Arsenal moved level on points with fourth-placed Southampton courtesy of a 3-0 victory over Stoke City at the Emirates Stadium this afternoon.

The hosts took the lead after just six minutes when Laurent Koscielny nodded home, while Alexis Sanchez doubled their advantage before the break with a smart finish at the near post.

A third goal arrived early in the second half, with Asmir Begovic unable to keep out Sanchez's deflected free kick, which squirmed over the line.

Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at whether the Gunners were worthy of such a comfortable three points.

Match statistics

ARSENAL
Shots: 14
On target: 6
Possession: 54%
Corners: 9
Fouls: 11

STOKE
Shots: 7
On target: 2
Possession: 46%
Corners: 1
Fouls: 11

Was the result fair?

Absolutely. Arsenal may have had their troubles against Stoke over the years, but it only ever goes one way when the two meet at the Emirates. The Gunners were in control from the very start of this match and, by the time that they took the lead after just six minutes, they had already seen two clear chances go begging.

Stoke made things a little too easy for the hosts and barely posed league debutant keeper David Ospina any problems throughout. If the match was not already over as a contest at half time, it certainly was after the third goal went in. That killed the game, and Arsenal were in cruise control from that point on.

The three-goal margin does not flatter the Gunners at all this afternoon, and it could well have been more. Begovic was forced into a number of good stops in the first half especially, and without him it could have been six or seven. There was really only ever one side in it, and Arsenal deserve the points today.

Arsenal's performance

Having made such a disappointing start to 2015 with defeat to Southampton on New Year's Day, this performance and victory will come as a big relief for Arsene Wenger ahead of a tough spell of fixtures. His side started really well and would have been three up after six minutes but for some good saves from Begovic.

They seemed to be in control from the first whistle to the last, passing the ball about nicely and containing Stoke's attackers with ease. Often one part of the team - usually the defence - has let the side down this season, but they played well all over the park today. They were by far the better side and barely gave Stoke a sniff.

The likes of Sanchez, Santi Cazorla and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain were excellent throughout, while Olivier Giroud, among others, refused to be bullied by Stoke's physical approach. It was imperative that they picked up a win today in order to capitalise on Tottenham Hotspur's slip-up against Crystal Palace, and Arsenal made no mistake.

Stoke's performance

Having raced into a three-goal lead by half time in the reverse fixture, it will puzzle Mark Hughes that his side failed to ever get going in this match. They were put onto the back foot immediately and found themselves behind early on, something which they never recovered from.

There were a number of instances in which Stoke tried the physical approach that has troubled Arsenal so often in the past, but the Gunners were too good for it on this occasion. The visitors were second best in pretty much every department, while the likes of Bojan and Marko Arnautovic failed to provide the creativity needed to cause Arsenal problems.

They have now lost their last 13 away matches against Arsenal in all competitions, while Hughes has lost on all eight of his visits to the Gunners as opposition manager. They were never truly in the game today and went down with an uncharacteristic whimper as they were well beaten by the better side.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Alexis Sanchez: He seems to get it every week, but once again Sanchez was the standout performer this afternoon. He linked up with Cazorla, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Tomas Rosicky brilliantly, always posing a threat to the Stoke defence and never giving them a moment of rest. His cross for the opener was perfect, while he got his own name on the scoresheet twice, although the second is one for the dubious goals panel to look at.

Biggest gaffe

Begovic made a number of important stops in the first half, but he will feel that he should have done better with the third goal. Sanchez's free kick deflected through the wall - which failed to do its job - before creeping towards goal. The deflection meant that Begovic had mistimed his dive, and he could not recover to claw the ball away as it trickled agonisingly over the line. It could well go down as an own goal for the keeper.

Referee performance

This is a notorious fixture in the Premier League given the clash of styles, but Jonathan Moss dealt with things quite well today. He allowed play to flow when possible and, while there were a couple of flash points, he generally kept a lid on the obvious animosity between the two sides.

What next?

Arsenal: A big test of Arsenal's top-four credentials comes next week as they face champions Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

Stoke: Stoke, meanwhile, have an easier task on paper as they travel to the King Power Stadium to take on Leicester City.