Gunners surive Cherries scare to nick draw

Olivier Giroud scored one and created two as Arsenal produced a great escape to recover from three goals down to claim a 3-3 draw at plucky Bournemouth.

Bournemouth's tenacity and desire to be the first to every ball made life very difficult for Arsenal in the first half and forced them into numerous errors.

Charlie Daniels, who I felt had an impressive game for the Cherries, opened the scoring after 16 minutes before Callum Wilson doubled their advantage from the penalty spot.

Ryan Fraser made it 3-0 shortly before the hour mark, but I felt aggrieved by this particular goal as I genuinely believed there was a foul by Bournemouth in the build-up to it. However, take nothing away from the hosts as they controlled large spells of the game and fully deserved to be ahead.

At that point I couldn't see any way back for us after what was proving to be a very below par performance, but Alexis Sanchez at least gave us a glimmer of hope 20 minutes from time.

Lucas Perez scored a stunning goal five minutes later to get Arsenal right back into the game before Simon Francis was sent off for a clumsy challenge on Aaron Ramsey.

Giroud popped up in injury time to rescue a point for Arsenal and there was still four minutes of added time left to have found a winner. In truth, had we nicked a winner it would have been harsh on Bournemouth who worked tirelessly throughout the match.

Credit must go to the Bournemouth players and their manager Eddie Howe, who is doing a great job at the club. Eight years ago to the day he took charge of his first game for the Cherries - a 2-1 defeat by Darlington - and they were second bottom in League Two. To go from nearly falling out of the Football League to the top half of the Premier League is truly incredible.

I am not trying to mask what was two big points dropped as we really were poor, but Bournemouth deserve credit for doing a really good job on us. They simply never gave up and on another day the score could have been a whole lot worse than 3-3 for us.

In terms of the title race and match expectations, a draw falls very short and is disappointing. However, in terms of how the match itself panned out, it looked like it was going to be much worse so I'll take a point in the circumstances.

Bournemouth had some decent early chances with Junior Stanislas forcing a save out of Petr Cech after just nine minutes, before home fans were calling for a penalty soon after. Sections of the crowd felt the Arsenal goalkeeper had fouled Callum Wilson in the box, but Cech did just about enough to push the ball off the Bournemouth man's feet before any contact took place. It was a crucial save and an early let off for the Gunners.

The hosts refused to give up and eventually got the goal their persistence deserved after some fine work by Stanislas and Daniels. Stanislas picked out his team-mate with a fine crossfield ball before the full-back took it past Hector Bellerin and slotted home. It was poor defending from the Spanish right-back, but Daniels did excellently and took his goal well.

Things went from bad to worse for Arsenal when Wilson slotted home a penalty following Granit Xhaka's clumsy foul on Fraser. Midfielder Francis Coquelin was forced off injured soon after to compound the Gunners' woes.

Arsenal began to wake up slowly as Aaron Ramsey sent a shot just wide after a slight deflection, while Alex Iwobi also sliced an effort off target. At the other end, Bournemouth could have grabbed a third in the first half had it not been for a superbly-timed challenge in the box from the returning Shkodran Mustafi. It was good to see Mustafi make his comeback from injury and in fairness he didn't play too badly, but the team as a whole really were poor in the first half.

Arsenal started much brighter in the second half, but were still nearly undone by Harry Arter. Fortunately the midfielder's goal was ruled out as the referee deemed there had been a handball by Wilson before the ball went in. Although that was a big let off for Arsenal, Bournemouth continued to pressurise the Gunners and did make it 3-0 after 58 minutes. Fraser cut into the area before firing a shot between Cech's legs and into the net. It was a good finish, although I felt Fraser had pushed Bellerin in the build-up. Even so, Bournemouth fully deserved their lead and we only had ourselves to blame.

It could have got even worse for Arsenal had Cech not made a diving save to keep out a Stanislas free-kick as Bournemouth continued to control much of the game. Only an excellent last ditch tackle from substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain prevented Fraser from adding a possible fourth and it was looking as if the horror show might get worse...that was until Sanchez started the comeback. Oxlade-Chamberlain's cross was flicked on by Giroud for Sanchez to score with a diving header.

Although we had been poor for much of the match, it then looked to be game on when Perez added Arsenal's second. The forward latched onto Giroud's flick before beating Artur Boruc with a sweetly struck left-footed volley into the far corner. A great goal and we were now finally beginning to up our game.

