Arsenal 3 - 0 Blackburn

Robin van Persie scored an absolutely stunning goal to clinch it, while Thierry Henry scored his 100th Highbury goal as the Gunners defeated Blackburn 3-0 earlier today.

Cesc Fabregas opened the scoring just four minutes in, latching on to a loose ball outside the penalty area and powering it into the lower right hand side of goal.

The score does flatter Arsenal somewhat, as they were made to work by Blackburn, who repeatedly attacked the weaker left side patrolled by the hopelessly lost Pascal Cygan. Why Arsene Wenger insists on playing Cygan in a position in which he is so clearly uncomfortable is beyond me.

In any event, it’s a another three points, and with Wigan’s loss to Sp*rs, the Gunners now sit second in the league, 11 points behind Chel$ki with a game in hand. ManUre play West Ham tomorrow, and could move up to second themselves with a win.

Speaking of ManUre, ex-United player and footballing legend George Best passed away yesterday in west London. Best was a sublime footballer, perhaps the best to ever come out of Britain. He was famously quoted once as saying, “I spent a lot of my money on booze, birds and fast cars - the rest I just squandered.” He quit ManUre at the age of 26, and while he played for a few more years at different, smaller clubs, including a stint in the United States, it was apparent that his “champange lifestyle” was effecting his performance on the pitch. His alcoholism had taken the game from Best, and it took Best from the game. It ultimately led to his death from multiple organ failure. He was 59.

Arsenal next take to the pitch on Tuesday against Reading in the Worthless Cup. My guess is that we’ll see Robin van Persie (who came on as a late sub today) lead a young Gunners side for this fourth round tie. Kickoff is @ 2:45 PM ET.