Perform Trim() while using Split()
Another possible option (that avoids LINQ, for better or worse):
string line = " abc, foo , bar";
string[] parts= Array.ConvertAll(line.Split(','), p => p.Trim());
However, if you just need to know if it is there - perhaps short-circuit?
bool contains = line.Split(',').Any(p => p.Trim() == match);
var parts = line
.Split(';')
.Select(p => p.Trim())
.Where(p => !string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(p))
.ToArray();
I know this is 10 years too late but you could have just split by ' ' as well:
string[] split= keyword.Split(new char[] { ',', ';', ' ' }, StringSplitOptions.RemoveEmptyEntries);
Because you're also splitting by the space char AND instructing the split to remove the empty entries, you'll have what you need.