Arsenal stormed to the top of the 2015 Emirates Cup table on Saturday afternoon by thrashing Ligue 1 runners up Lyon 6-0 in North London.
A fine strike from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Alex Iwobi’s first senior goal for the Gunners, plus efforts from Olivier Giroud, Aaron Ramsey and Mesut Ozil, gave Arsene Wenger’s men a massive margin of victory.
The result gives Arsenal nine points – three for the win, plus one for each of their goals – and leaves them four points ahead of Villarreal, who beat Wolfsburg 2-1 earlier in the day.
New goalkeeper Petr Cech was not included in Arsenal’s starting XI against Lyon, with Damian Martinez preferred, somewhat surprisingly.
SEE MORE: Arsenal v Lyon CONFIRMED TEAMS: Cech DENIED debut, Iwobi STARTS
However, Martinez barely touched the ball in the entire match, as Arsenal dominated from start to finish.
Giroud broke the deadlock on 29 minutes with a mistimed header that found the net via his shoulder.
Oxlade-Chamberlain made it two five minutes later, finishing clinically after fine build-up play from Ramsey and Giroud.
The Ox clearly has goals within him, but he must become more prolific. He has only once scored more than five goals in a single season – and that was the 2010/11 campaign, in which he played mostly in League One for Southampton.
After scoring their second, Arsenal had to wait less than 60 seconds for their third, which came courtesy of Alex Iwobi – his first goal for the senior team.
SEE ALSO: Video: Alex Iwobi’s first Arsenal goal – Gunners dazzle in Emirates Cup with one-touch move
Iwobi swiftly hit the net again, but his second strike was chalked off for offside.
The wait for a fourth did not last long, though. Ramsey got in on the act with a poked finish at the near post, following a low cross from Ozil.
Ozil scored the fifth, which came after half time, before Cazorla completed the rout with a drilled free kick late on.
READ MORE: Arsenal player ratings from 6-0 win over Lyon: MOTM Ramsey justifies £50m transfer talk
COMMENTS