But Bournemouth didn't let that deflate them and, in fact, they could have added a fourth had Dan Gosling not curled a shot wide from close range when it looked easier to score.

Bournemouth lost their captain Simon Francis to a red card eight minutes from time after the defender's clumsy challenge on Ramsey. Arsenal took advantage of having the extra man when Giroud rose highest to head home Xhaka's cross in injury time, much to the relief of the visiting supporters. Phew!

OPPOSITION VIEW
Bournemouth fan Tristan Chapman was happy with the result and to see his side above local rivals Southampton in the table.

"It was a game where we didn't expect much but hoped for a lot and our faith was nearly repaid 10 fold," said Chapman. "There was no (Jack) Wilshere obviously so I was keen to see the line-up and was pleasantly surprised by the personnel.

"Plenty of pace to run at the back line, which is exactly what happened. A great first half from little Bournemouth from League Two. Out Arsenaling Arsenal with great interplay and fast attacks.

"The two goals in the first half were not unexpected as the Cherries outclassed our illustrious opponents. Fraser and Stanislas were the main force in the Bournemouth attacking line.

"All hoping that the match would continue in the same vein for the second half, with the third goal being decisive. How wrong we were! The third goal was a sublime piece of skill, but from the substitutions onwards it was all Arsenal.

"Hopefully Eddie Howe has learnt something from the match that moving to a defensive line-up is a massive error. Three goals and a harried central defence leading to a red card to Francis and intense pressure from an Arsenal forward line growing with confidence with every pass.

"In the end Bournemouth were fortunate to get a draw and the six minutes of injury time couldn't end quickly enough. Still, to moan about a draw against Arsenal almost sounds greedy. Still a point earned and a point above Saints and that's what matters."

MY FINAL THOUGHTS
Going into the match I knew it would be tough, but I thought maybe, just maybe, if we could win and Spurs could beat Chelsea for us, we could cut the gap to the leaders to six points. But instead we dropped two big points and were very lucky to even get a draw from a match many had expected us to win.

Take nothing away from Bournemouth though, they really did a number on us and deserve credit for a great battling display. This is only their second season in the top flight and they are holding their own so respect to them.

A draw is simply not good enough for us though and we will need to perform far better than that in the upcoming games if we are to achieve anything this season.

Focus now switches to the FA Cup and the trip to Preston. We cannot underestimate the Championship side, but this is a game we really should win and, with the FA Cup being a competition I love, I'll be disappointed if we don't. We need to go out at Deepdale, and indeed in the next league game at Swansea, and give performances to be proud of and not the one we witnessed against Bournemouth.

COME ON YOU GUNNERS

New Year, three points and a wonder goal

Olivier Giroud started 2017 with a wonder goal as Arsenal marked their 200th league game at the Emirates with an efficient 2-0 win over Crystal Palace.

The Frenchman worked tirelessly throughout the game and his moment of brilliance in the first half proved decisive as his scissor kick went in off the underside of the bar.

Alex Iwobi added to Arsenal's lead in the second half, while Petr Cech made a string of quick-fire saves at the other end to ensure a clean sheet for the hosts, who moved up to third in the table.

Arsenal started brightly with Alexis Sanchez and Mohamed Elneny both seeing their efforts put behind for a corner inside the opening seven minutes.

Sanchez shot just wide from outside the box before Iwobi saw his low strike saved by Wayne Hennessey in the Palace goal.

Then the wonder goal came! With 17 minutes on the clock Arsenal hit Palace on the break, with Giroud involved at the start of the moving before later charging forward into the box to meet Sanchez's cross with a sublime scissor kick. In fact it was more like a crazy back flick volley. Either way, it was a great goal and great way to start 2017.

It was very nearly 2-0 for Arsenal soon after when Andros Townsend gave the ball away inside his own box, but he was bailed out by Hennessey as the goalkeeper came out to get the ball from Nacho Monreal's feet.

Palace offered very little going forward and it took the visitors 37 minutes to have any shot, either on or off target, as Yohan Cabaye's effort was saved by Cech.

Arsenal threatened to add to their lead in first-half stoppage time, but Hennessey produced a fine saved with his feet to keep out Sanchez.

