Mesut Ozil was the difference maker as Arsenal were made to work hard before securing a flattering 5-0 victory over Huddersfield Town at the Emirates on Wednesday.
Germany international Ozil made an emphatic return to the starting line-up after sitting out Sunday’s 1-0 win against Burnley due to illness, providing two assists and scoring another in the space of four second-half minutes to emphasise his importance amid ongoing uncertainty over his future.
Alexandre Lacazette gave the Gunners an early lead but they failed to kick on and afforded frequent chances to Huddersfield, who saw Steven Mounie’s deflected shot in the second period pushed against the crossbar by Petr Cech.
Olivier Giroud replaced Lacazette at half-time, leading to concerns the former Lyon man may be carrying an injury ahead of Saturday’s meeting with second-placed Manchester United, and turned home a pass from Ozil to relieve the rising anxiety in north London in the 68th minute.
The shackles came off for Arsenal and Alexis Sanchez slammed home a right-wing cross from the Germany international, who capped off a blistering spell by dinking Aaron Ramsey’s throughball over the onrushing Jonas Lossl for 4-0.
Giroud’s second gave the scoreline a deceptively one-sided appearance, but a 12th successive home Premier League win provides the ideal preparation for a clash with United.
Arsenal needed less than three minutes to get off the mark, Ramsey flicking a brilliant pass into the box for Lacazette to place the opener past Lossl.
The hosts dominated possession but did not engineer another opportunity until after the half-hour mark when Lacazette kept Granit Xhaka’s throughball alive at the byline, only to see his chip from an acute angle cleared off the line by Martin Cranie and Sead Kolasinac fail to convert the follow up.
Sloppiness crept in for Arsenal as half-time approached, offering Huddersfield hope on two occasions.
Shkodran Mustafi’s risky challenge on Mounie after some loose play by the hosts was not deemed a penalty by referee Graham Scott, before Collin Quaner failed to bring the ball under control in time to make the most of a counter-attack launched when a high press forced another error.
Giroud entered the fray in place of Lacazette and, after Quaner made the most of the space afforded to him by testing Cech, an important block from Cranie denied the substitute a quick impact.
Huddersfield were unperturbed and came close to an equaliser when Mounie’s shot looped up off Nacho Monreal and was pushed behind off the bar by Cech.
Giroud rounded Lossl before hitting the woodwork but he made no mistake after Ozil initiated a neat move down the left and set the Frenchman up for the goal Arsenal had desperately been searching for.
Just over a minute later Sanchez benefited from Ozil’s creativity as he slammed a thunderous effort from the midfielder’s delivery beyond Lossl.
Ozil took further advantage of the Terriers’ collapse, latching onto Ramsey’s pass and clipping a clever finish over the goalkeeper as he raced off his line.
Giroud added to a miserable half for Huddersfield when he lashed home from Kolasinac’s flicked pass four minutes from time, but, despite the commanding scoreline, there will be some concerns for Arsene Wenger ahead of United’s visit at the weekend.
In other Premier League results:
Manchester City restored their eight-point lead at the top of the Premier League thanks to a goal in the dying seconds by Raheem Sterling that sealed a dramatic 2-1 home win over Southampton.
Wayne Rooney scored his first Everton hat-trick to seal a crushing 4-0 win over West Ham, with new manager Sam Allardyce a delighted Goodison Park spectator.
Jurgen Klopp’s decision to rest several key men paid off as Liverpool climbed to fifth with a convincing 3-0 win over Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium.
Antonio Rudiger’s headed goal earned Chelsea a 1-0 victory over Swansea City on Wednesday, but the margin should have been far greater in a match that also saw Antonio Conte sent to the stands.
Burnley jumped above Tottenham to sixth in the Premier League as Chris Wood and Robbie Brady helped the Clarets to a deserved 2-1 win at Bournemouth.
