Arsenal claimed a dominant 4-1 victory over bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the latest edition of the North London Derby.
It was a glorious day for the Gunners, who have now extended their lead at the top of the Premier League table to six points thanks to a hat-trick from Eberechi Eze.
Leandro Trossard was the man to give the home side the lead in the 36th minute before Eze doubled their advantage before the break.
The Englishman would have more of a say just 40 seconds into the second half when he took Arsenal's tally to three.
Richarlison struck from just past the halfway line to give fans the slightest shimmer of hope; but all hope was gone when Eze found the back of the net yet again to make it 4-1 and complete his hat-trick.
Story of the match:
Arsenal made their intentions known from the first whistle as the first bit of space they were allowed by Spurs was translated into a great chance for the Gunners.
Bukayo Saka worked the ball to Eberechi Eze, whose dinked ball was hit on the volley by Declan Rice, forcing a strong save out of Vicario just two minutes into the encounter.
As expected, the home side were looking much more dangerous of the two sides, passing better than their rivals, and progressing into much more threatening areas of the pitch.
But truth be told, other than the chance two minutes in, Vicario had very little to trouble him in the early stages of proceedings at the Emirates. Thomas Frank's game plan looked like it was simply to frustrate the home side, something in which they were executing to perfection so far.
Every chance they got to slow the game down, whether it be a throw-in or a free kick, they did just that. This certainly helped to stunt Arsenal's progress and take that edge out of the home crowd.
Saka came close to opening the scoring just past the half-hour mark as his free kick travelled through a lot of bodies before being met by the palm of Vicario, who once again kept this encounter level.
But Spurs' defence would be breached once more in the 36th minute, this time fatally, when Mikel Merino found the run of Leandro Trossard. The Belgian took a wonderful touch to bring the ball under his spell, before turning and squeezing the ball into the bottom corner.
If it was not already, Tottenham's defence was all out of sorts now as their lack of composure was punished yet again. Rice won the ball back in the centre of the park and fizzed a pass through to Eze.
The Englishman showed great feet to sneak his way past two markers before blazing an effort into the bottom left corner to double Arsenal's lead ahead of the interval.
There was a question as to whether Vicario's sight of the shot was blocked by players in offside positions, but VAR confirmed the goal as Spurs now had a very steep mountain to climb.
It had been a miserable half from Spurs, who failed to register a single shot. The game plan fell apart as soon as the opening goal went in, as it looked like Frank's side lacked a plan B.
Arsenal, meanwhile, would have been thrilled as they had the encounter seemingly all but wrapped up prior to the interval. Still, Arteta would be looking for his team to hammer this result home emphatically in the second half
There was a change to both personnel and seemingly formation ahead of the half by Spurs as Xavi Simons entered play as the visitors looked to find a way back into the game.
The evening only became more disastrous for Spurs as it took Arsenal less than a minute to extend their advantage once more, as Eze continued to pile the misery on a team he looked set to join in the summer.
Jurrien Timber found a player in red on his second attempt as the 27-year-old took a touch and buried his effort in the back of the net yet again. This was quickly becoming humiliating for the visitors.
It all looked so pedestrian for Arsenal until a spanner was thrown into the works in the 55th minute.
Joao Palhinha did well to win the ball back in midfield before Richarlison picked up the ball and launched an outrageous effort from just past the halfway line that looped over a backtracking David Raya and into the back of the net.
It was totally against the run of play as the visitors seemed out of the game, but this sparked a glimmer of light into Thomas Frank's men.
Whilst this did inspire a more encouraging portion of play from the visiting side, they were not rewarded for the couple of bright moments that they generated.
Instead, quite the opposite as Arsenal restored their lead with 15 minutes to go as Eze became the first player to score a hat-trick in the North London Derby since 1978.
Trossard did brilliantly to drag the back line out of position before finding Eze in the middle, whose effort flew past a hopeless Vicario to seal this game once and for all.
There would be no response from Spurs, whose remaining energy had now diminished as they had been beaten, and beaten well, at the Emirates. They prepare for another tough test in midweek as they face the Champions of Europe, Paris Saint-Germain.
On the other hand, it was another impressive performance from Arsenal, who are looking more and more like champion material as weeks go by. They will now prepare for a midweek clash against Bayern Munich before returning to Premier League action against 2nd place Chelsea next weekend.
Player of the match:
Eberechi Eze:
Arsenal had plenty of players worthy of being named player of the match, particularly Trossard, but it could not really be anyone other than Eze, who has already etched his name into the club's folklore.
It was an impressive hat-trick from Eze, the second goal being the best of the bunch as he eased past two men before finding the finish. Every goal was as valuable as the other for Arsenal, who, thanks to Eze, now sit six points clear at the top of the table.
It was really a night to be proud of for Eze, who had put in a statement performance against a side that he came so close to joining in the summer.