted. We had a lot of energy and did the things we trained on in this period," Arteta said.

"Gabriel didn't play for six months before today. Mohamed Elneny was brilliant. He has been excellent in training. All the boys tried really hard."

While the continued absence of fans due to the coronavirus and shorter than usual break has taken a little anticipation away from the new campaign, Arsenal were keener than most to get back in action after beating Chelsea in the FA Cup final.

The Gunners had underlined their rapid improvement by defeating Premier League champions Liverpool on penalties in the Community Shield last month and Fulham were no match for them.

The only dark cloud for Arteta was a pre-match spat between Dani Ceballos and Eddie Nketiah.

The pair had to be separated by Arsenal team-mates after Nketiah reacted to an aggressive challenge from Ceballos while a group of players were exchanging passes in the warm-up.

Arteta's worries were eased when Lacazette netted in the ninth minute.

Granit Xhaka's strike forced a miscued clearance from Tim Ream and Willian pounced with a close-range shot that Fulham keeper Marek Rodak could only push out to Lacazette, who slotted home from virtually on the goalline.

Willian was denied a debut goal when his low free-kick cannoned off the base of the post.

Gabriel was enjoying a composed debut and the 22-year-old showed he can be a goal threat as well when he doubled Arsenal's lead in the 49th minute.

Willian swung over the corner and Gabriel showed his desire as he rose above Michael Hector for an attempted header that hit his shoulder as it flashed into the net.

Fulham's defence was crumbling like the recently demolished Craven Cottage stand and Aubameyang finished them off in the 57th minute with a carbon copy of his Community Shield goal against Liverpool.

Just as at Wembley, Willian's superb cross-field pass picked out Aubameyang and he was allowed to advance unchecked into the area before bending a fine finish into the far corner.

Mikel Arteta expects Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to finally commit his future to Arsenal in the next few days after the Gabon forward's superb strike capped Saturday's 3-0 win at Fulham.

Mikel Arteta expects Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to finally commit his future to Arsenal in the next few days after the Gabon forward's superb strike capped Saturday's 3-0 win at Fulham. Arteta's side kicked off the new Premier League season with the kind of confident display that has become their hallmark since Arteta took charge. Arsenal's free-flowing attack was too incisive for promoted Fulham and Alexandre Lacazette gave the visitors an early lead at Craven Cottage. Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhaes scored Arsenal's second after the break in his first appearance since his close-season move from Lille. Aubameyang added the final flourish with a typically eye-catching strike that emphasised why Arsenal are so desperate for the club captain to sign an extension to the contract which expires at the end of the season. Gunners boss Arteta had good news for fans concerned Aubameyang might leave as he revealed their team's talisman is set to sign the contract offer. "I'm really positive we are going to get it done very soon and hopefully in the next few days you will get some news," Arteta told BT Sport. With former Chelsea winger Willian providing a pair of assists on his debut, it was the ideal way for Arsenal to start a season that appears full of promise after last season's FA Cup triumph. Although their eighth-placed finish in the Premier League ranked as Arsenal's lowest final position since 1995, Arteta had little to do with that after taking charge in December following the dismal reign of Unai Emery. The former Manchester City assistant coach has been a much-needed breath of fresh air for Arsenal and pushing for a place in the top four should not be beyond his revitalised team this term. "I wanted to see my team determined to come to this difficult ground against a really good team that has been promoted. We had a lot of energy and did the things we trained on in this period," Arteta said. "Gabriel didn't play for six months before today. Mohamed Elneny was brilliant. He has been excellent in training. All the boys tried really hard." While the continued absence of fans due to the coronavirus and shorter than usual break has taken a little anticipation away from the new campaign, Arsenal were keener than most to get back in action after beating Chelsea in the FA Cup final. The Gunners had underlined their rapid improvement by defeating Premier League champions Liverpool on penalties in the Community Shield last month and Fulham were no match for them. The only dark cloud for Arteta was a pre-match spat between Dani Ceballos and Eddie Nketiah. The pair had to be separated by Arsenal team-mates after Nketiah reacted to an aggressive challenge from Ceballos while a group of players were exchanging passes in the warm-up. Arteta's worries were eased when Lacazette netted in the ninth minute. Granit Xhaka's strike forced a miscued clearance from Tim Ream and Willian pounced with a close-range shot that Fulham keeper Marek Rodak could only push out to Lacazette, who slotted home from virtually on the goalline. Willian was denied a debut goal when his low free-kick cannoned off the base of the post. Gabriel was enjoying a composed debut and the 22-year-old showed he can be a goal threat as well when he doubled Arsenal's lead in the 49th minute. Willian swung over the corner and Gabriel showed his desire as he rose above Michael Hector for an attempted header that hit his shoulder as it flashed into the net. Fulham's defence was crumbling like the recently demolished Craven Cottage stand and Aubameyang finished them off in the 57th minute with a carbon copy of his Community Shield goal against Liverpool. Just as at Wembley, Willian's superb cross-field pass picked out Aubameyang and he was allowed to advance unchecked into the area before bending a fine finish into the far corner.

