Premier League round-up: Arsenal ride luck against West Ham to stay in top-four hunt

Wolves held to a goalless draw against Brighton, while Sheffield United continued their fine season with a win over relegation-threatened Norwich

epa08276918 Arsenal's Alexandre Lacazette (C) reacts after he is awarded the 1-0 goal following a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) investigation during the English Premier League soccer match between Arsenal and West Ham United at the Emirates Stadium in London, Britain, 07 March 2020.  EPA/NEIL HALL EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications
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Arsenal moved to within five points of the Premier League top four and extended their unbeaten record to eight games after edging London rivals West Ham United 1-0 on Saturday.

French striker Alexandre Lacazette's 78th-minute goal, awarded after being referred to VAR, proved the difference at Emirates Stadium as the Gunners consigned West Ham to a sixth successive away defeat and kept David Moyes' side mired in a relegation battle.

"I’m happy to score for the team," Lacazette said. "We worked hard. It was a difficult game. They deserved more because of the chances they created. This is football, sometimes you don’t get what you deserve. Everyone wants to give their best and it's normal that whenever we do that we will perform as a team."

One of the teams Arsenal will need to usurp in their late bid for Champions League football is Wolves, who missed the chance to pull level with fourth-placed Chelsea after being held to a goalless home draw by Brighton & Hove Albion.

“We performed so well, like we wanted. It was a tough game against a very good team," Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo said. “It’s about where we came from. We started two or three years ago and we keep on building. It’s about sustaining the level of performance. Today we managed to do it, but we have to keep on going.”

Also in the hunt for the top-four, Sheffield United continued their stunning return to the Premier League with a 1-0 win over bottom side Norwich City after Billy Sharp scored the only goal of the game at Bramall Lane.

Both teams returned to the top-flight this season, but their campaigns could not be more different. While Norwich are in a tough fight for survival, United are in sixth place, two points behind Chelsea.

Newcastle United earned an invaluable victory over 10-man Southampton as the Magpies moved seven points clear of the bottom three.

Moussa Djenepo was given his marching orders in the 28th-minute after referee Graham Scott consulted the pitch-side monitor, after which he decided the Mali winger's challenge on Isaac Hayden warranted a red card.

Southampton survived a Newcastle onslaught and goalkeeper Alex McCarthy kept his side in the game with a fine penalty save from Matt Ritchie. However, Southampton's resistance was broken by Allan Saint-Maximin with 11 minutes remaining.

"The chances we had in the first half hour, you think it’s one of those afternoons. I think we deserved a chance, it was hard going but I think we deserved it," Newcastle manager Steve Bruce said, before reserving special praise for match-winner Saint-Maxim.

"I said when he walked in he will excite people," Bruce said. "His natural ability is scary. He is always a threat, wants to past you and that is a dying art. He has that natural ability in abundance."

Crystal Palace also claimed a 1-0 win on Saturday thanks to a fine Jordan Ayew strike against Watford at Selhurst Park.

The loss leaves Watford in a perilous position, hovering one place above the relegation zone but equal on points with 18th-placed Bournemouth.