Arsenal have kept themselves afloat in the Premier League title race after producing a resilient display to beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners left it late to pick up their first win in three, getting past a stubborn Albion side thanks to Olivier Giroud's 86th-minute winner on his first league start of the campaign.
A failure to turn possession into clear-cut chances for large parts of the game so nearly cost Arsenal, though they did salvage a deserved victory at the last to put an end to their disappointing recent run of form and remain nine points off top spot in the process.
The first half failed to truly take off, with the Gunners being restricted to a string of shots from range in the opening quarter of the match - Alexis Sanchez and Granit Xhaka each taking it in turns to blast high and wide.
Arsenal were remaining patient and occasionally putting together some impressive moves down either flank, but getting in behind the Albion backline was proving to be a different matter.
The contest finally showed signs of livening up 33 minutes in when, just moments after Salomon Rondon's glanced header forced a first save of the game out of Petr Cech, Chile international Sanchez was up the other end and sending a shot on target for Ben Foster to help aside.
That would ultimately prove to be the closest either side came in a real flat first half in North London, with the Baggies looking good value at that point to keep a first clean sheet against their opponents in 20 top-flight encounters.
Arsene Wenger decided against making any changes at the interval, instead keeping faith with Giroud up top and eventually being rewarded for his decision.
The patience appeared to pay off instantly as Arsenal started the second half much the better side, finally turning possession into openings and asking some questions of Albion keeper Foster on a more regular basis.
Foster kept out Alex Iwobi and then, more impressively, Sanchez in quick succession, before the Chilean worked some space in the area and sent the ball against the crossbar.
Better was still to come from Foster, who also helped over a long-range Sanchez drive with his fingertips and blocked Giroud's goalbound shot down low at full stretch with his feet.
Albion soon managed to grow into the game, however, winning a couple of corners in quick succession with a quarter of the match left to play and setting up a tense finale to the contest.
Claudio Yacob, whose only previous senior goal came against Arsenal, had a glorious chance to edge his side in front from inside the box 73 minutes in, only to lift it narrowly over the target.
It was proving to be a tight affair right to the end, as Giroud somehow failed to divert home a Sanchez cross from close range and Hector Bellerin headed over when picked out inside the area.
Only once in 10 months had Arsenal failed to find the net on home soil prior to this match, while also scoring in all previous 20 top-flight meetings with the Baggies, and both those runs were maintained thanks to Giroud's late heroics.
A cross from the right was met by the Frenchman, who outjumped Gareth McAuley and lofted his header over the reach of an inspired Foster to keep Arsenal just about in the hunt for the title.
Daniel Lewis
