Arsenal 1-0 Hull City: Player ratings as the Gunners clinch another narrow league win

Arsenal claimed their fifth Premier League win in a row on Saturday as they beat Hull City 1-0 at the Emirates.

Mikel Arteta made wholesale changes in Prague but reverted to the team which earned that big win over Liverpool last time out. Ezri Konsa kept his place with William Saliba left out of the squad, while Kai Havertz got the nod over midweek goal-scorer Viktor Gyokeres – indeed, why would you change a winning formula?

Yet the same group did not produce the same ferocious start from last week and, instead, the game drifted into a lull. Bar a shot in anger from Declan Rice near the half-hour mark, there was very little to report by half time.

Things amped up afterwards in terms of pressure, even if the Gunners hardly got any closer to that all-important breakthrough.

Player ratings as Arsenal squeeze past Hull City 1-0 in the Premier League

The stalemate forced the boss to make changes and, at last, a goal did come via the right boot of the captain. Martin Odegaard reacted first to a loose ball after Konstantinos Tzolakis spilled from a Noni Madueke shot and he fired the rebound past the Hull shot-stopper to give Arsenal a much-needed lift.

Little happened of note at either end for the rest of this contest and so Arsenal held on for a slender victory, one which sees them go into the final international break of 2026 top of the Premier League table.

Here are the player ratings from the Gunners’ 1-0 win over Hull City.

Goalkeeper & Defenders

David Raya (GK) – 6/10: His usual composure deserted him at a first-half corner which he flapped at but, otherwise, it was a quiet afternoon for David Raya. He will be happy to record his fourth league clean sheet on the bounce.

Jurrien Timber (RB) – 6/10: Timber offered as much as anyone for Arsenal in attack, sending in a few testing crosses from the byline. They were paired with some tidy defensive work to evade the press from Hull and it helped to keep the visitors at arms’ length.

Ezri Konsa (CB) – 8/10: Konsa built on his recent heroics with another strong display here. He went in for every challenge and made one particularly crucial block in the second half when Hull threatened on the counter. It seems so cruel for him to miss out once Saliba returns, though it is a good problem to have.

Gabriel Magalhaes (CB) – 7/10: Solid as ever from Gabriel, who really proved his worth with his vital touch to stop Mohamed-Ali Cho from racing clear. Dealing with the Hull crosses are bread and butter for him but, still, he did the job comfortably, while his partnership with Ezri Konsa is continuing to go from strength to strength.

Riccardo Calafiori (LB) – 5/10: Fairly anonymous from the typically livewire Italian. For some reason, he just never had much chance to pop up in the frontline and he had little to do in a defensive sense. He was withdrawn before the end for Piero Hincapié.

Midfielders

Declan Rice (CM) – 5/10: Declan Rice was not at his influential best here and seems to be feeling the strain after a few big performances of late – he looked exhausted versus Slavia Prague. He could not take advantage of a wonderful Madueke close before the break while one long-distance effort sailed just wide.

Bruno Guimaraes (CM) – 6/10: His performance was characterised by some lovely passes between the lines even if none really led to a goal-scoring chance. Bruno kept the ball ticking over and always looked willing to try his luck from distance, which is refreshing to see in a team which often wants to walk the ball home.

Martin Odegaard (CM) – 4/10: Poor passes and indecision in the box made Martin Odegaard most at fault for many attacking breakdowns, with his awful corner on 50 minutes being the worst of the lot. His goal might otherwise boost his rating but it does not cover up a bad showing, especially as it was handed to him on a platter.

Forwards

Noni Madueke (RW) – 8/10: Once again, Noni Madueke put in an impressive shift. He was by far the liveliest Arsenal player, applying good pressure from the front and tracking back to great effect as well as keeping the Hull backline guessing. His ‘assist’ was hardly spectacular but he deserved that bit of luck for his overall contribution. He nearly loses a mark for trying to round the goalkeeper instead of just shooting at the end…

Kai Havertz (ST) – 5/10: Havertz lost possession far too easily when played in by Odegaard in the first half, while his inability to stay onside cost the Gunners a possible penalty (even if it might have been a VAR mistake). Beyond those moments, he had little impact on the game.

Christos Tzolis (LW) – 5/10: Is this the old Madueke in disguise? Tzolis showed lots of commitment but that level of intensity seemed to affect his composure. He spurned one great chance on the counter by taking a heavy touch and wasted a decent scoring chance by firing high into the stands. Get that end product right and he could be an amazing signing - we know he has it in him from his time at Club Brugge.

Substitutes

Viktor Gyokeres (on 63’ for Havertz) – 6/10

Mikel Merino (on 63’ for Rice) – 5/10

Eberechi Eze (on 69’ for Tzolis) – 5/10

Piero Hincapié (on 69’ for Calafiori) – 5/10

Martin Zubimendi (on 89’ for Bruno) – N/A

Player of the match: Noni Madueke

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