Arteta urges Arsenal fans to 'embrace the moment' after extending Premier League lead

Gunners moved five points clear of Manchester City after Saturday's 2-0 win at Wolves

Mikel Arteta applauds fans following Arsenal's victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux. Getty

Mikel Arteta has urged Arsenal fans to "embrace the moment" after the Gunners stretched their lead at the top of the Premier League table with a 2-0 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

Following Manchester City's shock 2-1 home defeat by Brentford, Arsenal had the chance to move five points clear in the standings and they duly delivered, captain Martin Odegaard scoring both goals at Molineux.

With club football now taking an extended break during the 2022 Qatar World Cup, it means Arsenal will be top of the table on Christmas Day for the first time since 2007.

Widely considered before the season started as likely top four contenders, Arsenal's superb form so far has transformed the club into genuine title challengers.

"Obviously nobody expected us to be where we are right now," said Arteta. "But it's great to be where we are and we are enjoying that moment."

The Spaniard insisted that the club's supporters are as responsible as the players for their impressive start to the campaign, adding that he will use the World Cup break as a chance to get ready to the season's resumption.

Wolves v Arsenal player ratings

WOLVES PLAYER RATINGS: Jose Sa - 6. Saved by the offside flag and then the crossbar in the first half, but despite that he didn’t actually have all that much to do in the opening 45. No chance of keeping out either of Odegaard’s impressive goals for very different reasons. Reuters

Nelson Semedo – 6. Built on a positive start from the hosts when the pacey full-back won his side a corner and he got a vital touch at the other end to nick an inviting delivery away from a sea of red shirts. Made way for debutant Lembikisa in the second half. Reuters

Max Kilman – 6. Relieved the pressure with an excellent defensive header to clear Odegaard’s corner as the visitors threatened again. A decent display from the defender despite the result, but Arsenal’s quality eventually proved too much for him. PA

Nathan Collins – 5. Credible despite the result. Given a torrid time by the likes of Jesus and Odegaard, but he stuck to the task and made sure that the Gunners had to work hard for every single point. Getty

Toti Gomes – 7. Picked up the first yellow of the game for pulling back Saka in an incident not dissimilar to the Odegaard foul on Moutinho that went unpunished, which had the men in orange seething. Got a vital touch to deny Odegaard another tap-in. Getty

Hugo Bueno – 5. Took White out of the game with some brilliant solo play to take his side up the pitch before Arsenal were eventually able to clear. Saw yellow late on for hooding the ball away in frustration. Reuters

Boubacar Traore – 5. Had Arsenal in trouble when he burst away and squared for Guedes, who appeared to be bundled over by Saliba. Saw yellow for a less-than-subtle shove on Jesus and could have received another for a reckless trip on Vieira. Getty

Ruben Neves – 4. Failed to show his usual quality and saw his ambitious strike drift well wide of the target. The Portugal man is definitely capable of the spectacular, but this wasn’t his night. PA

Joao Moutinho – 6. The veteran midfielder was raging - and rightly so - after an impressive dart forward was cynically ended by a shirt pull from Odegaard, who somehow avoided a booking. A decent display, but his influence waned as the game went on. Reuters

Adama Traore – 6. All pace, no product. Thwarted by an excellent Gabriel block, although the flag went up and blasted in orbit after latching onto a loose ball. Made a nuisance of himself but he couldn’t force a breakthrough. Reuters

Goncalo Guedes – 7. The forward was a little unfortunate not to be awarded a penalty after tangling with Saliba and he continued to worry the leaders, first firing over the bar after good work from Adama Traore before his strike was deflected wide after an error from Saliba. Reuters

Dexter Lembikisa (Semedo 68') – 4. A mixed night for the youngster who made his Premier League debut, but was embarrassed by Martinelli who bullied him in the corner as Arsenal doubled their lead. Reuters

Matheus Nunes (Gomes 80') – NR. Didn’t really manage to make his mark in a game that was dead and buried by the time he was introduced. PA

Daniel Podence (Moutinho 68’) – 8. The hosts definitely looked better following his introduction. He went close to the spectacular with an improvised bicycle kick, then forced a good save from Ramsdale with a powerful effort that had to be tipped over. Reuters

ARSENAL PLAYER RATINGS: Aaron Ramsdale – 8. Showed bravery to throw himself at the feet of Traore and received a sore one for his troubles. Scooped Podence’s powerful effort over the bar as Wolves rallied. Good reactions from the Arsenal ‘keeper to preserve his clean sheet. Getty

Ben White – 5. Provided plenty of attacking support but should have been booked for venting his frustrations at both his opponent and the referee. Given a hard time defensively by Guedes, Traore and Podence. AFP

William Saliba – 6. The reliable defender has been superb this season, but he got away with a couple of clangers, notably after playing Guedes straight through on goal with a blind pass. Despite that, he still came away with a clean sheet. Getty

Gabriel – 8. Spared Saliba’s blushes with a super bit of defending to steer Guedes effort wide of the far post, and he might have grabbed himself a goal too had he made better contact with Saka’s inviting corner. EPA

Oleksandr Zinchenko – 6. Looked a little off it but still managed to have a big impact when Wolves failed to deal with his zinger of a cross that was eventually lashed into the bottom corner by Odegaard with Sa rooted to the spot. Reuters

Thomas Partey – 6. A steady performance in the middle of the park. Won his side a corner when he hurled a throw into the box, but saw yellow for blatantly clattering into Semedo. Getty

Granit Xhaka – 5. Replaced with barely 15 minutes on the clock, seemingly because of illness. The tussling midfielder is undoubtedly made of strong stuff and tried to play on, but he looked far from at his best as he trudged off. Getty

Bukayo Saka – 6. Not at his frightening best, but he still played some tidy stuff and created a big chance for Gabriel when he clipped in a teasing corner that was begging to be converted. Did the basics well before his withdrawal in stoppage time. AFP

Martin Odegaard – 9. Outstanding. Grabbed himself a well-earned brace - including a tap-in and a belter from the edge of the box - and he would have had three of four if not for some brilliant last-ditch defending. Ran his socks off in a match-winning display. AFP

Gabriel Martinelli – 8. Humbled debutant Lembikisa when he pinched back possession in the corner and found Zinchenko with a cool but cruel back heel. His follow-up strike was superbly kept out, only for Odegaard to hammer home the rebound. PA

Gabriel Jesus – 9. Did everything but score, at least while onside. Clipped the bar in the first half but produced some world-class link-up play, including X-ray vision to thread through Vieira who found Odegaard to make it 1-0. Deserved a goal. AFP

Fabio Vieira (Xhaka 16') – 7. Gifted Odegaard the simplest of finishes with a pinpoint delivery following a smart run in behind. A really good display from the substitute, even though he was subbed himself in added time. Reuters

Cedric Soares (Zinchenko 90’) – NR. No time to make an impact but no defender will grumble with a clean sheet against their name. Getty

Mohamed Elneny (Vieira 90’) – NR. Won a stoppage-time free-kick to help see his side over the line. Reuters

Reiss Nelson (Saka 90’) – NR. A very brief cameo for the energetic winger who impressed in midweek but had little chance to get involved on this occasion. EPA

“They can enjoy it and embrace the moment,” Arteta said. “They should feel part of what's happening because they have an incredible power, the way they have transformed the club, the unity they have generated all across the club, and the players are delighted.

“I will have a few days break and then we'll just have to prepare, because this period I think is going to be key. It's going to be demanding, it's going to be challenging. We need to be ready for it.”

Arsenal return to action on December 26 with a London derby against West Ham at the Emirates Stadium.