Arsenal maintained their place inside the top four of the Premier League table with a 5-1 victory over Bournemouth on Wednesday night at Emirates Stadium in London.
The Gunners, who moved ahead of Manchester United with Sunday’s triumph against Southampton, picked up their fifth win in their past six league matches.
Mesut Ozil, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Laurent Koscielny, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette scored for Unai Emery’s side as they moved one step closer to earning a Champions League berth for next season.
Bournemouth failed to win a Premier League match in February (0-1-3) after the Cherries finished January with a convincing 4-0 win over Chelsea. Lys Mousset found the net in Wednesday’s defeat.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan Emerging As X-Factor in Arsenal’s Top-Four Hopes
Mkhitaryan struggled to make a consistent impact during the early stages of the campaign. He scored just two goals across his first 13 Premier League appearances, including six straight matches from late August through mid-November where he failed to record a goal or an assist.
Emery’s interview on BBC match of the day. #AFC #Arsenal pic.twitter.com/LYlUv2o6R0— AFCMike (@AFCPW) February 27, 2019
Then, just as the 30-year-old Armenia international showed signs of life with a two-goal performance against Southampton in December, he suffered a foot injury that sidelined him for nearly two months.
The Gunners added fellow midfielder Denis Suarez on loan from Barcelona during Mkhitaryan’s absence to create some additional depth in case his struggles continued.
Video: Mesut Özil applauds the Arsenal fans & taps the badge as he makes his way to take a corner during tonight’s win over Bournemouth. [@wozthegooner] #afc pic.twitter.com/t6oCb4Ka58— afcstuff (@afcstuff) February 27, 2019
Instead, the former Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United contributor has played his best football of the season since returning earlier this month. His improved form was on full display on Sunday with a goal and an assist in Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Southampton.