Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta labelled Kai Havertz a "great example" for the whole team following the German's dramatic late winner in the Gunners' 1-0 victory over London rivals Brentford.
With Manchester City and Liverpool playing out a 1-1 draw in the lunchtime kickoff, Arsenal knew that a three-point haul at the Gtech Community Stadium in Arteta's 200th game in charge would send them top of the Premier League table.
A highly attacking setup saw the returning Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard join Leandro Trossard, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli in the visitors' starting lineup, but Brentford's staunch backline did a brilliant job of frustrating Arteta's team.
Trossard did manage to find the back of the net with a carbon copy of his header against Burnley last weekend, but while the offside flag was not raised at first, a VAR review denied the Belgian the game's opening goal in the dying embers of the first half.
With 11 minutes left to play, Arteta called upon the under-fire Havertz to provide a focal point in the final third, and the Spaniard's decision proved to be an inspired one, as the ex-Chelsea man peeled away at the back post and headed Saka's cross into the net through the legs of Brentford goalkeeper Mark Flekken.
After Arsenal rode out a four-minute injury time period, Arteta dragged Havertz towards the elated away end to receive his gratitude, and the Gunners boss believes that the 24-year-old - who has largely disappointed since his £65m arrival from Chelsea - is an example to look up to.
"When things come easy, you don't value them. If things would have come easier today, he's [probably] not getting the reception that he got; everybody hugging him and cuddling him, and telling him how much we love him, and it's for a reason," Arteta said in his post-game press conference.
"It's because of the way he behaves in difficult moments and he's an example for all of us to do what you have to do when you have difficulties, and he's a great example for the team, and we cannot be happier that a big player like him wins the game for the team.
"Against this block, and against teams that defend the box like this, you need this type of profile, and he's exceptional at that. Today he won the game in that action for us.
"He fully deserves it, and when you're there and sometimes you have to face it, he's done it, he's faced it, he didn't hide. So now go and face the beautiful moment because you fully deserve it. I knew he wasn't going to do that, so I had to push him!"
Alongside Havertz's second goal for the club, there was a clean sheet for stand-in goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who made his first Premier League start in nearly three months due to David Raya being ineligible to face his parent club.
However, the England international cut a nervous figure and nearly gifted Brentford an early goal as he got his studs caught in the turf under pressure, but Declan Rice denied Bryan Mbeumo with a vital goal-line clearance.
Ramsdale also got away with a bizarre throw into the ground in the first half, but he enjoyed a smoother ride in the second 45, albeit while also being indebted to Oleksandr Zinchenko for his own magnificent goal-line clearance from Neal Maupay's header.
Arteta interestingly refused to discuss Ramsdale individually when asked about his display, saying: "This is football, I'm so happy with the team with the way the team performed, we kept a clean sheet and we move on. I'm so happy."
When pressed on the Englishman's improvement in the second half, though, the Gunners coach added: "Courage, he has big courage and big personality, and that's why we love him."
With 30 points from 13 games in the 2023-24 season, Arsenal are one clear of Man City at the summit and now have a Champions League clash with Lens on the agenda for Wednesday, where a draw would be enough to send them through to the knockout stages. body check tags ::
