Full time: Leicester 0-2 Arsenal Arsenal move to within four points of Liverpool after a hard-fought win at the King Power Stadium. The substitute Mikel Merino, pushed up front in an emergency, scored two accomplished late goals to settle a very tight match. The game-breaking first goal was made the outstanding 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, who played with an effervescence and skill that nobody else could match. It’s a big win for Arsenal, who are hanging on in the title race. Ben Fisher was at the King Power Stadium for us. I’ll leave you with his report. Mikel Merino’s reaction It’s the first time in my career that I’ve played as a striker. The manager told me to use my strengths and I think I did that. [Will we see you more as a striker?] I don’t think so, to be honest. But it’s a good day to score because I forgot to give my wife a Valentine’s Day present, so I think she’ll appreciate this more than a rose or some chocolates. Thank you to our amazing fans, they make it easier for us and games like this are great for our belief. [On Ethan Nwaneri] He’s an amazing player. Every time I do an interview, you guys ask me for him! That’s natural because he is such a talent. He has such a wonderful left foot and he put the ball right on my head so that all I could do was score. Full time: Leicester 0-2 Arsenal Arsenal move to within four points of Liverpool after a hard-fought win at the King Power Stadium. The substitute Mikel Merino, pushed up front in an emergency, scored two accomplished late goals to settle a very tight match. The game-breaking first goal was made the outstanding 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, who played with an effervescence and skill that nobody else could match. It’s a big win for Arsenal, who are hanging on in the title race. 90+2 min The scoreline suggests another bad day for Leicester but they have played well and their spirit looks good. Their next two home games are against Brentford and Manchester United; they probably need to take at least four points. 90 min Four minutes of added time. This is the updated Premier League table. 89 min Arsenal bring on Kieran Tierney for Leandro Trossard. 88 min In other news, two old friends were reunited before the game. Mikel Merino has scored his second goal to seal a vital win for Arsenal. It came on the counter-attack, with Odegaard and Calafiori combining to find Trossard on the left. He ran at Coulibaly and drove a superb cross to the far post, where Merino cushioned a half-volley past Hermansen. That’s another very accomplished finish. GOAL! Leicester 0-2 Arsenal (Merino 87) Arsenal have found their centre-forward for the rest of the season. 86 min Jorginho is booked for a cynical foul on Mavididi. 85 min: Double substitution for Leicester Patson Daka and Federico Buonanotte replace Bobby De Cordova-Reid and the excellent Wilfred Ndidi. 83 min Leicester aim to hit back, with El Khannouss’s excellent clipped cross just evading Mavididi at the far post. Mikel Merino, brought on to play centre-forward, has headed Arsenal in front. It was made by the player of the match, 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, who teased a gorgeous inswinging cross to the far post. Merino pulled away from Faes and steered an expert header past Hermansen. It’s tough on Leicester, who have defended admirably. But Ethan Nwaneri, bloody hell. GOAL! Leicester 0-1 Arsenal (Merino 81) Mikel Arteta’s gamble has paid off! 76 min: Nwaneri hits the post! Rice breaks forward and finds Nwaneri in the inside-right channel. He runs at Kristiansen, beats him with a stepover and rams a rising drive with his right foot that clatters off the near post. As Lucy Ward says on TNT Sports, he is carrying Arsenal on his shoulders. 76 min: Double substitution for Arsenal Jorginho and Ricardo Calafiori replace Thomas Partey and Myles Lewis-Skelly. 75 min: Leicester substitution Jordan Ayew is replaced by Stephy Mavididi. 73 min: Great defending by Lewis-Skelly! Leicester break four on four with Ayew on the ball down the left. He drives a superb low cross that beats Raya and is about to be tapped in by De Cordova-Reid when Lewis-Skelly pokes the ball away from him and behind for a corner. 71 min This is probably Arsenal’s best spell of sustained possession. A terrific cross from the right bounces just past the stretching Merino at the far post. 69 min: Arsenal substitution Mikel Merino replaces Raheem Sterling, who has struggled all day. Leandro Trossard will move to the left with Merino as a false nine. 67 min A long-range stinger from De Cordova-Reid is palmed up in the air by Raya and grabbed at the second attempt. A comfortable save. 66 min Nwaneri is fouled just outside the area on the right by Kristiansen. Odegaard’s free-kick is headed away by Coulibaly at the far post. 64 min Arsenal have no senior attackers on the bench. Leicester, it must be said, have defended brilliantly. They don’t look like a team that has lost eight of the last nine. 61 min: Nwaneri hits the bar! Odegaard moves forward and slips an angled pass to Nwaneri, 25 yards from goal. he cuts inside and hammers a shot that beats Hermansen and brushes the top of the crossbar. A lovely effort from a crazily talented 17-year-old. 60 min A corner from Rice brushes the head of Okoli and lamnds on the roof of the net. He thought he was fouled but Arsenal have another corner; this time Leicester are given a foul. 57 min Ayew is booked for a tactical foul on Timber. 55 min Faes shoots wide from the edge of the area, though Okoli had already been penalised for a challenge on Timber. 52 min Arsenal have upped the tempo since half-time. They know, realistically, that this is a must-win game if they are to have a chance of winning the title. 49 min Odegaard plays a good ball through to Rice, who tries a reverse square pass to Sterling on the edge of the area. There isn’t quite enough weight on the pass and Ndidi gets across to challenge Sterling. 