Martin Odegaard struck at the double as the Premier League leaders overcame a sickness bug to leave Mikel Arteta in mid-season wonderland.
The Norwegian pounced twice in the second half to send the Gunners streaking five points clear at the top.
Buoyed by the sight of rivals Manchester City surprisingly losing to Brentford as they made their way to Molineux last night, Arteta’s players then had an upset of a different sort with which to contend.
The effects of a pre-match meal caused Granit Xhaka to keel over inside two minutes and ‘several of the boys’ were also affected, according to the Arsenal chief.
But it didn’t change the mood too much as the north Londoners stayed patient throughout before making their class tell in the second half.
Arteta said: “We had a few boys with tummy issues. Granit wasn’t feeling so good. We couldn’t change three or four in the first-half so I’m delighted we adapted to those circumstances as well to win the game.
“The problems arose after the pre-match meal. I didn’t know about it. The doc was trying to get some players sorted because they didn’t feel so good.
“I don’t know what the meal was. I didn’t eat it because I don’t eat much on matchdays.”
If Arsenal needed any motivation to extend their lead at the top of the pile, it was provided by Ivan Toney’s double for the Bees at the Etihad.
He added: “We watched the game - like we do with many other games - we were on the bus. You can imagine what the reaction was. It’s natural. But you have to focus on your own performance and winning the game.
“This week has been tricky because of the World Cup and things surrounding certain individuals but they did what they had to do.”
Xhaka lasted a quarter-hour before he was called to the sidelines. His replacement, Fabio Vieira was outstanding throughout although Wolves ’ defensive discipline served them well until the hosts eventually gave way nine minutes after the interval.
The ball was swept from one side of the pitch to the other as Gabrial Martinelli came off the left to cause trouble. Eventually, the excellent Fabio Vieira’s well-timed run kept him onside following a pass from Gabriel Jesus and his centre was simply waiting for a touch that Odegaard gleefully provided.
Wolves gave it a shot - Adama Traore’s pace caused Arsenal problems all evening - but he was too often left isolated with a concentration of red shirts crowding him out before he could cause too many problems.
Arsenal needed a second goal to kill off the game and it arrived with 15 minutes left.
Sub Dexter Lembikisa stumbled near the corner flag, allowing Martinelli to take possession. His clever back heel found Oleksandr Zinchenko and the Ukranian’s cross was hit goalwards by his Brazilian team-mate. Jose Sa kept out the first effort but had no chance with the second as Odegaard fired into the bottom corner from the edge of the area.
Wolves have now won just two of their last 22 league games. In-coming boss Julen Lopetgui was afforded a hero’s reception when he went on a pre-match lap of appreciation.
He’ll earn legendary status if he can keep the club up. They’re bottom, netting on average just once every two games.
Caretaker boss Steve Davis was upset with referee Stuart Attwell as William Saliba produced a clumsy challenge in the eighth minute, appearing to foul Goncalo Guedes.
He claimed the official should have awarded a penalty but an offside in the build-up clouded the issue.
Davis said he had spent an hour with the new boss, planning ahead.
He said: “There’s no quick fix with what’s already here. You can see we struggle. We create but the last bit lets us down. It needs additions. There’s quality there. The performance levels are improving. Some have been consistent, others haven’t.
“Julen has gone everywhere to introduce himself. They are covering all areas. We’ve spoken to him about players. I’ve been going through the players and characters with him. It was a good conversation. But I think we do need additions.”
