[goldenHuddlestone]

Arsene Wenger praised his battling Arsenal side following the hard-fought 1-0 win at West Ham which kept them top - but was less than impressed by the x-rated tackle from Mark Noble which saw Alexander Hleb stretchered off.

Robin van Persie's close-range header after 13 minutes proved enough for an eighth straight victory, as the Gunners consolidated their position ahead of the chasing pack.

West Ham keeper Robert Green produced a string of fine saves to deny the visitors a further advantage and indeed the home side could have earned a point had England hopeful Dean Ashton not spurned a great chance with his close-range header.

Large spells of the match were played out in a competitive manner, with little quarter given - particularly in midfield where Arsenal pair Cesc Fabregas and Mathieu Flamini were in the thick of the action.

Wenger was, though, unhappy with the lunging challenge from Noble, which was punished only by a yellow card but which left Hleb - just back from injury - with a badly bruised knee and out of next week's Champions League trip to Steaua Bucharest.

The Arsenal manager said: "To me it looked very nasty, although I haven't seen it again.

"If it was an accident, it is a very bad accident, because if you see his leg it is unbelievable.

"It is red and bruised from the knee down to the toes.

"We are quite optimistic because Noble is usually a fair player. I don't know if it was an accident or not, but he caught him very well."

Wenger revealed: "I don't think Hleb will play on Tuesday because he cannot walk properly at the moment.

"[Emmanuel] Adebayor had a kick on the thigh, and he looks like he has a good chance to play on Tuesday night."

The Gunners boss, celebrating 11 years in charge of Arsenal, was pleased to see his table-toppers come through a tough test which they have often failed in recent seasons to record a first win at West Ham since 2000.

Wenger said: "We had a bit of apprehension because we lost here last season and this was a big test.

"We started with the handbrake on but the goal helped. We didn't make the same mistake we made at Blackburn. We continued to play and move forward and try and score the second goal.

"Unfortunately we didn't get that but we deserved it."

Wenger added: "There's room for improvement but I am very proud of what the team is achieving at the moment.

"I believe we can challenge. We are very young, but we have to show we can eke out results.

"Everywhere we go we try and play and improve - today was a bit different because West Ham made it hard for us to do that.

"We had a lot to deal with in the air and with the second ball, so it was important for us to keep the pace of the game high.

"We did that in the second half and I think that shows the team is maturing tactically."

West Ham could consider themselves somewhat unfortunate not to come away with a point, rather than a second successive league defeat.

Former Gunner Freddie Ljungberg had a goal chalked out for a marginal offside call, and Ashton also went close more than once.

However, by the same token, without Green's performance, they could have been beaten by a much bigger margin.

Manager Alan Curbishley, who lost key midfielder Scott Parker to injury at half-time, said: "When a side like Arsenal get their noses in front away from home, they're set up to be a very difficult side to play.

"But Arsenal are a top four team and you need a few things to go for you - and you certainly don't need to go one down after 10 minutes."

Curbishley added: "We competed as well as we could and we're disappointed we couldn't get back in it.

"If we had, it would have been anyone's match but Arsenal defended very well and got bodies in the way."