46 min El Khannouss is booked for a foul on Partey. 46 min Peep peep! No additional changes on either side as Leicester begin the second half. Half time: Leicester 0-0 Arsenal An uneventful half at the King Power Stadium. That reflects well on Leicester, who defended superbly and didn’t give Arsenal any clear chances. Ethan Nwaneri was bright but the rest of the Arsenal attack looked out of sorts. 45+4 min: Ndidi heads wide! The best chance of the half. Kristiansen slings in a good cross that is flicked across goal and wide by Ndidi, 10 yards out. A decent chance, though far from a sitter. 45+3 min A promising Leicester attack on the right involving Soumare and De Cordova-Reid. Eventually Soumare’s cross is well blocked at the near post by Partey. 45 min Four minutes of added time. There still hasn’t been a shot on target at either end. 43 min: Leicester substitution James Justin, who hurt his ankle earlier in the half, is unable to continue. Woyo Coulibaly replaces him. 40 min Odegaard scoops an imaginative ball into the area for Trossard, who can’t sort his feet out and fresh-airs an admittedly awkward volley. 39 min I’ll let you know when the game kicks off. 36 min Sterling’s deflected shot goes behind for the first corner of the game. Nwaneri’s inswinger is punched away well by Hermansen. 32 min So anyway, what are you up to this weekend? Nothing is happening on the field. 29 min The game hasn’t settled down at all. Arsenal, unsurprisingly given their injury problems, are playing well until they reach the final third. 26 min An injury to James Juston allows Mikel Arteta to give his team a tactics tutorial. He’s okay to continue. 24 min In a messy game, Ethan Nwaneri has looked a class apart with his touch and vision. He turns 18 in March. 20 min Partey sprays a crossfield pass straight out of play. It’s all a bit scruffy at the moment. 18 min Possession percentage: Leicester 38-62 Arsenal. 16 min Nwaneri, who has started well, flips a cross that is headed across goal and wide by Rice. It was a difficult chance as he saw it late with Justin jumping in front of him. 15 min A dangerous cross from El Khannouss just evades Vardy and lands behind Ayew at the far post. 13 min Partey’s snapshot from 22 yards is blocked. Leicester have defended well so far. 10 min Soumare’s cross is headed away to the edge of the area. Ndidi meets it with a crisp left-foot volley that is too close to Raya. 9 min Odegaard teases a chip over the defence towards Trossard, who flicks a volley that is saved to his right by Hermansen. He was offside so it wouldn’t have counted. 7 min Arsenal are settling into their passing rhythm. Still no openings to speak of, never mind chances. 4 min Nothing to report yet. Leicester have started brightly enough though, and the atmosphere is tremendous. 2 min “How many saloons would there have been in a typical Dodge-City type Western town of the mid-19th century?” muses Charles Antaki. “Some towns were presumably no more than a collection of a few shacks, but a substantial settlement may have had, what, half a dozen fronting onto a dusty Main Street. “Raheem Sterling hasn’t actually started more than a couple of games for Arsenal, so let’s give him the benefit of the doubt and say he’s got three more before he gets to the Last Chance Saloon. He’s at the pre-penultimate, I think it is. Still time. But it’s nearly run out. A hat-trick today would help. 1 min Peep peep! They’re under way at the King Power Stadium. A reminder of the teams Leicester (4-2-3-1) Hermansen; Justin, Okoli, Faes, Kristiansen; Ndidi, Soumare; De Cordova-Reid, El Khannouss, Ayew; Vardy. Substitutes: Stolarczyk, Coulibaly, Coady, Vestergaard, Winks, Skipp, Buonanotte, Mavididi, Daka. Arsenal (4-1-4-1) Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Partey; Nwaneri, Odegaard, Rice, Sterling; Trossard. Substitutes: Neto, Tierney, White, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Jorginho, Merino, Calafiori, Butler-Oyedeji. “As a Chelsea fan, Kaoru Mitoma made my life difficult last night,” begins Krishnamoorthy V, “but it also transported to football heaven.” If you haven’t seen it, just see it. Pre-match reading Team news Leicester make two changes from their unfortunate FA Cup defeat at Old Trafford. Victor Kristiansen comes in for Luke Thomas at left-back; Jamie Vardy replaces Patson Daka up front. Arsenal make two changes, both enforced, to the team that lost at Newcastle in the Carabao Cup. Raheem Sterling and Ethan Nwaneri come in for the injured Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz. It looks like Leandro Trossard will be their centre-forward. Leicester (4-2-3-1) Hermansen; Justin, Okoli, Faes, Kristiansen; Ndidi, Soumare; De Cordova-Reid, El Khannouss, Ayew; Vardy. Substitutes: Stolarczyk, Coulibaly, Coady, Vestergaard, Winks, Skipp, Buonanotte, Mavididi, Daka. Arsenal (4-1-4-1) Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Partey; Nwaneri, Odegaard, Rice, Sterling; Trossard. Substitutes: Neto, Calafiori, Zinchenko, Tierney, Kiwior, White, Jorginho, Merino, Butler-Oyedeji. Referee Sam Barrott. Preamble So you’re saying there’s a chance? Arsenal are still highly unlikely to win the Premier League this season, but James Tarkowski’s sizzling equaliser on Wednesday has given them a soupçon of hope. They’re seven points behind Liverpool with 14 games to play - one of them, tantalisingly, at Anfield in May. Arsenal have gone on spectacular title-winning runs before – 10 straight wins in 1997-98, 12 in 2001-02 – and they will probably need another to reel in Liverpool. Their injury list makes things a whole lot harder, but at least they’re still in the conversation. Leicester are in a different league, a mini-league with Ipswich and Wolves at the bottom. Two will be relegated, one will survive. Ruud van Nistelrooy denied Arsenal the title in 2002-03 and probably 2004-05; he’d love to do the same today. Kick off 12.30pm GMT.