Five things we learned from Arsenal's win over West Brom on a record-breaking night at the Emirates Stadium

Arsenal beat West Brom 2-0 on Monday to secure their fourth win in five games across all competitions.

An Alexandre Lacazette brace - coming via a close-range header and penalty-spot strike - wrapped up proceedings for the home side.

Tony Pulis' side enjoyed a number of chances in front of goal - and were denied a blatant penalty early on - but the Baggies were ultimately unable to find the back of the net.

Here's five things we learned:

open image in gallery

Regardless of the result, it was night to remember for Gareth Barry who made history in becoming the Premier League’s all-time leading appearance maker. 663 games, 52,871 minutes, 36 days of match play, 261 matches won: it’s been quite a career for the unassuming but ever-constant Englishman.

Since making his debut in 1998, he’s been a permanent fixture in the league for the past 19 seasons, playing 30 or more games in 18 of those campaigns. As Wenger mentioned in his pre-match notes, it’s a shame Barry didn’t feature more for England in his heyday - he was competing against the likes of Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Co after all - but his longevity is an achievement in itself.

It was a momentous occasion for Alexis Sanchez too, who made his 100th Premier League start in an Arsenal shirt. Fans will only hope that he doubles that figure in the years to come - though I wouldn't hold your breath on this one.

open image in gallery

Having made a fleeting appearance last week against Chelsea, it will have come as a relief to the home fans that main man Alexis Sanchez was back in the line-up for tonight’s clash. His presence was immediately felt, with his industrial scurrying paying off after a matter of minutes. Drawing a foul on the edge of West Brom’s box, his free-kick effort fizzed wide by a matter of inches.

From there, Sanchez was the heartbeat of Arsenal’s frontline. Hard-working, ever-present and an all-round nuisance in and around the box, the 29-year-old provided Arsenal with that much-needed dynamism and cutting edge to break down the visitors.

It was his second free-kick effort, coming in the 20th minute, which set Lacazette up for Arsenal’s opener, his strike deflecting off the bar into the path of the Frenchman who did the rest from two yards out. With his injury behind him and talk of his future on the backburner, this was a focused and typically purposeful performance that bodes well for the months to come.

open image in gallery

For all the usual Tony Pulis tropes, this was a side that looked anything but boring and consistent. They were, if anything, curiously unpredictable. His West Brom team have built up a reputation for being notoriously hard to break down but tonight Arsenal enjoyed a surfeit of chances.

It was their counter-attack which threw up the most surprises, however, catching Arsenal off guard on a number of occasions. The visitors should have arguably been handed a penalty in the 8th minute after Jay Rodriguez was chopped down by a reckless Shodkdran Mustafi challenge following a blistering surge of pace down the left flank. It took Petr Cech’s fingertips to deny the subsequent shot.

Pulis’ side came agonisingly close 12 minutes later. Having enjoyed more success down the left following a quick break, West Brom were denied an equaliser after Rodriguez’s close range header was cleared off the line by an airborne Nacho Monreal. Arsenal may have held on and seen out the game in relative comfort but West Brom’s counter attack certainly proved a handful.

open image in gallery

Ahead of this fixture, Arsene Wenger railed against Kieran Gibbs’ completely understandable comment that he had left Arsenal because he wanted to play first-team football and become a better player.

“You should ask him what he means about being a better defender at West Brom,” Wenger sniffed ahead of the fixture. “He will certainly have to defend more because we are a team that goes forward and they are a team who focus more on defending.”

But the full-back, who spent 13-years playing for Arsenal, was given a warm welcome back to the Emirates, with his name cheered heartily when it was read out ahead of the match. He had a good game, too, particularly impressing when on the front-foot. He already looks like a new player now that he is guaranteed regular football under Tony Pulis.

open image in gallery

Signed for a similarly hefty sum, Alexandre Lacazette has not generated quite as many headlines as the likes of Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku this season, both of whom have bagged an impressive six goals.

Lacazette’s brace means he has now scored four – just as many as the likes of Harry Kane, Gabriel Jesus and Mohamed Salah. And while Lacazette’s game may not be as eye-catching as the more speculative Morata, for example, he proved his worth to Arsenal this season with two predatory goals. One from a rebound, one from the penalty spot.

They all count. Lacazette is the very definition of a goal poacher, and his modest finishes against West Brom proved that Arsenal finally have a forward instinctive enough to put away some of the many chances their talented attacking midfielders create. More reliable than Olivier Giroud, Lacazette is a fine signing.