Arsenal got their 2017 off to a solid start as they beat Crystal Palace 2-0 in a scoreline that flattered Sam Allardyce’s team as Arsene Wenger’s team could easily have won 4 or 5-0. The headlines will rightly go to Olivier Giroud who scored with the second “scorpion” kick goal in a week in the Premier League as the French striker finished off a flowing Arsenal counter attack as he connected with a Sanchez cross which was actually well behind him. The goal from Giroud was slightly better than Mkhitaryan’s it has to be said, as he reacted instinctively and used his considerable athleticism to send the ball straight into the top right hand corner of Wayne Hennessey’s goal making it totally unstoppable.

Giroud had just missed a very good chance before he scored but his overall game was excellent and he worked hard and always provided an option to his team-mates holding the ball up well in a man-of-the-match performance. Arsenal enjoyed over 60% possession and could easily have scored more than the second goal which they got from an intelligent header from Alex Iwobi. Crystal Palace really did not offer much apart from a period of about 6 minutes in the second half when they had several corners and Andros Townsend had a cracking chance but Petr Cech was able to deal with all the Eagles threw at him making sure every save he made he directed the rebounds well away from his goal.

So Arsenal have 4 games ahead in the League which on paper should be very winnable as all the teams are in the lower half of the table – Bournemouth, Swansea, Burnley and Watford. Those 4 games which can provide the possibility for the Gunners to build up good momentum come before the key clash against Chelsea away on Saturday 4th of February. There are of course 2 possible FA Cups games if the Gunners get past Preston in the first round to play before the Chelsea match so there is a busy January ahead. Olivier Giroud has certainly put the Gunners on a high as they start the second half of the season with what is definitely the goal of the season so far.