All of the Gunners' hard work was nearly undone within two minutes of the restart, but Christian Benteke headed just wide when it looked easier to have scored.

Arsenal soon resumed control of the game, but were initially unable to add to their lead as Sanchez saw his shot blocked by the defence before Elneny sent a volley well over the bar.

For all Arsenal's dominance, 1-0 is always a dangerous scoreline so it was a big relief to see the second goal go in after 57 minutes. Sanchez passed through to Monreal, whose cross was blocked up in the air and Iwobi reacted quickest to head the ball over two players on the goal-line and into the net.

Arsenal were in cruise control, but it could have been different had Cech not produced a string of quick-fire saves to keep out Benteke, Cabaye and Townsend within a matter of minutes.

The hosts tried to add to their lead with Granit Xhaka's low shot being deflected wide for a corner before substitute Aaron Ramsey shot wide. Fellow substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain very nearly added Arsenal's third, but his low shot was excellently kept out by Hennessey.

It was an efficient and solid display by Arsenal and, although we probably should have scored more, we did what mattered and got the three points to start 2017 in style.

OPPOSITION VIEW
Father and son duo Ian and Chris Williams are hoping Palace boss Sam Allardyce will bolster his squad with some much-needed new faces in the January transfer window.

"Even the most optimistic Palace fan would have predicted an Arsenal win today," said the duo. "Confidence within the squad is low, and it is now only one win in the last 13 Premier League games and a total of 35 goals conceded this season. Big Sam has a big transfer window ahead of him.

"Priority is to strengthen the defence, at the very least we need another option at centre-back and a left-back (Pape Souare out for the season).

"We’ve only got two fit strikers in the squad, so that’s another position that needs bolstering. Losing Wilf Zaha (our best player this season) for a number of games due to the Africa Cup of Nations will be a massive blow, we need Andros Townsend to step up.

"Tuesday’s game against managerless Swansea is a must win. Journalists and pundits continue to say this Palace team is too good to go down, but they are definitely in a relegation fight."

MY FINAL THOUGHTS
There are no guarantees in the Premier League, but I'd rather have our next few fixtures than Chelsea's, so we need to make it count! We are now up to third and three points behind Liverpool and nine off leaders Chelsea.

Chelsea are clearly the in-form team and will take some stopping, but if we can win at Bournemouth in our next game and Chelsea drop points against Spurs you never know.

I'm not going to get carried away as I still think Chelsea will win the league and nine points is a lot of ground to make up, but at least we have ensured a positive start to 2017 and we must just focus on our own games and see what happens!

COME ON YOU GUNNERS

Gunners end 2016 with win

We did it the hard way, but Olivier Giroud's late header ensured Arsenal ended 2016 on a high with a 1-0 win over West Brom.

Although it wasn't the greatest of performances, the score could have been more had it not been for some fine saves from West Brom goalkeeper Ben Foster.

The result was a great late Christmas present for the Gunners, who returned to winning ways after back-to-back league defeats. However, it still leaves Arsenal in their all too familiar spot of fourth and nine points off leaders Chelsea as we approach the end of the year, although some teams still have matches left before 2017.

Giroud and Alexis Sanchez both sent shots off target inside the opening 15 minutes, while at the other end Salomón Rondón's header was comfortably saved by Petr Cech in the Arsenal goal.

Sanchez tried his luck again shortly after the half hour mark, but Foster was equal to his effort and excellently beat the Chilean's strike away before Alex Iwobi shot over soon after.

West Brom midfielder Claudio Yacob produced a fine block to keep out Iwobi's shot from inside the box as the first half ended goalless.

Arsenal came close to breaking the deadlock within five minutes of the restart, but some great goalkeeping from Foster kept the hosts at bay. Iwobi's initial strike was parried by Foster before the England shot-stopper reacted quickly to smother Sanchez's rebound.

It really should have been 1-0 soon after when Sanchez got the ball inside the box and beat two defenders, but his eventual effort smacked against a post.

Sanchez soon had another chance to get his name on the scoresheet, but his fine strike from the edge of the box was excellently tipped over the bar by Foster. Sanchez then turned provider with a cross into the box, but Giroud's header was comfortably saved by Foster.

Arsenal continued to pile pressure on their opponents with Giroud getting on the end of a good passing move before beating his man in the box, but his shot was well saved by the outstretched leg of Foster.

