There was no upset, and while it was far from a thrashing, Arsenal were too strong for Sutton United, ending their fairytale run in the FA Cup in the fifth round.
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Having come into this match on the back of a heavy defeat to Bayern Munich, which had led to Arsene Wenger's position coming under further scrutiny, Arsenal needed a win, any kind of win.
While it wasn't vintage Gunners, the English Premier League side, a 105 places above their non-league opponents, had more than enough, eventually coming through 2-0, courtesy goals from Lucas Perez and Theo Walcott.
Perez opened the scoring in the 26th minute, before Walcott notched his 100th goal for Arsenal, ten minutes into the second half, to end Sutton's brilliant FA Cup run.
Despite getting the win, there were a few scares here and there for Arsenal, with the club's former graduates Roarie Deacon and Craig Eastmond, particularly catching the eye.
"(I was impressed) by the speed of their game, the fact they never stopped going until the end and compared to 20 years ago these teams are fit now and can play at the pace of the Premier League," Wenger said.
"Maybe [in the past] they collapsed in the last 20 minutes, that [era] is finished.
"They kept going and we were never really in a position where we could really afford to have a little breather in the game. We had to keep our focus, and I must give credit to my players who were professional and kept their focus, if we had come here in a relaxed mood we would have gone out, because Sutton produced quality."
What isn't finished right now is the Wenger era. The Arsenal manager's love for the FA Cup keeps going and with another non-league side in Lincoln City up next, you would expect the London club to make it to the semifinals at least.
While that should not paper over Arsenal's obvious failings in the Champions League and Premier League, this result was a welcome return to winning ways for the club.
Watch the highlights of the FA Cup match HERE
