Arsenal 1-0 Bolton Highlights
Nicklas Bendtner came off the bench to snatch victory for Arsenal when he slid in to score with six minutes left.
Until then Arsenal had been frustrated as Robin Van Persie fired a volley just over the bar and Emmanuel Adebayor hesitated and his shot was blocked.
Van Persie’s toe-poked effort hit the post before the Dutchman’s flick was saved by Jussi Jaaskelainen, who then saved Bendtner’s close-range header.
But the Dane converted Van Persie’s cross to finally break the deadlock.
It had seemed Arsenal would be foiled by a dogged display from Bolton, who showed virtually nothing coming forward but proved very difficult to break down at the back.
And they might have been pegged back to a draw had Kevin Davies down better with a shot from six yards that he directed straight at Manuel Almunia the closing stages.
Chances had been few until the last quarter of the match, with Bolton’s blanket rearguard comfortably keeping Arsenal out.
Arsenal looked to Samir Nasri and Van Persie for a creative spark but the pair saw a lot of the ball without managing to inflict any damage.