West Brom had a rare chance when Cech failed to keep hold of a corner but, fortunately for the Gunners, Yacob skied his effort over the bar.

With just eight minutes left on the clock Hector Bellerin headed Lucas Perez's cross over the bar and it felt like it was just going to be one of those days. That was until Giroud struck to send the Arsenal fans into raptures. The French strike held off his marker Gareth McAuley to head home Mesut Ozil's cross.

Arsenal pushed for a second and nearly got it in the final minute of normal time, but once again Foster came to the rescue as he produced a fine save with his legs to keep out Aaron Ramsey. Foster also kept out Bellerin in stoppage time, but Arsenal held on for the victory.

OPPOSITION VIEW
West Brom fans Rob Myatt and Steven Butler were left frustrated following their side's defeat.

"From an Albion perspective, it's the second most frustrating game of the season, after the Chelsea one," said Myatt. "To contain such a dominant team, with the aid of some outstanding saves from arguably the best, most consistent English goalkeeper in the PL, is a feat in itself, but to lose in the manner we did hurts even more.

"The way we set up is pure counter attacking and take our chances when they come type of football. That chance came when Yacob blazed over from a corner but if Rondon, Chadli or a player of that ilk had been on the end of it, we'd have been looking at a much different story. But he didn't and we aren't, so we take the positives: we've now played the best two teams in the league away in a month and should have come away with something from both games.

"I thought Evans and Nyom were outstanding once again. How Evans is at a club like ours is beyond me and when the rumours starting circulating about Arsenal possibly being in for him, I for one completely understood it.

"We sometimes lack support for Rondon and I think the frustration showed at times, but he's the kind of player who will drift in and out of games. The great thing is though that when he does come to the fore, he invariably scores or makes a nuisance of himself to allow the likes of Phillips and Chadli additional space.

"As an Albion fan, we write these games off; anything but a spanking and it's a good result for us. We have two winnable games coming up against Southampton and Hull, so to be "the best of the rest" is a decent tag to have.

"People slaughter Pulis for his style of play, but look at our recent results and performances, and you'll see it's the stereotypical response from people who don't watch us every week. Yes, we are defensive when we need to be but we weren't like that against teams not in the top four over the last six weeks and our results prove that."

Butler also felt frustrated, but not too downbeat after the match adding: "I approached the game with low expectations, as you do, when you're facing superior opposition. The game plan was always going to be: to get men behind the ball and try to keep Arsenal at bay for as long as possible (ideally for the 90+ minutes) and if the opportunity presented itself, hit the Gunners on the counterattack with a goal, then shut up shop, gleefully accepting a smash and grab win.

"As the game went on, it was evident that we'd be lucky to escape with a point - although it was a resilient rear-guard display from the Albion, managing to frustrate Arsenal until late on in the game, the outcome seemed inevitable... sure enough, Giroud scored the winner with an excellent header in the 87th minute.

"So near and yet so far, from coming away from the Emirates with what would've been a very good point, instead we left empty handed - fair play to Arsenal though, their persistence finally paid off and they emerged victorious."

MY FINAL THOUGHTS
West Brom defended excellently to frustrate us for much of the game, but all that matters is we did the job, albeit it very late on, and got a much-needed three points.

That's it for 2016 and if we are to have any chance of getting back in the title race in 2017 we need to start it with a bang. The visit of Crystal Palace on New Year's Day will swiftly be followed by the trip to Bournemouth. Both are tough yet very winnable games and we need to be aiming for nothing less than a maximum six-point haul from those games, so let's focus on our own games and get two more wins.

COME ON YOU GUNNERS

Two away defeats in a week

Just like we did against Everton earlier the same week Arsenal took the lead only to be on the wrong end of another 2-1 defeat, this time at Manchester City.

In terms of Arsenal's chances it had been seen as potential a huge week in the title race as a tally of four to six points would have kept us in more serious contention. However to come out of two away games, albeit tough ones, with nothing to show for it is very disheartening as we dropped down to fourth and nine points behind leaders Chelsea.

There was some controversy surrounding the two City goals - scored by Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling - with Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger feeling that both efforts should have been ruled out for offside. Whether or not he has a case will be looked into later in the blog, but either way it doesn't hide the fact that we were poor and City still deserved their win.

