Arsenal are five points clear of Manchester City going into the World Cup break.
Martin Odegaard scored twice as the Gunners won 2-0 at Wolves.
It saw Mikel Arteta‘s men capitalise on Manchester City’s defeat and lead at the top of the Premier League over Christmas.
Arsenal were already guaranteed top spot in the Premier League over the festive period after Brentford stunned the Premier League champions earlier on Saturday, but with new boss Julen Lopetegui watching in the stands, Wolves frustrated the Gunners in a goalless first half at Molineux.
It looked as though Arsenal would head into the World Cup break with just a three-point lead at the summit until captain Odegaard tapped Fabio Vieira’s cross in from close range (55). The Norwegian then clinched a seismic victory for Mikel Arteta’s side with his second (75).
Arsenal’s 12th league victory of the season opened up a 14-point buffer between themselves and fifth-placed Manchester United in the race for Champions League football, though that early-season objective has surely been cast aside by the Gunners’ relentless pursuit of a first league title since 2004.
Arteta reacts
Arteta said: “Nobody expected us to be where we are right now. I am more focused on our way of playing, our way of living together, the atmosphere we have around Colney and what we have generated with our supporters in our stadium. That is much more powerful.
“It’s great to be where we are, we are enjoying that moment. We have a big break, we have to reflect on what we are doing and we are very much prepared for what is to come after the World Cup.
“When a team is in the moment you want to carry on playing. It’s not possible so we have to use the time now in the best possible way.
“Our aim is to play better as a team every single day, to have better tools to do what we want to do on the pitch.”
