A second-half Theo Walcott brace saw Arsenal reach their eighth successive Carling Cup quarter-final with a 4-0 win over Newcastle.
Walcott brace helps Arsenal to comfortable win at St James'
A second-half Theo Walcott brace saw Arsenal reach their eighth successive Carling Cup quarter-final with a 4-0 win over Newcastle at St James' Park.
The Gunners took the lead in bizarre fashion on the stroke of half-time as Ryan Taylor's headed clearance off the line hit goalkeeper and team-mate Tim Krul on the back of the head before bouncing over the line.
As if the hosts weren't fortunate enough, Walcott put Arsenal in control shortly after the break with a cool finish past Krul, although the goal was not without controversy.
Nicklas Bendtner appeared to block the run of Newcastle defender Mike Williamson as Walcott burst through on goal, to the displeasure of the home side and their fans.
Further late strikes from Nicklas Bendtner and Walcott again added gloss to the win as Arsenal's quest to end a silverware drought continues.
Toon boss Chris Hughton, who went into the game with speculation over his future once again rife, had made no secret of the fact that the Carling Cup was little more than a pleasant distraction during a season in which the only objective is top-flight survival.
Changes
In the circumstances, it was little surprise that he rested nine of the men who fought out a 2-1 win at West Ham on Saturday evening with one eye on the weekend.
Arsene Wenger made the same number of changes for Arsenal, but the relative strengths of the respective squads was made abundantly clear when the Frenchman was still able to name the likes of Laurent Koscielny, Denilson, Walcott and Tomas Rosicky in his starting line-up.
Wenger has given the competition a higher priority this season and his side could have been all but in the last eight within five madcap minutes of a thrilling first-half.
Carlos Vela forced a save from Krul within 22 seconds of kick-off, and the Dutchman was in action again with five minutes gone to deny Bendtner, who had already seen Williamson block two efforts from the Dane.
In the meantime, Newcastle midfielder Haris Vuckic had shot into the side-netting, and as the half wore on, the Magpies started to come into the game.
Indeed, they could have taken the lead themselves with 14 minutes gone with the visitors' goal coming under intense pressure.
First Nile Ranger ran on to Danny Guthrie's ball over the top and rounded keeper Wojciech Szczesny, only for Koscielny to block his shot.
But Arsenal failed to clear their lines and when the ball fell to Smith 25 yards out, he unleashed a thunderbolt which looked destined for the back of the net - he is yet to score a competitive goal for the club - until Szczesny managed to tip it on to the bar.
As the game settled down, Newcastle were repeatedly at full stretch, but coping as they worked hard to close down space in midfield and plug the gaps at the back.
Bendtner twice shot straight at Krul and Emmanuel Eboue fired wastefully into the side-netting during the closing minutes of the half, and it looked like the sides would go in level at the break.
But with only seconds of added time remaining, the home side's luck deserted them.
They half-cleared Walcott's corner, but when Rosicky helped the ball back into the danger area, Bendtner headed towards goal, where Taylor's attempted clearance hit Krul and rebounded into the net.
Second half
Newcastle went close to an equaliser four minutes after the restart when Ranger's persistence forced Koscielny to concede a corner.
James Perch met Guthrie's set-piece with a firm header, but guided the ball just over.
But their hopes were dashed when the Gunners extended their lead in controversial fashion with 53 minutes gone.
Walcott ran on to John Djourou's defensive header from an on-side position, but Bendtner, who had been offside, appeared to block Williamson as he attempted to cover across.
However, referee Andre Marriner allowed play to continue and Walcott calmly chipped Krul to make it 2-0 with Newcastle protests counting for nothing.
Ryan Taylor might have pulled one back eight minutes of time, but was denied by Szczesny from point-blank range, but Bendtner made sure seconds later with a fine right-foot finish.
Szczesny clawed away Taylor's 86th-minute free-kick to deny Newcastle any reward for their efforts, and Walcott wrapped up the win with a pacy run and finish two minutes later.
