Arsenal moved back above Manchester City to the top of the Premier League table this afternoon after a late win over Cardiff City.
Nicklas Bendtner and Theo Walcott both scored in the final minutes of the match as the Gunners secured a 2-0 win at the Emirates Stadium.
Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the action between the two teams in London.
Match statistics:
Arsenal:
Shots 25
On target 6
Possession 69%
Corners 12
Fouls 6
Cardiff City:
Shots 7
On target 2
Possession 31%
Corners 2
Fouls 11
Was the result fair?
Absolutely. Cardiff set up for a draw at the Emirates and looked as if they were going to get a point. But Arsenal, who controlled the match, finally got the goals they deserved through Bendtner and Walcott to move to the top of the table.
Arsenal's performance
A bit of everything from the Gunners. Brilliant in parts, awful in others and largely frustrating. They created a number of opportunities in the first half but proved wasteful in front of goal. They continued to move closer and closer after twice hitting the post, before they struck late on. They never looked in too much danger of losing, but had to be very patient.
Cardiff City's performance
Cardiff knew that they would never be able to compete with Arsenal on their home turf, so adopted the tactics to defend and hit the Gunners on the break. They had a couple of chances, but nothing particularly meaningful, and seemed determined on getting everyone behind the ball in order to take a point. Ultimately they got what they deserved, but you can't blame them when travelling to the home of the league leaders, and barely saw the ball for most of it.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Jack Wilshere: While Bendtner and Tomas Rosicky made an impact off the bench and Santi Cazorla looked creative, Wilshere was superb on his birthday. Given a more advanced, central role in the absence of Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey, Wilshere was the hub of the vast majority of Arsenal's attacks, playing many key passes and was always eager to glide past the opposition and attack. He got the assist for Walcott's goal, and probably deserved one himself.
Biggest gaffe
Per Mertesacker should have probably scored with both of his headed chances in the second half, but other than that, there were not too many errors from either team.
Referee performance
Jon Moss did okay on his first match in charge at the Emirates, but probably should have given at least one penalty. Wilshere looked as if he should have been awarded one in the first half after being tripped by Guy Medel, while Nacho Monreal appeared to commit a handball in the second half.
What next?
Arsenal: The Gunners host Tottenham Hotspur in a North London derby on Saturday in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
Cardiff City: The Welsh outfit travel to Newcastle United on Saturday in the same stage of the competition.
Matt Cotton
