The game kicked off at 15:00 GMT in front of 60,285. Before the matchweek, Arsenal, the champions, were top of the Premier League with 24 points from nine games, and Hull City, promoted through the play-offs in May, were 11th with 11 points. Hull had gone seven league games without a win since beating Coventry City 1-0 on 29 August, and they were without Mohamed Belloumi, their top league scorer this season with three goals, who had not trained since the 2-2 draw with Ipswich Town because of an injury, Sky Sports reported.
How the match was won
Arsenal lined up in a 4-2-3-1, with David Raya in goal, Ezri Konsa and Gabriel Magalhães at center back, Declan Rice and Bruno Guimarães in midfield, Ødegaard behind Kai Havertz, and Christos Tzolis and Madueke on the wings. Hull played a 5-3-2, with Oliver McBurnie and Mohamed-Ali Cho up front.
Hull had the first chance, a John Egan header from a corner that went just wide in the second minute, and Semi Ajayi headed wide from a set piece in the ninth. Raya's two saves both came in the first half, from an Elliot Stroud shot and an Ajayi header. At the other end Tzolakis saved twice from Rice, the second a header in first-half stoppage time, and once from a Tzolis header, and the first half finished 0-0.
- 72' Arsenal 1-0 Hull City: Martin Ødegaard, a right-footed shot from the right side of the six-yard box into the bottom right corner, after Tzolakis had saved a left-footed shot from Madueke, who had been set up by Jurriën Timber. Sky Sports described Ødegaard as the quickest to react to the rebound.
The goal came three minutes after Mikel Arteta's second set of changes: Mikel Merino and Viktor Gyökeres had replaced Rice and Havertz in the 63rd minute, and Eberechi Eze and Piero Hincapié came on for Tzolis and Riccardo Calafiori in the 69th. Martín Zubimendi replaced Guimarães in the 89th. It was Ødegaard's third Premier League goal of the season, all of them at the Emirates, as beIN Sports pointed out: the others came against Coventry City and Chelsea.
Turning points
Arsenal had a penalty claim turned down just before half-time. Nobel Mendy pulled Havertz's shirt in the area and the referee was sent to the pitchside monitor, but Havertz was ruled offside and no penalty was given. Arteta told arsenal.com that the decision came down to Havertz's starting position, which was offside, and that the interpretation was not yet clear to Arsenal. On Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday, former Premier League referee Mike Dean argued that the shirt pull came first and should have brought a penalty, Sky Sports reported.
Tzolakis finished with nine saves: three in the first half, three between the 57th and 72nd minutes, from Madueke twice and Tzolis, and three after the goal, from Merino twice and Gyökeres. Arsenal had 21 shots to Hull's seven, and 10 on target to two.
Hull deserve the credit individually and collectively, because they kept going at it.
Mikel Arteta, Arsenal manager, via arsenal.com
Hull's first change came in the 60th minute, Joe Gelhardt for Cho. Brooke Norton-Cuffy replaced Lewie Coyle a minute later and was booked in the same minute. Ajayi went off injured in the 69th minute, replaced by Lucas Herrington, and in the 75th Stroud was booked and replaced by Ryan Giles, while Christos Mouzakitis came on for Tim Iroegbunam. Hull were shown five yellow cards in all, to Coyle, Lucas Gourna-Douath, Norton-Cuffy, Stroud and Mendy, and committed 15 fouls to Arsenal's six. Arsenal had no bookings.
We were brave, especially in the defensive phase.
Sergej Jakirovic, Hull City head coach, to Sky Sports
Arsenal vs Hull City: key stats
| Stat | Arsenal | Hull City |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 66.9% | 33.1% |
| Shots | 21 | 7 |
| Shots on target | 10 | 2 |
| Corners | 7 | 4 |
| Fouls | 6 | 15 |
| Yellow cards | 0 | 5 |
| Red cards | 0 | 0 |
| Offsides | 4 | 1 |
| Goalkeeper saves | 2 | 9 |
| Passes (completed) | 569 (490) | 272 (190) |
Arsenal had 66.9% of the ball and completed 490 of their 569 passes, 86%, against Hull's 190 of 272, 70%. Hull played 73 long balls to Arsenal's 47, while Arsenal sent in 21 crosses to Hull's 15.
What it means for the table
Arsenal have 27 points from 10 games, with nine wins and one defeat, 15 goals scored and five conceded. It was their fifth straight league win since a 3-0 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion in September, their fourth straight league clean sheet and their seventh in 10 league games, and they have won all five of their home league games this season. Sky Sports noted that only four sides have had more points after 10 Premier League games: Chelsea in 2005-06, Manchester City in 2011-12 and 2017-18, and Liverpool in 2019-20. Our look at how many points it takes to win the Premier League has the totals of past champions.
Manchester City, second before the matchweek, lost 3-1 at Nottingham Forest in the 17:30 GMT kick-off and stay on 21 points from 10 games, so Arsenal's lead over them grew from three points to six. Brighton & Hove Albion, third before Sunday's matches with 19 points from nine games, host Brentford on Sunday; even a win would leave them five points behind, so Arsenal will still be top when the matchweek ends.
Hull drop from 11th to 13th before Sunday's matches, on 11 points from 10 games: two wins, five draws and three defeats, with no league win in eight games. They are level on points with Ipswich Town, who host AFC Bournemouth on Sunday, one point behind 10th-placed Tottenham Hotspur and four points above 18th-placed Manchester United, who play Aston Villa. Since 1995-96, play-off winners like Hull have stayed up 14 times in 31, as our look at how often promoted teams stay up in the Premier League shows. The full Premier League table updates after every game.
What's next: Arsenal at Newcastle, Hull host Brighton
- Arsenal: away at Newcastle United, Saturday 21 November 2026, 17:30 GMT.
- Hull City: at home to Brighton & Hove Albion, Sunday 22 November 2026, 14:00 GMT.
Both games come after the international break, which Arteta said Arsenal would use to analyze their start to the season, according to arsenal.com. They are on our Premier League fixtures page, and the Premier League simulator lets you play out the rest of the season with your own scores.
How this report was built: the score, goal, cards, substitutions, lineups, team stats, attendance, chances, saves, VAR check and earlier results come from ESPN's match data. Both tables are computed from ESPN full-time results, three points for a win; the matchweek 10 table leaves out the five games still to be played on Sunday 8 November. Context and quotes come from Sky Sports, arsenal.com and beIN Sports.