Arsenal bounced back from two successive draws in the 2016-17 Premier League campaign on Sunday, beating Bournemouth 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium.
Alexis Sanchez gave the hosts the lead after a huge defensive blunder, but Callum Wilson tied things up from the penalty spot soon after. Bournemouth held their own before half-time, but the Gunners increased the tempo after the break, and Theo Walcott put his side ahead again.
Sanchez added a second goal in the dying minutes to cap off the afternoon for the Gunners.
The Cherries made a lively start to the contest, with Adam Smith firing an early shot narrowly past Cech's goal and Steve Cook taking out Sanchez, earning himself a booking just minutes into the match.
Mesut Ozil put Adam Federici to work before Simon Francis also went into the official's book, with Bournemouth clearly intent on stopping the Gunners at all costs. The resulting free-kick was worked to Mohamed Elneny, but Nathan Ake made a fine block.
Arsenal took the lead after just 12 minutes, courtesy of a major blunder from Cook. The defender tried to work the ball back to goalkeeper Federici but left it right in the path of Sanchez, who easily converted the chance.
Arsenal kept up the pressure, and Sanchez wanted a penalty after he went down inside the box after making contact with Ake. On the other side of the pitch, Wilson powered a header wide of the mark, while Debuchy went down with an apparent hamstring injury and had to be replaced by Gabriel Paulista.
The Gunners appeared to be in control, but, slowly, Bournemouth started to work the ball around and prod their way toward Cech's goal. Midway through the first half, Nacho Monreal made a block on Wilson and took the striker to the ground, and while a penalty seemed quite harsh, the official didn't hesitate and pointed to the spot.
Wilson himself converted the spot-kick, making history in the process, per Squawka Football:
Smith fired a shot over Cech's bar shortly after, as the tables had turned. Bournemouth now looked the more dangerous side, and Cech had to make a fine stop to keep Smith from grabbing the lead, although he perhaps should have laid it off to Wilson instead.
Granit Xhaka couldn't test Federici with a blast from long range, and Walcott didn't have the pace to burn past Ake, wasting a great opportunity on the counter-attack. Elneny should have done better from the edge of the box, firing over, and Walcott couldn't pick out a team-mate with a promising cross.
Harry Arter finished the half by somehow avoiding a first yellow card for a rash foul on Monreal, which wasn't his first of the contest. John Cross of the Daily Mirror couldn't believe it:
Both sides showed attacking intentions early in the second half, a positive sign the Cherries weren't just planning on defending the draw. But the Gunners struck after just eight minutes, with Ozil picking out Monreal, who laid the ball back into the box and on a platter for Walcott.
Bleacher Report UK noted it wasn't the diminutive forward's first headed goal of the year:
Wilson, Gabriel and Mustafi got involved in a bit of a shoving match after the match resumed, and Sanchez got booked a few minutes later. Arsenal did a fine job taking the tempo out of the match, however, and the hosts were happy to see Wilson stroll to the sidelines as the half wore on.
Xhaka missed the target with another long-range shot, but the Gunners remained in full control. The Cherries introduced Jordon Ibe as a last resort, while Arsenal manager responded by bringing on Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud.
The Arsenal defence went to sleep for a second, presenting Benik Afobe with a glorious opportunity to tie things up, but, fortunately for the Gunners, Cech was paying attention. Ake made several key stops to deny Elneny and Giroud and keep the Cherries alive, but the best chances kept falling to the hosts.
Both Giroud and Ramsey went close, firing wide from promising positions, before Sanchez secured the win in injury time, easily slotting home after great work from Giroud.
Arsenal's next outing will be at home against Southampton in the EFL Cup, while Bournemouth host Liverpool in the Premier League.
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