Arsenal easily beat a mediocre Fulham in today's London derby at Highbury to keep tabs on leaders Chelsea as they attempt to retain their Premiership crown.
Thierry Henry gave Arsenal an early lead to equal Ian Wright's tally of 128 league goals for the club when he turned swiftly to convert Freddie Ljungberg's through-ball.
Henry, now only fourteen goals behind Wright's all-time goalscoring record of 185 for the Gunners, was at the heart of all Arsenal's best moves, his constant trickery on the ball proving to be a real headache for the Fulham defence.
The game was sealed in the second half when Pires finished off a typical Arsenal move following a series of passes on the right-hand edge of the penalty area with Ljungberg again turning provider leaving Pires with a relatively simple finish from six yards.
Fulham, now facing the prospect of a relegation battle for the remainder of the season, had begun the contest in a brighter manner, but they were unable to make the most of their early chances with Andy Cole's effort hitting the side netting instead of troubling Manuel Almunia.
