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.