Theo Walcott gave us an early lead after just four minutes, but we only had six shots and didn't offer too much in attack. City levelled through Sane within two minutes of the restart and, even at that stage, it looked like the hosts would go on to win it. So it proved as Sterling hit the winner 19 minutes from time.

We always knew City would be tough opponents, especially on their own turf and despite the fact they have struggled a bit of late. Although the last two results hurt, it is the performances that disappoint me most. Had we put in two heroic efforts and been unfortunate it would have been easier to take. Instead we started strongly, but couldn't make the most of it or maintain it and let both Everton and City back into the respective matches.

To go from topping the table following our 3-1 victory over Stoke to then dropping to fourth after back-to-back away defeats is very frustrating. It is a big shame we couldn't maintain the strong start we had made to the game following Walcott's opener. The forward latched onto Alexis Sanchez's fine through ball before taking a touch and slotting a shot beyond Claudio Bravo in the City goal.

City nearly responded immediately but Sterling headed just wide from close range. Yaya Toure also missed with a headed effort soon after, while at the other end Walcott volleyed over before nodding his next effort wide.

Arsenal were able to hold onto their slender 1-0 lead going in at the break, but the complexion of the game soon changed inside the opening few minutes of the second half. Sane got on the end of David Silva's clipped pass over the top before beating Petr Cech with a calm finish. Having watched the replays back, I genuinely believe Sane's goal should have been ruled out as he was narrowly offside as Silva played the pass. It was very frustrating, but we should have just moved on and tried to find a positive response. But instead we seemed to let City control for large spells for the rest of the contest. We kept our shape well at times, but City continued to press and it was only a matter of time before they found their winning goal.

Cech reacted well to keep out Sane from close range before later producing a fine save to tip away Kevin de Bruyne's deflected strike. But then came the killer blow for the Gunners as de Bruyne's fine long pass found Sterling, who ran into the box before beating Cech with a low shot at his near post. Silva was stood in front of Cech in an offside position as the Sterling hit his shot, but that was in some ways a much difficult one to call. I don't think Silva really affected the goal all that much and the referee was probably right to have awarded that one.

It got worse for the Gunners as substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was forced off through injury just over 10 minutes after coming on.

City very nearly added a third before the end, but de Bruyne's close-range effort hit a post. Arsenal did have a chance to level the scores inside the final 10 minutes, but Walcott chipped an effort off target when maybe he should have crossed it and City held on to take all three points.

OPPOSITION VIEW
Manchester City fan Joe Barnes was happy with the impact of goalscorer Sane after what was an important result for his side.

"I think it was definitely a game of two halves," said Barnes. "It was still the same ropey City defensively!

"It was good to see Sane starting to repay some of the money we spent on him as he appears to have bags of talent and pace. Pep (Guardiola) needs to overhaul the defence, build it round (John) Stones.

"Arsenal's soft underbelly was exposed for the second time in a week. Three points were much needed to keep City in the hunt for the title."

MY FINAL THOUGHTS
So where do we go from here? We have the foundations of a good squad, but maybe adding a few fresh faces in the transfer window could give us some renewed hope. Defender Shkodran Mustafi also needs to hurry up and return from injury as we have seemed less solid at the back in his absence.

Nine points behind leaders Chelsea and looking at an all too familiar story of title hopes fading. But we can't think like that as if we do our hopes will fade even faster. It is going to be an uphill task from now on and we need to just focus on our own football and try and bounce back to winning ways as soon as possible, starting with the visit of West Brom on Boxing Day.

COME ON YOU GUNNERS

Gunners come unstuck against Toffees

What is it with teams from Merseyside? We have only lost two league games this season - the opening day defeat by Liverpool and now 2-1 against 10-man Everton at Goodison Park.

Although it took some defending of the highest quality to stop us from getting at least a point Everton, in truth, were worthy winners as they pressed us well. But without being disrespectful to the Toffees, we never really got out of first gear and should have done far better in the final third than we did and that was very disappointing to see.

This is a huge week for us, but now we are still three points behind leaders Chelsea and they have a game in hand. So, unless they somehow muck up at struggling Sunderland, we will be even further behind ahead of the weekend's massive game at Manchester City. We should have put ourselves into a far better position going into that game, but we failed to really wake up against Everton.

