Watford’s prospects of adding to their Premier League points tally looked promising for an hour; within the space of 12 minutes those hopes were ruthlessly ended as Arsenal scored three times to maintain their push at the top end of the table with a 3-0 victory at Vicarage Road.

Alexis Sanchez, Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey did the damage for the visitors during a second half purple patch when their passing and movement in and around the 18-yard box proved too much for the Hornets to handle.

Until the 62nd-minute though, Quique Sanchez Flores’ men had acquitted themselves very well.

Their discipline and organisation was good, they were solid defensively, strong and competitive in midfield but the cutting edge once again proved elusive when they had the opportunities in front of goal.

The best opening fell to Odion Ighalo when he was played through by Ikechi Anya but his footing let him down at the crucial moment, while the Nigerian striker would have had a gilt-edged opportunity had Laurent Koscielny not cut out a Troy Deeney pass after an Etienne Capoue pass had carved open the Gunners’ backline.

Although Valon Behrami was available again following the completion of his three-match ban, Flores opted to keep faith with the same starting XI that drew 1-1 at Bournemouth last time out. The Swiss midfielder was on the substitutes’ bench that also included Steven Berghuis and Jose Holebas among its number.

Arsenal may have a crucial Champions League clash against Bayern Munich coming up but Arsene Wenger, perhaps surprisingly to some, selected his strongest available team.

There was just the one change from the side that humbled Manchester United 3-0 before the international break, with Koscielny returning to the heart of the defence in place of Gabriel, who was ill.

The Gunners started as would have been expected, moving the ball around confidently and comfortably, and the Hornets had their first moment of concern in the second minute when referee Mike Jones played advantage after Nathan Ake had caught Hector Bellerin. The former Vicarage Road loanee played in a cross from the right which Allan Nyom headed away for a corner.

The home side dealt with that threat but soon after Bellerin was again able to deliver from the right and this time Theo Walcott glanced a header goalwards which Heurelho Gomes comfortably dealt with.

Watford soon settled into the contest, enjoying some useful spells of possession in the Gunners half while Ake won a couple of good challenges to overcome his slightly hesitant start.

Wenger’s side though, are capable of turning it on in an instant and that first evidenced itself in the tenth minute when Mesut Ozil drove from right to left before feeding Alexis, who came in off the left before hitting a fine right-footed curler which forced Gomes to leap away to his left to palm it away.

Within a minute though, Petr Cech was had to make his first save of the contest, dropping to his right to parry away a Troy Deeney piledriver after the Hornets skipper had, not for the first time in the match, utilised his strength, this time to get the better of Francis Coquelin.

The home side had another opening in the 17th minute when Anya initially looked as if he might shoot from the right side of the area but opted to slip it to his right to Ighalo. His low pull back found the Scottish international, who didn’t get a first-time strike away and neither did Deeney before he was closed down by Bellerin.

That was promising but what followed was even better as a superb ECapoue pass set Deeney racing clear on the left as the visitors’ defence was sliced open. With Ighalo in yards of space in front of goal, Deeney unselfishly looked to square it but a last-gasp intervention by the sliding Koscielny cleared the ball for a corner.

The next chance came Arsenal’s way in the 28th minute and it was the product of Alexis’ vision; the Chile star drifting a majestic pass from left to right over the Hornets defence to put Ramsey in behind and the Wales international took it first time on the stretch, beating Gomes with the ball just clipping the bar as it went over.

This was captivating fare and within a minute Watford could so easily have taken the lead as Anya sent Ighalo into the clear. But as the Nigerian international bore down on goal and shaped to shoot with two Arsenal players breathing down his neck, his footing let him down and he screwed his effort wide of Cech’s near post.

Both Ighalo and Deeney appealed for a penalty and while TV replays did show the striker’s heel was clipped, it happened after he had lost control of the ball and was going to ground.

