Arsenal overtook rivals Tottenham at the top of the Premier League table after a thumping 5-0 win against Leeds United.
Goals from Jurrien Timber (34', 56') after corners, Bukayo Saka (45+1') and Viktor Gyokeres (48', 90+4') sealed an easy win.
Martin Odegaard and Saka went off with injuries before Max Dowman, 15, became the second-youngest Premier League player of all time, winning a penalty on his competitive debut.
Earlier, Arsenal announced the signing of Eberechi Eze for £60m plus add-ons on a four-year deal from Crystal Palace.
Mikel Arteta was coy when asked about Eberechi Eze before the signing was officially announced but now the England international is officially on board, it is a different story.
Here’s what Arteta said about his latest star recruit:
💬 “You could feel it in the last 24 hours that something else was happening. It's something special; we signed a player with enormous talent who has had a big impact in this league.
“On top of that, he has amazing feelings towards the football club, he has made that clear and his family has made that clear.
“I just spoke to him and he had a massive smile on his face so, welcome to the family.”
Gyokeres put aside his struggles against Manchester United last weekend to show why he can be the striker Arsenal have been craving.
Their marquee signing from Sporting CP got off the mark with a brace.
His first goal showcased his brilliance, running onto a pass over the top from Riccardo Calafiori, before cutting in from the left, surging into the penalty area and striking it past Perri in the Leeds net.
The elation on the 27-year-old’s face was plain to see.
He then scored late on from the penalty spot to put the icing on the cake for Arteta’s side.
Leeds will be pleased to have another game in three days. A trip to Sheffield Wednesday in the Carabao Cup, where Farke can ring the changes, may be just what they need to wash away this disappointment.
It has to be emphasised: very few people would have expected newly promoted Leeds to come away from Arsenal with anything today.
However, there are ways of losing matches. After a stoic opening 30 minutes, the first goal tested the team’s faith in what they were trying to defend.
Three seasons ago, en route to relegation, this type of game would have disintegrated into even more of a rout. Today’s collapse does not herald the drop in 2026, but the manner and timing of the goals will frustrate Farke and the supporters.
Two sloppy set pieces, a poor giveaway by Ilia Gruev and then meek defending against a Gyokeres run were all punished mercilessly.
Leeds and Farke need to move on quickly and not allow this to disrupt the momentum they took out of Monday’s win.
For the first 30 minutes, Leeds were in a decent place at Emirates Stadium. The makings of a blueprint for the toughest away trips of the season were there.
They had to ride their luck at times, but Arsenal were being kept out in the main in that opening period. There are areas which will need refining, however.
Deploying Joel Piroe as the lone striker against two of the most aerially dominant centre-backs in the world, while playing long to him, never looked like working. Lukas Nmecha is arguably a better fit for these trips to the best clubs in the division.
The other big choice to make is how Farke has Lucas Perri distributing the ball. Going long certainly cleared the imminent danger of conceding, but it only ceded possession to the title-challengers time after time.
Yet, when they went short, they looked badly exposed, too. It’s not an easy problem to solve, evidently, but if Leeds hope to take anything from these games, the blueprint needs work.
It almost goes without saying when you concede five goals that your defence needs to improve.
But how much of this season will be about survival for Leeds?
They needed to survive this game but found it difficult, as Farke explained:
💬 “We knew they would come out of the blocks flying. We spoke about needing to survive in the game. Through the centre, they didn’t create anything but through the wings they were dangerous.
“If you want to travel away with points here on such a night you need to be better with your defending.
“We know that this is not a season-defining game for us.”
And as ever, he has a pretty fair assessment of a challenging afternoon for his side. Here’s what he had to say:
💬 “A difficult game for us, travelling without our most important player and captain Ethan Ampadu. It was their first home game on the back of an important win, their new signing was presented before the game and the stadium was buzzing.
“We had to suffer a bit and it was annoying that we conceded from a set piece. They have five shots on target and it is five goals. That was difficult today.
“Long story short, they were the better side and they deserved to win today.”
If Arsenal ever needed justification for their shopping spree this summer, then losing Kai Havertz to injury in the week and Martin Odegaard then Bukayo Saka going off injured, is why Arteta was keen to add to his squad.
