Saka and Ødegaard lead Burnley's 5-0 rout as Arsenal's scoring charge continues | first division

Remember the consequences of Arsenal's FA Cup home exit to Liverpool? After all, it was just six games ago, and seemingly irrefutable evidence that Mikel Arteta's side were in for a fruitless season unless they signed a proven goalscorer. None of them came, but Arsenal have scored 21 goals in the five games since then. Burnley were the latest to suffer the unbridled creative energy that has catapulted Arsenal back into title contention.

With Martin Ødegaard putting in another irrepressible performance away from home, Arsenal clinched their fifth consecutive title. first division win with some style. Their captain, Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard and Kai Havertz scored as the visitors scored with their first five shots on goal. The variety of scorers reflected a team taking responsibility for its recovery. Arsenal have won their first five games in a calendar year for the first time in their history. Burnley's only joy on a deflated afternoon came when the public address system announced the cancellation of the last train taking Arsenal fans back to London. “It's just not good enough,” was Vincent Kompany's verdict on his team, not the trains. “Arsenal were better than us in every aspect.”

As expected, Arteta stayed with the same lineup who defeated West Ham and I got the same result. Another convincing away win came when Arsenal scored on their first attack, Ødegaard sweeping into the bottom corner after Declan Rice and Gabriel Martinelli left Burnley's right flank exposed. The Norwegian international celebrated his eighth goal of the season by cupping his ears, perhaps in response to the criticism he received for enjoying Arsenal's recent league victory about Liverpool. He marked the beginning of an immaculate performance from the midfielder. Ødegaard operated on a different plane than his rival, his vision, timing and technique made everything look very easy.

Burnley performed good in the defeat at Anfield last weekend, where a third yellow card of the campaign for Kompany forced him to spend the afternoon in the stands at Turf Moor. It meant he had an elevated view of a much broader beating. Burnley struggled to disrupt Arsenal's rhythm, retain possession or put pressure on the visitors' defence. They also failed to read Havertz's diagonals from the left and, as Ødegaard repeatedly found them, it was only a matter of time before Arsenal extended their lead. The pair combined to free Trossard in the area where Lorenz Assignon unceremoniously brought him down. Saka took a flagrant penalty just after James Trafford's desperate dive.

There was some booing from the home fans at the half-time whistle. His discouragement never went away. Saka scored his sixth goal in four games two minutes into the restart after another superb pass from Ødegaard, who slotted the ball behind left-back Hannes Delcroix. Saka took the invitation in stride and launched an unstoppable shot on the roof of the Burnley net.

Ødegaard was also involved in a serious injury suffered by Aaron Ramsey, although no blame was attributed to him. Arsenal captain. Ramsey took advantage of Ødegaard's challenge before catching his foot on the grass. As a result, his right knee bent. The unfortunate Burnley player needed oxygen and was stretchered off in distress.

Trossard, having squandered several good chances, sent an emphatic shot beyond Trafford after Ødegaard (who else?) released Jakub Kiwior on the left and his low cross reached the in-form striker.

Arsenal's fifth goal was infuriating from Burnley's perspective and was a signal for thousands of home fans to leave early. It came straight from Kiwior's long throw down the line to Havertz, who simply stripped the ball from a slumbering Burnley defence, fired past Delcroix and beat Trafford with a nonchalant finish. “We want six,” chanted a jubilant visiting audience. For once, Arsenal did not listen. There were no complaints.

A delighted Arteta said of Arsenal's 21 goals: “The contribution of each player has been very good. It seemed like we wanted more, we weren't satisfied, not even with 5-0. We want to dominate the game and play in the opponent's half as much as possible. Threat, purpose, and player connection flow and they really want it. We have momentum and we must maintain it.”