By ADAM TROXTELL
It’s been about two years since Arsenal last played Brighton and Hove Albion, but the script hasn’t changed.
The Gunners beat their Championship opponents 3-2 to book a spot in the fifth round of the FA Cup. Brighton gave a much improved second half performance to keep things interesting, but cup holders Arsenal were always in control of the match.
Theo Walcott scored the winning goal against Brighton in 2013, and this time he opened the scoring for Arsenal in just two minutes. It was the winger’s first goal since New Year’s Day of 2014.
Mesut Ozil also scored a rare goal to double the Gunners’ lead in the 24th minute, but Brighton entered the second half on a mission. Chris O’Grady pulled one back for the Championship club just five minutes into the half.
Victory for Arsenal was assured when Tomas Rosicky set himself up for goal number three. The Czech midfielder sent a no-look pass to Olivier Giroud, who chipped back to the wide open Rosicky for a powerful finish.
The Gunners are just the second top 10 English Premier League team to win in the FA Cup fourth round. West Ham was the first after sealing a narrow road win on Sunday.
In Italy, Juventus cruised to extend their lead at the top of Serie A. Lyon also won to stay in first in Ligue 1.
Here are the rest of Sunday’s results from the top leagues in Europe.
ENGLISH FA CUP
Aston Villa fans witnessed something on Sunday that they had not seen since last year: a goal.
They actually saw two of them during Villa’s 2-1 win against AFC Bournemouth, ending a run of six games without scoring. New signing Carles Gil made an immediate impact when he curled a left footed strike into the far corner in the 50th minute.
Andreas Weimann doubled the Villa lead in the 70th minute before Callum Wilson scored a consolation goal for Bournemouth as the game ended. It was the first win for Villa since Dec. 7.
West Ham avoided further embarrassment for the English Premier League with a 1-0 win against Bristol City. The Hammers were sent into the next round by Diafra Sakho’s headed goal from an Andy Carroll cross in the 81st minute.
ITALIAN SERIE A
It’s another win and another weekend at the top for Juventus.
The defending Italian champions cruised past Chievo, 2-0, on Sunday, stretching an unbeaten streak that began in November to 11 games. Perhaps equally as impressive is the goal scoring record of Paul Pogba, who secured his fourth in four games during the win.
The French midfielder picked up the ball in space before firing a low, 25-yard strike into the bottom corner in the 60th minute. Pogba was also part of the second goal when his volley was saved by Chievo goalkeeper Albano Bizzari only for Stephan Lichtsteiner to score on the rebound.
Juventus held Chievo to just two shots on goal while putting seven on target at the other end. While five of those were saved, only two were needed for the Bianconeri to maintain a healthy advantage in the title race.
Torino also enjoyed the afternoon with a 1-0 win against Inter Milan. The Nerazzurri’s streak of six games without a loss ended when Emiliano Moretti struck in the 90th minute.
Here are the rest of the scores from Italy:
Hellas Verona 1, Atalanta 0
Inter 0, Torino 1
Juventus 2, Chievo 0
Parma 1, Cesena 2
Sampdoria 1, Palermo 1
FRENCH LIGUE 1
It’s hard enough to beat league-leading Lyon at home with all 11 players.
Metz had an even harder time with 10-men as Lyon eased to a 2-0 win. Guido Milan was sent off in the 29th minute after he fouled Rachid Ghezzal in the box and was adjudged to be the last man back.
Alexandre Lacazette scored the penalty for his league-leading 21st goal, but later limped off injured. Midfielder Corentin Tolisso’s 83rd-minute strike sealed it for Lyon, and the club remains four points ahead of Marseille at the top of Ligue 1.
Here are more scores from Sunday action in France:
Evian 1, Toulouse 0
Lyon 2, Metz 0
Reims 0, Lens 0
Rennes 1, Caen 4
SPANISH PRIMERA DIVISION
Espanyol’s magical run continued on Sunday with a 3-0 win against Almeria.
The Barcelona-based club now has four straight wins in all competitions and climbed into the top half of the La Liga table. Christian Stuani scored twice in the first half, and both goals came from the creative play of Sergio Garcia.
Felipe Caicedo capped off the win with a 74th minute strike. Almeria slumped to six games without a win.
Elsewhere, Granada stole a win from Deportivo La Coruna with a late strike to draw 2-2. Athletic Bilbao and Malaga finished their match 1-1.