Arsenal enjoy a lovely stress-free afternoon by the river idly dreaming of Premier League glory

Mikel Arteta surely can’t quite believe his luck.

Not because Arsenal were remotely lucky to beat Fulham, but because surely even in his wildest dreams he couldn’t have imagined it would be quite so astonishingly easy. Arsenal have, it’s fair to say, been to the well a couple of times recently to maintain their spot at the head of the Premier League title race. It has been mentally and physically exhausting, and while what it says about Arsenal’s character is all positive, there are only so many times you can do it.

You do need some easier, less stressful afternoons along the way. Yet there was absolutely nothing to suggest this would be one of them.

Fulham’s only three home defeats in the Premier League this season had come against Newcastle, Manchester United and Tottenham. United needed a late winner, while Spurs took a lead late in the first half through Harry Kane and hung on for dear life. Only Newcastle had found things easy here, and that owed much to Nathaniel Chalobah’s eighth-minute red card.

Arsenal, meanwhile, were coming here on the back of a predictably tough Europa League trip to Lisbon and an entertaining 2-2 draw in a game where Arsenal were given not a moment’s rest by a very decent team.

This, then, was a match that absolutely screamed stumbling block, banana skin and litmus test. It was a piece of piss.

It is taking absolutely nothing away from Arsenal’s excellence to note that Fulham were, in the first half especially, abysmally and inexplicably bad. Being without Joao Palhinha is obviously not ideal, but it cannot explain a first half where the Gunners were allowed to do entirely as they pleased.

And this is a really excellent team that you really cannot afford to let do as they please. All three goals came in the first half, and all three showed different elements of what make Arsenal so good. The first was a well-worked corner routine, in which everyone knew what they had to do. Ben White got in Bernd Leno’s way. Thomas Partey’s nudge prevented Tosin Adarabioyo leaping to challenge Gabriel, who nodded the ball home when Leandro Trossard – who ended the first half with three assists – delivered immaculately.

The second goal was a swift counter in which Arsenal’s energy swiftly if too easily earned them a five-on-four. Trossard stood up his cross for Gabriel Martinelli to climb highest and head home. We’d stop just short of calling it a towering header, but of Martinelli’s many great qualities,…