Back came Arsenal with Bellerin’s pace again proving a positive outlet down the right as he got away from Almen Abdi but his ball across the six-yard box for Sanchez was well read by Nyom.

The Gunners won a corner soon after and Koscielny got first run on the defence to connect with Ozil’s delivery from the right with a first-time volley but he sent it the wrong side of Gomes’ left-hand upright.

Ramsey did fire a cross shot wide of the target in first-half injury time but Watford more than deserved to go into the break all-square at the end of an absorbing goalless opening half.

Nyom was booked with two minutes of the restart for delaying a throw-in, although the situation would never had transpired had Gomes found the right-back, and not touch, with a routine pass out from his area.

Watford’s first opportunity of the second half came five minutes after the restart when Koscielny was penalised 30 yards from his own goal for barging into the back of Deeney. Abdi might have been tempted to have a go himself but instead the Hornets went for a move off the training ground, the Swiss midfielder clipping the ball into the left side of the 18-yard box where Sebastian Prodl headed back into the danger zone but the visitors were able to scramble clear.

Per Metesacker joined Nyom in the book after 58 minutes for a blatant trip on Ighalo and then Capoue tried to catch Cech out from 35 yards with an audacious attempt, but the strike went wide in any event.

Capoue had a shot charged down as the Hornets continued to strive for a way through but in the 62nd minute the Hornets were undone as Alexis’ purple patch in front of goal continued.

The former Barcelona star started the move from the left before feeding Santi Cazorla, who slipped the ball through to Ozil. The German went to go round Gomes but was challenged by Ake, but the ball broke for Alexis and he rammed it in off a post to make it 1-0 and net his tenth goal in his last six games for club and country.

Gomes immediately charged out to confront the referee, presumably feeling Ozil had dived, and was booked for his troubles, while Wenger made his first change before play restarted as Giroud replaced Walcott.

And it was the Frenchman who was to double the Gunners’ lead six minutes later after another incisive passing move.

Sanchez again started it on the left, finding Cazorla, who in turn played in Ozil. His shot was blocked but the ball ricocheted to the right side of the area where Ramsey cut it back and Giroud fired into the roof of the net to make it 2-0.

Flores immediately made his first change as Steven Berghuis replaced Nyom but within another six minutes Arsenal were three goals to the good.

This time the move stemmed from the right with Bellerin coming in off the flank and his pass broke for Ramsey, who slipped it beyond Gomes to make it 3-0.

The Hornets’ second change followed suit as Abdi made way for Victor Ibarbo before both sides completed their substitutions with ten minutes to go; Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Mikel Arteta replacing Alexis and Ozil respectively, while Anya made way for Juan Carlos Paredes.

Gomes was called into action again with seven minutes remaining to paw away a Giroud header from a Cazorla corner after the striker had been afforded a free header from the set piece.

The Hornets may have been beaten but they kept plugging away and with two minutes to go Deeney hit a shot into the ground that Cech saved after the striker had again used his strength to create the opportunity by winning the ball back and exchanging passes with Ighalo.

Flores’ men were unable to find consolation though, meaning they failed to score against Arsenal for the first time in nine top-flight games against the Gunners at Vicarage Road while they still have only one home goal to their name this term.

Watford: Gomes; Nyom (Berghuis 68), Prodl, Cathcart, Ake; Watson, Capoue; Anya (Paredes 80), Deeney, Abdi (Ibarbo 74); Ighalo. Not used: Gilmartin, Britos, Behrami, Holebas.

Arsenal: Cech; Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal; Coquelin, Cazorla; Ramsey, Ozil (Arteta 80), Sanchez (Oxlade-Chamberlain 80); Walcott (Giroud 62). Not used: Macey, Debuchy, Gibbs, Chambers.

Bookings: Nyom for time wasting (47); Mertesacker for a foul on Ighalo (58); Gomes for dissent (62).

Attendance: 20,721 (2,152 away fans).

Referee: Mike Jones.