Arsenal vs. Swansea City: Score and Reaction from 2016 Premier League Match

Arsenal narrowly beat Swansea City 3-2 during Saturday's Premier League action thanks to a Theo Walcott double.

Two quick goals from Walcott capped an excellent start by the hosts, but Gylfi Sigurdsson pulled one back for Swansea before half-time.

Mesut Ozil restored the two-goal lead in the second half, but Borja Baston got his team back within a goal almost immediately. A straight red card for Granit Xhaka set up a nervy finale, but despite a ton of pressure, the Gunners held on for the win.

As shared by Arsenal's official Twitter account, both Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey missed out, while Xhaka made another start in midfield:

Petr Cech also made his 50th appearance for the club.

The Gunners took control of the ball early, but Alex Iwobi and Xhaka tried to make things too complicated, wasting possession in a promising position.

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Chances were few in the opening 15 minutes, but Arsenal were in complete control, and it only seemed a matter of time before Lukasz Fabianski's goal would come under serious threat.

Shkodran Mustafi went close after 15 minutes, hammering a header off the crossbar after a lovely delivery from Ozil.

Arsenal's official Twitter account was already preparing for his typical scoring celebration:

Leroy Fer fired a rare Swansea chance narrowly over the bar, but most of the opportunities kept falling to the hosts. Xhaka took a little too much time inside the box, allowing the defence to get back in position and block his shot.

Walcott broke the deadlock, just getting to the ball after Hector Bellerin headed it back into the box.

Per Bleacher Report UK, the England international has been in spectacular form of late:

The Gunners kept pushing, and Alexis Sanchez tried his luck with an ambitious lob that missed the target. Ozil and Bellerin combined on a lovely break that resulted in yet another corner, and the Swansea defenders dealt poorly with the resulting set piece, allowing Walcott far too much time on the ball to spin and score his second goal.

Paddy Power couldn't help itself:

The match was in real danger of getting out of hand, but out of nowhere, Swansea earned two major chances. Cech dealt with a Sigurdsson shot after 37 minutes, but the Iceland international had more luck just moments later, taking advantage of a dreadful Xhaka error.

Per Bleacher Report's James McNicholas, it was not a good look for the Gunners:

The Swans ended the half in fine form, although Arsenal created one more late chance, with Sanchez trying his own luck instead of teeing up a wide-open Nacho Monreal.

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Arsenal didn't come out firing to start the second half, as the Gunners needed some time to find their feet. Modou Barrow tried his luck with several intricate passes, but Xhaka and Laurent Koscielny were there to prevent further danger.

The Gunners shifted gears after 55 minutes, however, and Walcott perhaps should have scored after a wonderful piece of skill from Iwobi. One minute later, Ozil powered home the third goal, scoring on his 28th birthday.

Rory Smith of the New York Times thought that was the end of the contest:

But Swansea were far from finished. New manager Bob Bradley brought on Borja, and the substitute barely needed any time to make his mark, with Barrow firing a cross past Koscielny and the Spaniard making it 3-2.

And things got even worse for the Gunners. Barrow skipped past Xhaka, and the Switzerland international brought him down with a cynical challenge, earning himself a straight red.

Bleacher Report UK's Karl Matchett had no problems with the decision:

With the man advantage, Swansea pushed for an equaliser. Sigurdsson almost unlocked the defence with a superb cross, and Barrow went close, powering a header straight at Cech.

Walcott came agonisingly close to completing his hat-trick after a defensive blunder, but his curled effort hit the inside of the post and stayed out.

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Fer fired another header too close to Cech, wasting a great opportunity just before injury time. The stopper then denied Federico Fernandez with a great save, keeping the three points in London. Walcott again could have sealed a hat-trick before the final whistle, but his shot struck the crossbar.

As shared by Arsenal, manager Arsene Wenger didn't agree with Xhaka's red card:

The Gunners will play Ludogorets on Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League before returning to domestic competition, while Swansea's next outing will be at home against Watford on Saturday, Oct. 22.