Basel had a fantastic record against English sides going into the game at the Emirates; knocking back Chelsea and Manchester United in recent years. But they had no such luck against Arsenal on Wednesday night.
The Gunners were excellent. Starting with an electric tempo, they quickly found their rhythm and were rewarded after just seven minutes as Theo Walcott notched a rare headed goal from Alexis Sanchez’s cross.
Wenger’s men doubled their lead soon after, as the two combined again to great effect. Walcott took the ball from deep, charged at the Basel backline before playing a slick one-two with Alexis and thumping in his second off the up-right.
At this stage it looked as though Arsenal would reach double figures before the evening was out and perhaps they would have if it wasn’t for Basel’s stopper, Vaclik.
The Czech thwarted Alexis on a multitude of occasions, pulling off a string of fine saves. It finished 2-0, which was possibly a little flattering for the Swiss outfit despite having a few late glimpses of goal, but nevertheless it was a solid three points for the boys from The Emirates in their pursuit for top place in group A.
Whilst it was an impressive collective display from Arsenal, there were some stand out individual performances as well – Here are my player ratings…