Chances were few and far between for both sides in a rather uninspiring first half, but at least we took the lead to give us something to cheer about. After Mesut Ozil had fired an early effort over the bar we broke the deadlock after 20 minutes as Alexis Sanchez's free-kick deflected in off defender Ashley Williams.

At the other end, former Tottenham midfielder Aaron Lennon twice shot off target before Everton grabbed an equaliser right on half-time as Seamus Coleman headed home Leighton Baines's cross.

Arsenal really should have re-taken the lead within eight minutes of the restart as Sanchez's clever cut-back found Ozil, but somehow the German international blazed over when it looked easier to score. Ozil nearly had another chance soon after but goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg rushed out quickly to smother the ball and stop the midfielder getting it.

Everton also came close to a second when Ross Barkley sent a shot agonisingly wide as the game remained firmly in the balance and, at that point, it was very hard to call which way it would go.

Arsenal were struggling to create too many clear-cut chances as substitute Alex Iwobi saw his effort go wide.

Everton continued to push forward in the closing stages and, shortly after Phil Jagielka had been denied by Cech, Williams headed home a Barkley corner to send the home fans into raptures four minutes from time.

The hosts were dealt a blow when Jagielka was dismissed for a second bookable offence in stoppage time, but luckily it didn't have too much impact on the game as there was less than two minutes remaining.

Arsenal, however, did very nearly snatch a point at the death albeit for some heroic defending. Everton deserve their win and I am certainly not making excuses, but the defending by Baines in the final minute was truly incredible and stopped us from getting what would have been a certain point. Ramiro Funes Mori had already cleared a shot off the line before Baines came up with an even better block to keep the ball out. Although we had been poor in attack for much of the game, how on earth this effort didn't go in left me baffled. It wasn't about poor finishing on that particular occasion, but simply a quality defensive block so take a bow Baines...even if it did make me very frustrated as it meant game over and the end of our unbeaten league run.

OPPOSITION VIEW
Everton fan Paul O'Neill felt the team that wanted it more on the night got the result.

"Tonight Everton were 3/1 for a home win," said O'Neill. "Normally a great price, but having only won one in the last eight I don't think anyone could see Arsenal losing this one. But that wasn't to be thanks to two simple headers in fairness and great assists from Barkley and Baines.

"This was an end-to-end match and to be honest I felt we wanted it more. You could see the passion there, fighting for everything, and what it meant to Ashley Williams redeeming for the deflection earlier on.

"Hopefully this will propel Everton on to much better performances and results that the people's club deserve. Unlucky Arsenal, fair result."

O'Neill's fellow Toffees fan David Bridson was also left delighted by the performance.

"On the back of a shocking run and in the first of a tough run of fixtures I feared for Everton," added Bridson. "To not only equalise, but win the game against potential league winners shows the Blues still have that determination to hold our own against any opposition.

"Though the victory has also come with the hefty price of Phil Jagielka's sending off we dearly needed three points. I'm hoping our confidence has increased tenfold heading into the Merseyside derby on Monday."

MY FINAL THOUGHTS
Defeats are never nice and this one is no exception. Without knocking Everton, who deserved the win, this really hurts as it is such a big week for us.

Wins against Everton and Manchester City would have thrown the gauntlet down and shown we are serious title contenders, but we have failed at the first hurdle. We now need an even bigger display against City if we are to prove that we have any chance this year and are not just going to fade away as we have in recent previous seasons.

Normally I would say a draw at Manchester City would be a great result, but after the way the Everton game went nothing other than a win will do. Yes, a point would still be impressive, but if we are really serious about this we must prove it and get a victory over Pep Guardiola's men!

COME ON YOU GUNNERS

Gunners smash Potters to extend unbeaten run

Arsenal stretched their unbeaten league run to 14 games and temporarily went top of the table following a 3-1 victory over Stoke.

Stoke are always a tricky side to play and the visitors took the lead through a Charlie Adam penalty, but fortunately Theo Walcott, Mesut Ozil and Alex Iwobi were all on hand to ensure we took all three points. We have always found it tough away at the Britannia, but home advantage proved crucial once again as we continued our good record at Emirates Stadium against them where it is now nine wins from nine league meetings.

