Two assists from Alexis Sanchez, two goals from Theo Walcott and Arsenal rolled to a 2-0 victory over FC Basel in the Uefa Champions League on Wednesday. The Gunners were dominant from the start of the match and rarely looked like being troubled against a disappointing Swiss side.
After a hard-fought, could-have-been-worse 1-1 draw against PSG to open their Champions League campaign, Arsenal needed a win to get their European season going, and they got just that courtesy a silky-smooth performance.
Coming off a dominant 3-0 win over Chelsea on Saturday, Arsenal barely put a foot wrong at the Emirates on Wednesday, as Walcott scored twice in the first half to put the match to bed early.
Both goals were wonderful to watch, with Walcott continuing to show the kind of form which has seen him become a player transformed this season.
In the seventh minute, Arsenal, after concerted pressure right from the start, opened the scoring. Santi Cazorla lobbed the ball through to Sanchez in space on the right, with the Chilean then floating a ball into the danger area. Walcott, making a late run, showed desire to get to the cross and once he did that he made sure the header would crash into the back of the net.
It was 2-0 on 28 minutes, and this time Walcott himself started the move, playing a one-two with Sanchez, before firing the ball into the bottom corner from an angle.
Arsenal could and probably should have increased their lead from there, but Sanchez missed a couple of golden opportunities, while Mesut Ozil could have got his name on the scoresheet as well. It did not matter in the end, though, because this was a Champions League game where Arsenal, solid at the back again as Shkodran Mustafi and Laurent Koscielny continued their blossoming partnership, were barely troubled.