Rampant Arsenal crush Fulham as Premier League returns

Rafa Benitez got his first bitter taste of life in the Championship (second tier) as his relegated Newcastle United side suffered a 1-0 defeat at Fulham in the first match of the English league season yesterday. 
 
Fulham scored a deserved winner on the stroke of halftime when Matt Smith rose above a flat-footed defence to power home a header from a corner with Newcastle generally second best. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s a wake-up call. We will have games more difficult than this one,&quot; Benitez was quoted as saying by the BBC. &quot;If we play for something more important than the first game of the season maybe the anxiety will be even higher, we need to make sure we can manage that and play better.&quot; 
 
His side might have had better luck, though, with two penalty claims turned down. 
 
Fulham&rsquo;s Ryan Tunnicliffe appeared to handle a shot from Matt Ritchie in the 35th minute but the referee waved play on with replays suggesting he could have awarded a penalty. Benitez did not use the decision as justification for his side failing to take a point. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s not an excuse, we have to be better,&quot; said the former Real Madrid and Liverpool coach. &quot;We have to trust referees, but they can make mistakes.&quot; 
 
Another penalty appeal by Newcastle for handball by Tomas Kalas two minutes from time was also turned down, again after a shot by Scotland&#39;s former Bournemouth midfielder Ritchie, one of the signings Benitez has made to help strengthen his side. 
 
Fulham looked more comfortable in a division they have played in for the last two seasons but Newcastle need to adjust fast if they are to bounce straight back to the Premier League. 
 
&quot;At the beginning we were nervous, in the second half we made the wrong decisions,&quot; added Benitez, whose team host Huddersfield Town at St James&#39; Park next weekend. 
 
(Reuters)

'It's a wake-up call. We will have games more difficult than this one,' Benitez said

Rafa Benitez got his first bitter taste of life in the Championship (second tier) as his relegated Newcastle United side suffered a 1-0 defeat at Fulham in the first match of the English league season yesterday. Fulham scored a deserved winner on the stroke of halftime when Matt Smith rose above a flat-footed defence to power home a header from a corner with Newcastle generally second best. "It's a wake-up call. We will have games more difficult than this one," Benitez was quoted as saying by the BBC. "If we play for something more important than the first game of the season maybe the anxiety will be even higher, we need to make sure we can manage that and play better." His side might have had better luck, though, with two penalty claims turned down. Fulham’s Ryan Tunnicliffe appeared to handle a shot from Matt Ritchie in the 35th minute but the referee waved play on with replays suggesting he could have awarded a penalty. Benitez did not use the decision as justification for his side failing to take a point. "It's not an excuse, we have to be better," said the former Real Madrid and Liverpool coach. "We have to trust referees, but they can make mistakes." Another penalty appeal by Newcastle for handball by Tomas Kalas two minutes from time was also turned down, again after a shot by Scotland's former Bournemouth midfielder Ritchie, one of the signings Benitez has made to help strengthen his side. Fulham looked more comfortable in a division they have played in for the last two seasons but Newcastle need to adjust fast if they are to bounce straight back to the Premier League. "At the beginning we were nervous, in the second half we made the wrong decisions," added Benitez, whose team host Huddersfield Town at St James' Park next weekend. (Reuters)

Benitez's Newcastle lose 1-0 at Fulham in Championship opener

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Rampant Arsenal crush Fulham as Premier League returns

Benitez's Newcastle lose 1-0 at Fulham in Championship opener