Santi Cazorla's strike in the first half secured 10-man Arsenal a 1-0 victory over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
© PA Photos
Arsenal quickly took control of the game early on, with Theo Walcott twice being denied by Simon Mignolet inside the first 10 minutes.
Chances were hard to come by for the hosts but Steven Fletcher could have given his side the lead when he found space inside the box; however, his header was comfortably saved by Wojciech Szczesny.
© Owen Humphreys / PA Photos
Cazorla opened the scoring with a drilled effort following good work from Walcott and Jack Wilshere as Arsenal finally got the reward their pressure deserved.
Aaron Ramsey could have doubled his side's lead shortly before the interval but the midfielder lacked composure in front of goal, firing his shot straight at Mignolet.
Arsenal were dealt a blow early in the second period when Wilshere suffered an injury and had to be replaced by Abou Diaby.
Sunderland improved following the departure of Arsenal's influential midfielder and Fletcher sliced a shot into the side-netting despite finding himself in some space inside the area.
Arsene Wenger's side's hopes of holding on for a victory looked bleak when Carl Jenkinson was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Stephane Sessegnon.
Sunderland applied plenty of pressure onto the Gunners after the red card and Fletcher was once again denied by Szczesny as the Black Cats searched for an equaliser.
Arsenal managed to secure the three points, with Szczesny making his best save of the match from the head of Fletcher as the game entered its final stages.
Callum Mulvihill
