A brace of goals from Santi Cazorla secured a 2-0 victory for Arsenal over Fulham at the Emirates Stadium this afternoon.
Both of the Spaniard's strikes came during the space of five second-half minutes.
Below, Sports Mole has looked back over the clash to determine if the result was a fair one.
Match statistics
Arsenal
Shots: 22
On target: 8
Possession: 59%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 5
Fulham
Shots: 8
On target: 2
Possession: 41%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 7
Was the result fair?
To their credit, Fulham were a match for Arsenal during the first half, but as soon as the first goal was scored, there was only ever going to be one winner. The hosts always looked the more likely to break the deadlock and after the quickfire double, they could have scored more.
Arsenal's performance
It was about as routine as it can get, which won't be a problem for manager Arsene Wenger. His side have acquired a knack of late of picking up positive results when they have not been at their best - this display can be filed under that statement. During the first half there was not enough pace nor urgency about their passing, but they came out for the second half looking like a different side. It was only a matter of time before they scored and once they did, the confidence flooded back.
Fulham's performance
For a side that has conceded more goals than any of their Premier League peers, Fulham defended extremely well today. To be perfectly honest, there wasn't much that they could have done with either of the two Arsenal goals. Going forward, manager Rene Meulensteen can take confidence from the way that his side played, particularly during the first half. Dimitar Berbatov showed how vital he is to the team, with his hold-up play and passing a real asset to the West Londoners. It's important that they keep hold of the Bulgarian this month.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Santi Cazorla: The Spaniard wasn't at his best over the whole 90 minutes, but then neither were many players today. The fact is that he changed the whole shape of the contest by scoring two goals in the space of five second-half minutes. He has struggled for goals for large parts of the campaign, so if he has rediscovered his clinical touch, it could prove to be a valuable asset to Arsenal down the home straight.
Biggest gaffe
Arsenal's Laurent Koscielny may be one of the Premier League's best defenders, but it can be fair to conclude that he is not the most clinical of centre-backs. When Bacary Sagna drilled the ball into the area, it appeared that Koscielny had the most simple of tap-ins. Somehow, though, he only succeeded in diverting an effort against the post and the ball was cleared. Thankfully for him, Cazorla spared his blushes a little when he scored 30 seconds later.
Referee performance
There was very little for Lee Probert to do this afternoon, but in fairness to him, he didn't create himself any unnecessary work by blowing up for needless fouls. Both sides were keen to play passing football and Probert's officiating helped that to happen.
What next?
Arsenal: The Gunners will turn their attention to FA Cup matters next time out when they play host to League One side Coventry City on Friday evening.
Fulham: Two days later, Fulham will take on Sheffield United, also of League One, for a place in the fifth round of the competition at Bramall Lane.
Liam Apicella