When Saka went down in the 51st minute, the physio was quickly on the pitch and the England international appeared to clutch his hamstring when highlighting the issue.
The club’s obvious hope is that the possible injuries to Odegaard and Saka are not serious and both players are able to feature against Liverpool next weekend.
But with the continued emergence of Nwaneri, who replaced Odegaard, and the arrival of Eze, is that Arteta now has strength in depth at Arsenal to hopefully overcome any injuries in a way they couldn’t last season.
Having played in the right-sided No 8 position in three out of the five pre-season games, Nwaneri, who recently signed a new five-year contract with the club, immediately looked comfortable against Leeds.
This is the latest from Mikel Arteta on the injuries to Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard, which forced both Arsenal players off during the match.
It sounds like there could be a bit of a wait to learn the full prognosis:
💬 “Martin it looks like a shoulder problem and we will have that scanned tomorrow. Bukayo had to come off when he was sprinting and he felt something in his hamstring.
“It was his other side (to the one he had surgery on last year) but not great news.
“We lost Kai (Havertz) which is a massive player already, that is why the squad needs to have depth because it is a long, long season and we need everyone to achieve what we want to achieve.”
The Arsenal manager was unsurprisingly very happy with his team after that win — here’s what he had to say:
💬 “A really positive afternoon. You can sense the energy has immediately gone up a level and that's what we were looking for. The team played well, we didn't concede anything and attacked well. Five goals and a clean sheet is a very good start.
“Teams are really well organised in the league and you need to get through them and score in various ways. For Jurrien (Timber) to score two goals after such a long injury, the debut for (Cristhian) Mosquera and of course Max (Dowman) at 15 years old was very special.
“We have to see how he (Max) reacts and deals with the situation, see what his team-mates feel about him but it's clear they want to get him on the ball. To get that reaction and bring that energy on your debut at the Emirates is incredible.
“It's credit to the family and the way they are raised and the environment they have made. To raise those kids in that manner and with that confidence is very rare at 15 in the game.”
Shortly before Arsenal’s players emerged from the tunnel, their latest signing, Eze, made his way onto the pitch to be unveiled in front of a packed Emirates Stadium.
Sporting an Arsenal shirt with his name and the No 10 on the back, Eze held his hands aloft, occasionally clapping and even touching the badge, as the home supporters roared in delight at their new player.
It was the perfect way to get the crowd off their feet ahead of kick-off, with the supporters no doubt enjoying it even more given Arsenal got in ahead of Tottenham Hotspur to complete the deal for Eze.
The 27-year-old got as far as the centre-circle before turning back and making his way back down the tunnel to roars of “Arsenal!”.
He then made his way to the directors’ box, where he sat alongside Richard Garlick, the club’s managing director, to watch his new team-mates in action.
The two-goal Arsenal goalscorer today, striker Viktor Gyokeres, chatted to Sky Sports after the match. Here’s what he said.
💬 “Of course, really happy with the result and it was very nice to score two goals as well. There’s always pressure but I know I’ll take my chances sooner or later. It was a great day.
“It was a short pre-season for me, not too many weeks training, and didn’t play any (full matches) in pre-season so it was important for me to get 90 minutes for the rhythm, to get to know the team.
“I felt more comfortable in how we play and you could see that.
He scored twice and grabbed an assist today, so it is no surprise to see Jurrien Timber head home with the man of the match award. Here’s what he had to say when speaking to Sky Sports:
“A special day. It’s nice first home game this season, we felt the energy of the crowd and the team played really well. Scoring two times and assisting as well, it was an enjoyable day. I definitely haven't scored twice and assisted as well before. Most of my family are here, some friends too.
“Everyone can see the potential Max (Dowman) has. Already, playing against grown men like this. He is a joy to watch and hopefully he will have some amazing years.
“It's a message to ourselves (to win 5-0). We did lots of things well, we look forward to next week at Anfield and we have to do well.”
Leeds were never expected to win here but to lose by such a margin is a painful wake-up call.
They showed naivety on the ball on too many occasions in that match, while some fans might question Daniel Farke’s team selection.
Even so, they looked well off it and Arsenal were cruising. Food for thought before their next Premier League match.
