Arsenal moved into second place in the Barclays Premier League after crushing Watford with three goals in 12 minutes at Vicarage Road.
The second-half salvo ripped right through the heart of a Watford side that had played with an energy and intensity which was always likely to prove unsustainable.
Alexis Sánchez’s sixth goal in his past three league games set Arsenal on their way, followed by strikes from Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey, but for an hour of this contest such a scoreline appeared rather improbable with Watford giving a performance that should give Quique Sanchez Flores, their head coach, plenty of reason for optimism.
Arsenal will now look ahead with a degree of confidence to Tuesday’s Champions League contest against Bayern Munich, one which they must win to have any realistic chance of qualifying for the knockout phase.
That is likely to prove a far more difficult test but for an hour at Vicarage Road they were forced to dig deep by against a Watford side which played with a spirit and determination and deserved the ovation they received at the final whistle.
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Arsenal, having won three of their four away games, began brightly but it was not until the 28th minute that they created a real clear-cut opportunity, courtesy of the ever dangerous Sánchez.
The Chilean found both time and space on the left before delivering an exquisite pass to the back post where Ramsey somehow contrived to lift his effort over the crossbar.
Watford have struggled at home so far this season, winning just one of their four matches and managing a single goal which came in the victory over Swansea.
While their approach can be easy on the eye it is the lack of penetration in the final third which remains the cause of some consternation.
In Odion Ighalo, Watford boast a striker who has scored more league goals than any other play in the top four divisions. With 21 goals in his past 26 league games, and the scorer of his side’s last five goals in the Premier League, he should have added another to his tally on the half-hour mark after more pressing from Watford resulted in Ikechi Anya winning possession and playing Ighalo through on goal, only for the striker to shoot wastefully wide.
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It was a miss which he would end up regretting as Arsenal took control of the contest just past the hour mark through Sánchez.
While Watford were still protesting furiously towards Mike Jones, the referee, who rejected claims for a penalty after Etienne Capoue went down, Arsenal moved forward at rapid speed. Santi Cazorla, at the heart of everything good about Arsenal, played a lovely ball through for Mesut Özil and when the German went down under pressure from Nathan Ake, the Watford defender, Sánchez clipped the ball home from close range.
That goal appeared harsh on Watford who had more than held their own at the start of the second half and yet, within minutes, they fell further behind.
Giroud, who had been on the field for just three minutes after replacing Theo Walcott, fired home from eight yards after Özil pulled the ball back at the far post.
Watford, by now clearly exhausted having spent most of the first hour chasing the opposition at every opportunity, were then scythed open a third time with 16 minutes remaining.
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Héctor Bellerin, who spent a loan spell at Vicarage Road, marauded down the right and his pass allowed Ramsey to steal in ahead of his marker and apply the finishing touch.
Giroud should have added a fourth with a free header from Cazorla’s corner but Heurelho Gomes produced a fine save to deny the Frenchman.