Paul Merson reserved special praise for Martin Odegaard following Arsenal’s gritty 1-0 victory over Hull City, claiming the midfielder has been ‘like a new signing’ this season.

Arsenal had looked on course to drop points for only the second time this term as newly promoted Hull dug in and managed to frustrate their hosts, with Declan Rice coming close to breaking the deadlock on three occasions.

Noni Madueke also had his head in his hands after being denied by Konstantinos Tzolakis with the minutes ticking down in front of an increasingly agitated Emirates crowd.

But the pressure told with 18 minutes remaining of normal time as Tzolakis again kept out Madueke, only for Odegaard to pounce and poke the ball home on the rebound to cue rapturous scenes in north London.

The reigning Premier League champions preserved their narrow advantage to ensure they moved six points clear at the top of the table after Manchester City were stunned in a 3-1 defeat away to Nottingham Forest.

High-flying Brighton – the only team to get the better of Arsenal – will look to close the gap to five points when they play host to Brentford later this afternoon.

‘You know Hull are going to sit ten behind the ball and make it very difficult,’ ex-Arsenal and England midfielder Merson said of Arsenal’s win over Hull on Sky Sports.

‘If you score early, you just go on and then win 3-0 or 4-0 and it would be a nice day at the office. That didn’t happen.

‘Hull defended very well and it took Martin Odegaard to break them down if I’m being honest.

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‘Noni Madueke comes inside, hits a shot, it gets parried… he’s the first one to react and there’s two defenders in front of him, about four or five yards in front of him, but because of his reaction, he runs past them, he hits it, there’s a slight deflection and it goes underneath the goalkeeper’s arms.’

Merson felt Hull shot-stopper Tzolakis was the man of the match in a game which could later be seen as vital if Arsenal are to successfully defend their title this season.

He added: ‘Arsenal weren’t great but they won and this could be one of those games you look back on at the end of the season and go, “Remember the Hull game when we nicked it at the end”, but yeah, Hull will come away and think they did alright.

‘For me, the goalkeeper was the man of the match for Hull so that tells you everything. Arsenal weren’t great but it was a great result.’

Odegaard was once again the heartbeat of everything Arsenal did well to continue what has been an outstanding start to the 2026/27 campaign for the Gunners captain.

The crucial 72nd-minute strike took the Norwegian’s goalscoring tally to five in all competitions this season. He managed only one goal in 36 appearances last term.

‘He’s been outstanding. He’s the only one really that moves it quickly,’ Merson said of Odegaard.

‘He moves it quickly, he moves, he gets into positions. I just thought too many players took too many touches and they slowed it down and gave Hull half a chance.

‘I think he’s been outstanding this season, he’s like a new signing for them and he’s been the man so far.

‘Not great but just a good result for Arsenal. But again, he was one of the stars of the show.’

Arsenal will hope to tighten their vicelike grip on top spot when they return to Premier League action against Newcastle at St James’ Park in a week’s time.

A tough Champions League clash at home to Borussia Dortmund awaits three days later, before Mikel Arteta’s men head back to the Emirates to face off against Manchester City in the English top flight.