Arsenal shook off the disappointment of being eliminated from the Champions League and returned to the top of the Premier League with a 2-0 win over Wolves on Saturday.
Leandro Trossard and Martin Odegaard scored at the end of each half to put the Gunners one point ahead of Manchester City with a game in hand.
Arsenal had gone three games without a win and were in danger of having their season completely derailed.
Mikel Arteta's side suffered their first Premier League defeat of 2024 last weekend, losing 2-0 at home to Aston Villa, before being eliminated by Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals.
But they bounced back and continued to put pressure on champions City, who beat Chelsea 1-0 to reach the FA Cup final early on Saturday.
“It's a big win for us,” Arsenal captain Odegaard said.
“It's been a tough week for us. It was really tough mentally with very few hard results, but we had to keep going. Today was all about bouncing back and getting the win.
“We still have a long way to go and the race is still close, so today was all about getting back to work.”
Arteta made just three changes to the side that lost 1-0 to Munich on Wednesday, and it took time for the visitors to find their form after a slump.
Wolves manager Gary O'Neill has claimed his team is suffering the worst injury crisis of his professional career.
Still, the undermanned hosts were almost in the lead when David Raya was forced to hit the crossbar with Joao Gomez's powerful shot.
Despite dominating possession, Arsenal only threatened for a moment before the break.
However, Trossard's misplaced shot found the far post in the 45th minute, giving them the luck they needed to jump-start their bid for a first title in 20 years.
Arsenal, playing their fourth game in 11 days, were fatigued and had little in the way of goalmouth action in the second period.
However, without the injured threat of Matheus Cunha and Pedro Neto, Wolves lacked attacking inspiration which further dented their title hopes.
Odegaard safely grabbed the winner five minutes into stoppage time when he latched onto Jose Sa at his near post.
Third-placed Liverpool could be level on points with Arsenal when they play Fulham on Sunday.
– Luton conceded 5 goals –
Bottom of the table, Luton's hopes of survival ended as they were defeated 5-1 by Brentford at Kenilworth Road.
Luton's heaviest home league defeat of the season leaves the Hatters just one point behind Nottingham Forest, who will visit Everton on Sunday for a big clash at the bottom of the table.
Luton manager Rob Edwards said: “Today was a bad day for us as a club, but we're playing teams right above us so we won't lose again this weekend and it's important that we all remember that.” Told.
Despite being without England international striker Ivan Toney due to injury, Brentford realistically secured their place in the top flight with an overwhelming performance.
Yoan Wissa scored twice for the Bees before half-time, with Ethan Pinnock, Kean Lewis-Potter and Kevin Shade also scoring.
Burnley defeated bottom-placed Sheffield United 4-1 and are now two points behind Luton and within three points of remaining in the table.
The Blades are doomed to fall back into the championship due to their disastrous defense.
Burnley, with Jacob Bruun Larsen, Lorenz Assignon, Lyle Foster and Johan Gutmundsson on target, left Chris Wilder's side 10 points clear with five games remaining.
“I'm not going to name names, but I think after the fourth guy came in, there were a few guys that wanted to get out of there right away,” Wilder said. “You can't do that.”
KCA/DJ
