FA Premier League
WEST HAM UNITED 0
ARSENAL 1 (Trossard 83)

TIME stood still at the London Stadium this afternoon (Sunday) as an injury-time VAR call kept Arsenal’s title tilt on track.

It seemed like West Ham United had spoilt the party when Calum Wilson whacked a shot over the line after a scramble from a corner, but the replays showed David Raya had been fouled with a stray arm from substitute striker Pablo.

The scoreline stayed at 0-1 to Arsenal and a huge sigh of relief could be heard from the pitch to north London. Not just among Gunners fans, but also among Tottenham Hotspur fans. This was a result which represented a big step towards the trophy for Arsenal, and a big one for Spurs in their battle against relegation.

At the same time, there may have been a few smashed television sets in Manchester where City fans were hoping the nerves would get the better of the leaders.

It wasn’t the only scare that manager Mikel Arteta endured on the sidelines. Mateus Fernandes had a golden opportunity to put the Irons ahead in a tense second half when he was found by Pablo with just David Raya in the Gunners goal to beat. He dithered before unleashing his shot, but it was still a wonderful save by the goalkeeper to block it with his leg.

A few minutes later, Leandro Trossard, the man of the match, fired Arsenal ahead with the only goal of the match, having been set up by a tricky run by Martin Odegaard. At that stage, there were only seven minutes left on the clock and Arteta had been running out of time.

Odegaard has had a disappointing season but he added smarter options up front, with the Gunners looking like they were running out of ideas. He sank to his knees in relief as he watched Trossard’s shot ripple the net.

Maybe it might not have been so tense if Arsenal had taken a raft of chances in the first 20 minutes. Riccardo Calafiori had two decent opportunities and Trossard headed against the bar. It was wave after wave of attacks.

But the tone changed after right-back Ben White picked up a nasty injury halfway through the first half.

Arteta appeared to struggle to know what to do and sent Declan Rice to play in defence. It invited the Hammers to press forward through the midfield. The home side might even have gone into the break ahead if Taty Castellanos’ diving header had not brought out similar acrobatics from Raya.

There were at least two more reorganisations and Arteta had the courage to substitute a substitute when Martin Zubimendi was withdrawn. Eventually, it all fit into place and Odegaard’s arrival helped make things click.

Now it’s Burnley at home and Crystal Palace away, which seem very winnable to claim the title – but today’s encounter should be a warning about complacency. Nothing is simple in these high-stakes moments.

“We have to stay in the moment,” Odegaard said afterwards. “We just need to prepare for the next one and get ready for it. We must stay calm, that’s all we can do.”

Easier said than done, especially for the fans.