Chelsea's 1-0 win over West Brom sees us drop to second and three points behind the leaders, but there is still a lot of football to be played. We are capable of over hauling Chelsea at the top and equally fading away in the title race. It is important that keep the unbeaten run going and also make sure we don't drop any silly points along the way. The next few games could have a big impact on the direction of our season, but if we are to mount a more serious title challenge we must continue to bang in the goals like we have against Stoke, FC Basel and West Ham.

The three points against the Potters did come at a cost though as Shkodran Mustafi was forced off with an injury and looks set for at least three weeks on the sidelines. He will be a big loss to our defence and I am unsure how we will cope, but maybe this can be Rob Holding's chance to shine. Gabriel has also impressed in his last few games for us, so there are options available and it is hard to say how we will manage without the more solid Kostafi partnership of Laurent Koscielny and Mustafi we have been used to recently.

But before Mustafi left the action both sides created decent chances to score. Stoke defender Marc Muniesa saw his sweetly struck long-range volley tipped over by Petr Cech, while his team-mate Erik Pieters shot wide. At the other end, Walcott saw his effort well kept out by Stoke goalkeeper Lee Grant.

Stoke midfielder Joe Allen then sent an effort off target before a hamstring problem saw Mustafi forced off for Arsenal. Although it was a big blow to lose such an important defender it was good to see Hector Bellerin, who came on in his place, back on the pitch following his return from injury.

Stoke opened the scoring shortly before the half hour mark when they were awarded a penalty as Granit Xhaka's elbow caught Allen in the face. There didn't seem much intent as it looked purely accidental, but Xhaka's arm was raised high and a penalty was awarded, which Adam dispatched with no problem.

Arsenal tried to find a response and very nearly got it when Bellerin played a nice ball across the box and only a crucial intervention from Mame Biram Diouf stopped Ozil getting a clear shot at goal.

The Gunners got themselves back into the game when Walcott equalised three minutes before the break. Sanchez's fine through ball opened up the Stoke defence before Bellerin's cross was fired home by Walcott.

Arsenal nearly completed the turnaround before half-time, but Sanchez and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain both sent efforts just over the crossbar. At the other end, Xherdan Shaqiri's long-range shot was comfortably saved by Cech in first-half stoppage time.

Arsene Wenger's men started the second half well and moved in front within just five minutes of the restart. Oxlade-Chamberlain lofted a superb high pass into the box and Ozil timed his run to perfection to loop a header over Grant.

Arsenal continued to create chances as Xhaka and Oxlade-Chamberlain sent their efforts off target before the latter saw his next strike saved by Grant. Those misses almost proved costly as Stoke came very close to levelling the scores, but substitute Peter Crouch's header was well kept out by Cech.

The hosts gave themselves a two-goal cushion and put the result beyond doubt when substitute Iwobi scored 15 minutes from time. Iwobi passed the ball to Sanchez, who was then brought down just outside the box, but Arsenal played the advantage successfully as the substitute raced into the box and calmly slotted a shot beyond Grant.

Substitute Olivier Giroud came on to make his 200th appearance for the club, but he was unable to cap it with a goal as he sent an effort wide in stoppage time.

It was a great result for Arsenal to keep the good run of form going and also make sure they will complete the calendar year without losing on a Saturday. We just need to make sure we win on Tuesday and Sunday next week!

OPPOSITION VIEW
Stoke fan Debs Graham admitted she always knew it was going to be a difficult match at the Emirates, but was keen not to be too downbeat following the defeat.

"I wasn't expecting a win as we've not won there for years," said Graham. "We started decently & had a couple of chances. The penalty was a silly foul and gave us the lead.

"Both Muniesa and (Marko Arnautovic) Arnie had chances, which at the start of the season we weren't even getting. The two goals either side of half-time killed us off and the second goal came right after we were getting Pieters back on the pitch following treatment.

"Considering how we started the season and how negative our own fans were we've come far. We've got Southampton and Leicester home next where we can pick up points, but then followed by Liverpool and Chelsea away over the Xmas period. Lee Grant has done so well for us this season."

MY FINAL THOUGHTS
After another positive result things are looking good, but we must not get carried away. We have given ourselves a good shot at a title challenge, but we need to be consistent and not let things slip.

The next two fixtures have the potential to be very tricky and not only because they are back-to-back away games. Everton may not be in the greatest form and if we play like I know we can we should win, but there are no guarantees in football and we need to not take Everton lightly, especially as they possess a big goal threat upfront in Romelu Lukaku. After Everton is arguably one of our biggest tests of the season - a trip to Manchester City.

