Arsenal booked their place in the last eight of the FA Cup after a deserved yet challenging victory away to non-league side Sutton United, a team 105 rungs below the Gunners on the English football ladder.
Sutton were rewarded for beating Leeds United in the fourth round with a glamour home tie against Arsenal, a side smarting after their 5-1 midweek hammering by Bayern Munich.
Arsene Wenger put out a strong team on the Gander Green Lane plastic pitch, with Theo Walcott captaining the visitors.
The hosts gave as good as they got in the first-half, but went behind when a cross-shot from Lucas Perez evaded Ross Warner in the Sutton goal.
Paul Doswell’s side held nothing back in their challenges, with Alex Iwobi lucky to come off unscathed after a dangerously high tackle.
A dreadful pass from David Ospina almost handed the hosts a goal, only for Adam May to fire wide when through on goal.
The first-half also saw sub Per Mertesacker celebrate his return from injury and subsequent place on the bench with a traditional German piece of performance art.
After the break, the Gunners continue to ping the ball around quickly, looking for a second, and eventually it came.
Walcott was the scorer, netting his 100th goal for the north Londoners from close-range after a fine team move.
However, Sutton continued to push for a goal, with captain Jamie Collins going close before ex-Arsenal youth player Roarie Deacon saw a superb effort crash off the crossbar.
Wenger sent on Alexis Sanchez to kill the game off, but in the end the Frenchman would have to settle for a 2-0 win as the Gunners dodged a potential banana skin.
The Premier League giants can now look forward to a quarter-final clash at the Emirates with yet another non-league side in the form of Lincoln City.
As for Sutton, they can be proud of a superb display in a game that will live long in the memory of both players and fans, despite the rather disappointing (if financially logical) decision by the club to advertise Sun Bets on their shirts.