Arsenal have maintained their unbeaten start to the season as they compound the woes of newly-promoted side Sheffield United at Emirates Stadium.
It was another sterling outing for the Gunners, who have now gone 10 Premier League games unbeaten and have racked up 24 points with 7 wins and 3 draws to go second on the table, two point behind league leaders, Tottenham Hotspur.
As expected, Mikel Arteta got his boys to task as the game kicked off. They took the game to the visitors in their half and mounted intense pressure in search for the curtain-raiser.
Sheffield United, coming at the back of a dismal start to the campaign, did little to match Arsenal’s pace and attacking flair and it didn’t take long before the host got off the mark with the opener.
Eddie Nketiah was at his best for the Gunners with a sensational and brilliant display that put the Sheffield United rickety backline to the sword.
Nketiah capped Arsenal’s dominant performance with a theatrical and electric 28th minute finish that scurried the home side into the lead.
A brilliant link-up play between Ben White, Kai Havertz, and Bukayo Saka did the magic with Declan Rice clearing up the build-up play with a curling low cross assist for Nketiah to slot home pass Foderingham.
Sheffield United improved play after conceding and tried to find a leveler but Arsenal were back in control again despite taking the lead.
However, the Blades were able to hold off the home side till the end of the first half break but they needed a better performance in the second 45 for any hope of a comeback.
Arsenal started the second half on the front foot again. Dominating proceedings and making moves to double the lead, they made it difficult for the visitors.
After a marathon of pressure, the Gunners finally made their dominance count as they doubled the lead thanks to Eddie Nketiah’s second goal.
A poor clearance by Sheffield United after Saka whipped in a cornerkick was enough to punish the Blades again. Nketiah latched on the loose ball and fired it into the net to double the lead.
Few minutes after bagging his brace Eddie Nketiah registered his third just before the hour mark to bag his hat-trick.
It was a wonder strike by the Arsenal midfielder who fired a thunderbolt strike pass a helpless Foderingham to make it 3-0 for the Gunners.
At this point, it was a gameover for the Blades. Arsenal was a no match for the visitors who struggled with missed and forlorn passes, broken runs and counters, shaky defense, and uncoordinated attacks – a stark contrast to Arsenal’s clinical display.
Despite a comfortable 3-0 lead, Arsenal still stay atop proceedings going forward. In the 88th minute, Arsenal sealed the win with a penalty goal
A reckless challenge by Norwood on substitute Vieira inside Sheffield United half saw the visitors concede the penalty. VAR called for review but it was still awarded after check with Norwood bagging a yellow card.
Vieira slot home the fourth goal with ease. He fired from the spot direct through the middle while Foderingham dived to his right. Tomiyasu completed the rout in stoppage-time to make it 5-0.
The match ended with the Gunners running away with a big 5-0 win as Paul Heckingbottom continues his wait for a first Premier League win after 10 games.
The Blades are stucked bottom of the table with just a point and have suffered 9 defeats in 10 games.
