Odegaard earns leaders Arsenal tight win against stubborn Hull

Arsenal banked another three points in the defence of their Premier League title as their trademark persistence once again paid off in a 1-0 home win over stubborn Hull City on Saturday. It was not fluent or convincing but Martin Odegaard’s poacher’s goal in the 72nd-minute earned Mikel Arteta’s side a sixth league win by a single-goal margin this season. Arsenal moved to 27 points from 10 games, six clear of second-placed Manchester City who will try to bounce back from consecutive defeats at Nottingham Forest later on Saturday. Tottenham Hotspur’s recent revival came to a halt as they went down 1-0 at Leeds United for whom Noah Okafor struck the winner 97 seconds after coming off the bench at Elland Road. Fulham and Newcastle United shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw at Craven Cottage — Jacob Murphy giving the hosts a late lead only for Rodrigo Muniz to equalise. Arsenal showed last season a champions knack for picking up wins even without hitting top gear and it was very much in evidence against a Hull side who provided a stern test. Captain Odegaard had not scored since September but was on hand to snaffle a rebound after Noni Madueke’s shot had been saved by Hull keeper Konstantinos Tzolakis.