After a slow start at the Kassam Stadium, table-topping Arsenal ensured that they didn't succumb to another third round early exit, this time beating League One outfit Oxford United convincingly. 

It took a while for the Gunners to play the football to a standard that coach Mikel Arteta expects them to play at, with The U's capitalising on Arsenal's lacklustre and lethargic start. 

But, it was Mohamed Elneny who opened the scoring with a powerfully-struck header beating a helpless Edward McGinty. 

Eddie Nketiah then added two more, his first rounding the goalkeeper and second dinking the goalkeeper, proving his class while Gabriel Jesus remains out on the sideline. 

After being drawn against a team that are two leagues below them, Arsenal will have to play the team that are only five points behind them in Manchester City. A trip to the Etihad Stadium awaits the Gunners, to try and stop them from progressing towards what would be their 15th FA Cup trophy. 

Story of the match

Arteta made seven switches to his starting 11 since their goalless draw with Newcastle United, keeping the front three of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli & Eddie Nketiah, as well as Gabriel at the back.

Meanwhile, Karl Robinson also adjusted his lineup slightly, opting for two new wingers in the form of Josh Murphy and Billy Bodin, since their narrow loss to Exeter on New Year's Day. 

Neither side were quick to mark their stamp on the game, with Arsenal being notably poor with their distribution in the midfield and at the front. 

Fabio Vieira was the man that Arsenal needed to make things happen in the midfield, his long ball to Saka almost split open the Oxford defence. The England international found Takehiro Tomiyasu on his right, but McGinty did well to cover his near post. 

But, Oxford grew back into the match, evidently re-energised as the crowd lured them on as the Gunners became sloppy, with star man Cameron Brannagan leading the efforts.

It could be easily argued that Arsenal should have received the opportunity to score from the spot after Albert Sambi Lokonga's shot struck the hand of a falling Oxford defender. The claim was waved off by referee Mike Coote with no VAR present at the Kassam Stadium. McGinty deserved full credit for the save following the deflected effort, tipping it out of danger to his left. 

Nketiah's strike before the interval summarised the first half - blazing it over the bar in frustration after a perfect ball was played into Arsenal's number 14. Not to discredit Oxford's immense defensive performance, but the Gunners had been poor against the League One opposition.

The second half started the same as the first, but it was clear that Arsenal were starting to gain an advantage up the field. Lewis Bate's block on Bukayo Saka was a sign of things to come, the Leeds United loanee denying the 21-year-old from point-blank range. 

However, the Yellows fell to a standard free-kick routine. Vieira located Elneny in the box from the left-hand side and the Egyptian's perfect header rippled into the back of the net. 

It took six minutes to add to that deficit, Vieira finding Nketiah who then took it past McGinty with a drop of the shoulder, rounding him completely and wheeling away for his trademark celebration with the corner flag. It was the England U21's joint-top scorer's sixth goal this season, after playing second string to Jesus since his arrival in North London. 

With Arsenal leading comfortably by two, Emile Smith Rowe made his return for the first time since the Gunners' only loss in the Premier League this season, against Manchester United at Old Trafford. He replaced Saka, who worryingly went down with a knock, ahead of a crucial North London derby on the weekend. 

Nketiah made it two in six minutes, scoring his second with a neat lob over McGinty to add to his tally. This time it was Martinelli with the perfect assist, with good footwork to navigate through a swarm of yellow and then finding his counterpart to make it three. 

Arteta will now have to surpass his former boss Pep Guardiola in the next round, to advance on the road to Wembley - a feat last accomplished in the 2020 FA Cup semi-final stage.

The Gunners came out victorious that afternoon, thanks to some individual magic from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. They went on to win the coveted trophy, beating Chelsea 2-1 and will hope to replicate it again this season.