Although I admit it was funny to hear about them being hammered 4-2 by Leicester in their last game, it will definitely not be an easy game. We are in good form and they are playing below par, which in theory means we should be in a good position to take advantage. But I am always wary of playing a side, especially one of the strongest in the Premier League, after they've had a big defeat. They will be hurting and eager to put things right and we have to make sure it isn't against us.

Before we can even think about the big clash at City we must focus on Everton and getting three points at Goodison Park.

COME ON YOU GUNNERS

Perez treble secures top spot

Lucas Perez made the most of his opportunity to shine as his hat-trick helped Arsenal to a 4-1 win at FC Basel and secured their place at the top of Group A.

The Gunners had looked more likely to finish second before kick-off but, as well as taking care of their own business, PSG suffered a surprise a 2-2 home draw against Ludogorets to allow Arsenal to leapfrog them into first place.

It was a massive result for Arsenal that allowed them to top a group for the first time since 2011-12. In theory it could mean a so-called easier draw in the round of 16, but nothing is guaranteed as the Gunners could still yet face sides including Bayern Munich and Real Madrid depending on the Spanish side's result against Borussia Dortmund. Whatever happens it is certainly a huge psychological boost for Arsene Wenger's men to have defied the odds and topped their group, so hopefully we can kick on from here.

It took Arsenal just eight minutes to opening the scoring in Switzerland as Perez grabbed his first goal of the evening. Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil combined well to set up Kieran Gibbs before the left-back picked out Perez to tap in from close range.

Arsenal's hard work was nearly undone soon after when Matias Delgado forced a decent save from David Ospina, but fortunately for the visitors the flag was raised for offside before the rebound was tucked away.

The Gunners doubled their advantage after 16 minutes when Gibbs latched onto Ozil's through ball and saw his strike saved by Tomas Vaclik, but Perez was on hand to net the rebound from close range.

Although Arsenal were seemingly in control, FC Basel almost reduced the deficit before the break. Adama Traore saw his effort sail just wide before Ospina kept out Renato Steffen's shot and was alert to beat Marc Janko to the rebound.

Arsenal made it 3-0 within two minute of the restart as Gibbs once again played a key role in the move. The defender played the ball into Sanchez, who in turn set up Perez to send an angled strike into the bottom corner.

The Gunners piled more misery onto their Swiss opponents just six minutes later as Sanchez set up Ozil, whose unselfish pass across goal gave Alex Iwobi the simplest of tap-ins. It could have been five had Sanchez's free-kick not crashed against the crossbar, but Arsenal were more than deserving of their commanding lead.

FC Basel netted a consolation 12 minutes from time as Seydou Doumbia turned past Laurent Koscielny before slotting a shot beyond Ospina.

As the final whistle blew we knew we had done our bit and just had to nervously wait on the result from Paris. PSG grabbed a stoppage-time equaliser, but were unable to find a winning goal as their match against Ludogorets ended 2-2.

A truly remarkable evening as top spot had looked almost beyond us before kick-off, yet we still managed to finish top of Group A and must make sure we keep our momentum going in the Champions League.

GROUP A
The 4-1 win at FC Basel saw us finish two points clear at the top of Group A.

Although we needed a big slice of luck to help us get there, it is certainly a big confidence boost to finish top. The two draws against PSG had looked like they might come back to haunt us, but in the end we pulled off a European miracle with a big helping hand from our Bulgarian group rivals.

Although we could still get a difficult draw and, in truth, there isn't really such as a thing as an easy round of 16 tie, at least we have put ourselves in a very good position by finishing top. I also don't see any point in being in the Champions League if you don't want to pit your wits against the best, so I don't actually mind who we end up being drawn against. I say, bring it on and what will be will be.

MY FINAL THOUGHTS
Finishing top of the group is a fantastic achievement and we will find out in under a week's time who are opponents our in the round of 16 in this season's Champions League.

Until then we must fully turn our attentions back to the league and potentially tough home fixture against Stoke. With back-to-back away games at Everton and Manchester City to follow this is certainly going to be a big next fortnight for the Gunners.

We need to make sure that by the end of the game at Manchester City we are still in the title race and, if any of our title rivals mess up, we must be ready to take advantage!

COME ON YOU GUNNERS