Viktor Gyokeres opened the scoring after nine minutes, latching onto Bukayo Saka’s low-driven cross to steer home from close range.
The finisher then turned provider when the Swedish striker received the ball in the channel and set Saka on his way, and the captain tucked his finish neatly past Bernd Leno.
In first half stoppage time, Leandro Trossard led an Arsenal breakaway and stood up an inviting cross for Gyokeres to bag his brace by cushioning his header back across goal.
Here are four things we learnt from Arsenal’s crucial victory over Fulham on Saturday evening.
Gyokeres and Saka steal the show
On his first Premier League start since mid-March, Saka captained the hosts to a convincing victory that was full of impetus and quickly settled any nerves troubling the Arsenal faithful.
He secured two goal contributions for the first time this season as he steadily works back to full sharpness, after recovering from an achilles issue that kept him sidelined for four games in April.
Saka left Fulham striker Raul Jimenez in his wake and flashed a cross suited to a striker to notch an early assist for Gyokeres.
Although there have been stronger defenders attempting to nullify Saka in many past games, the homegrown winger proved why his return is so crucial and showed the qualities he will bring to spark a front-footed style when called upon.
His goal in the 40th minute gave Arsenal the daylight supporters are less accustomed to seeing, stemming from Gyokeres holding the ball off and offloading to Saka.
With the space to pick his spot, Saka opted for some disguise and rifled into Leno’s near post instead of into the far corner, which his body shape would have indicated to the Fulham goalkeeper. He has both types of finishes in his locker from that distance.
Martin Odegaard was unavailable due to another injury setback, so Eberechi Eze was restored to the starting lineup, while Ben White retained his place with Jurrien Timber still out of action.
Without Odegaard and White’s less frequent overlapping runs, Saka still flourished and seemed very comfortable to go toe-to-toe with his marker, whilst the presence of Gyokeres offered a different dynamic that the team tinkered their approach to in this contest.
Rather than the patient and incisive build-up to unlock the defence, passes were more frequently fed into areas Gyokeres relished.
Eze’s sweeping pass into the channel for Gyokeres to chase stretched and unsettled the Fulham back line for the second goal, while Saka and Trossard’s early deliveries for their assists were converted by the marksman more comfortably.
Mikel Arteta has entrusted Gyokeres to be the main focal point throughout the season. The Swedish international has racked up 21 goals in his debut season across all competitions, despite not netting against any of the current top seven.
If the manager and players alike started to realise what service Gyokeres thrives with, and closely adapt to accommodate for him, the risk-averse approach yielding tighter scorelines could have been a limited occurrence.
Arsenal’s vibrant first half feast should be the precursor to their remaining league tests
An energetic and unshackled Arsenal embracing their attacking quality has been hard to come by this year - a defect which has been scrutinised extensively.
The Gunners did not score more than one goal in any of their games in April, reinforcing the style they had ostensibly been instructed to cautiously adopt.
However, this display against Fulham was very much an outlier that bucked the trend of recent performances keeping supporters watching through their fingers until the end.
Out of the blocks, they were imposing and less calculated, epitomised by utilising the strengths of Gyokeres. This did not overlook their measured passing and solid defence entirely, but they did choose to be swift and disrupt the opposition with instinct.
Their pragmatic style in games in their far from smooth sailing title charge has still yielded the necessary results.
However, for the remaining games in the Premier League, they can’t afford to revert to that again, and Saturday’s display should be the benchmark in intensity and attacking vigour the Arsenal ranks can exhibit.
Arteta’s men travel to relegation-threatened West Ham United, host already relegated Burnley, and take the trip to Crystal Palace on the final day, who could be gearing up for the Conference League final.
Myles Lewis-Skelly’s unfazed midfield magic
The academy graduate has largely fallen out of favour with Riccardo Calafiori’s admirable qualities at left-back and Piero Hincapie’s loan acquisition in the summer.
He was given a rare opportunity against Fulham to start in central midfield, which was where he honed his craft and gained attention during his growth in Arsenal’s youth ranks.
The Fulham defenders ensured they got tight and attempted to assert their authority; however, Lewis-Skelly almost always found the solution to prevail in duels or to maintain possession.
Executing his trademark pick and roll with the ball at his feet or mastering the technique of winning fouls, his well-rounded display highlighted his talent and complimented Declan Rice and other teammates well.
The 19-year-old registered a 97% passing accuracy with many of those passes not entirely safe, reflecting and spearheading the offensive energy Arsenal carried throughout.
Arteta rested stalwart Martin Zubimendi with one eye surely on the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night.
Lewis-Skelly may become a viable deputy in that position for games like this moving forwards, putting aside the suitors who may be primed to pursue the youngster’s signature this summer.
Will Riccardo Calafiori’s return now leave Piero Hincapie on the bench?
Like Saka, the Italian defender started his first league game since the 2-0 victory over Everton on the 14th March, and he came agonisingly close to netting a goal of his own.
His headed goal in the first half was ruled out for offside and a powerful close range header from a corner rattled the crossbar in the 80th minute.
Although his goal contributions across his two seasons in North London don’t necessarily suggest his offensive play is valued greatly, Arsenal’s left-side has an elevated sense of threat with Calafiori present a lot of the time.
His forays forwards, stemming from anticipation and instinct to support those assigned to finish attacks, causes a different issue for the opposition to contend with.
Equally, the 23-year-old doesn’t shy away from fulfilling his defensive duties and covering every blade of grass up and down his flank.
Due to injuries, he has started 19 times this season in the Premier League with Piero Hincapie filling in at left-back.
The Ecuadorian’s qualities differ but have become highly-appreciated by Arteta, since his defensive strengths have been a dependable asset. His loan transfer from Bayer Leverkusen is expected to be made permanent in the summer.
Heading into the final stretch of the campaign, Arteta may continue to deploy Calafiori to replicate the attacking intent.
In the coming league fixtures against admittedly lesser opposition, goal difference will be firmly in mind and first half routs would breed the confidence necessary to not fall short once more.