Jan 14, 2017 at 3pm UK at ​Liberty Stadium
Attendance: 20,875
SwanseaSwansea City
0-4
Arsenal

Sung-Yueng (43'), Fer (78')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Giroud (37'), Cork (54' og.), Naughton (67' og.), Sanchez (73')

Result: Arsenal hit four past struggling Swansea City

Olivier Giroud in action during the Premier League game between Manchester United and Arsenal on November 19, 2016
© SilverHub
Arsenal move into third place in the Premier League table with a comfortable 4-0 victory over Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium.

Arsenal have scored four goals in a 36-minute period either side of half time to run out comfortable 4-0 winners against Swansea City.

The Gunners had struggled during the early stages but two own goals - as well as strikes from Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez - ensured that they eased to three points at the Liberty Stadium.

Swansea have leaked plenty of goals this season but they appeared to begin the match with the intent of avoiding any early slip-ups, and it took 14 minutes for either side to get a shot on goal.

That chance fell to Gylfi Sigurdsson on the edge of the penalty area, but the Swansea playmaker was unable to keep his shot down from 20 yards.

Arsenal had offered nothing for much of the opening half-hour but they came close to taking the lead when Sanchez cut inside onto his right foot before forcing Lukas Fabianski into a solid intervention at his near post.

The home side continued to have the better of proceedings but eight minutes before the break, Arsenal went in front through Giroud, who fired into the roof of the net from close range after Mesut Ozil had seen a header blocked by a defender.

A minute before the break, Swansea felt as though they should have been awarded a penalty when Laurent Koscielny appeared to bring down Ki Sung-yueng, but the midfielder was cautioned for diving after dragging his foot into the challenge.

Swansea would have been encouraged when they returned for the second half, but they fell two goals behind soon after the restart when Alex Iwobi's shot took a huge deflection off Jack Cork and looped over Fabianski and into the net.

Despite Arsenal doubling their advantage, Swansea remained a threat and Wayne Routledge and Federico Fernandez both squandered chances within minutes of each other as the Welsh team looked to mount a comeback.

However, any hope they may have had went when Arsenal netted a third midway through the second half, with Iwobi again proving instrumental in putting the ball into a threatening area and Swansea defender Kyle Naughton diverting it into his own net.

It got worse for Swansea six minutes later when Sanchez got on the scoresheet after rifling the ball into the net from close range following good work from substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

The one-sided scoreline gave Arsene Wenger the chance to introduce Danny Welbeck for his first Premier League appearance since May 8 but the forward was unable to mark his cameo with a goal.

Granit Xhaka tested Fabianski with one long-range effort during the closing stages but the game soon petered out as the visitors settled for victory by a four-goal margin.

Arsenal's German midfielder Mesut Ozil celebrates with Arsenal's French striker Olivier Giroud after Ozil scored his team's second goal during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Newcastle United at the Emirates Stadium in London
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Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Chelsea21171345153052
2Tottenham HotspurSpurs21136243142945
3Liverpool21136249242545
4Arsenal21135348222644
5Manchester CityMan City21133541261542
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd21117332201240
7Everton219663223933
8West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom218582828029
9Stoke CityStoke217682733-627
10Burnley2182112331-826
11Bournemouth2174103037-725
12West Ham UnitedWest Ham2174102635-925
13Southampton216691926-724
14Watford2165102336-1323
15Leicester CityLeicester2156102434-1021
16Middlesbrough214891722-520
17Crystal Palace2144133040-1016
18Hull City2144132045-2516
19Sunderland2143142040-2015
20Swansea CitySwansea2143142349-2615