Call it a goal feast, a goal rain or a massacre and you’re right. It was a classical football on display this evening as Arsenal tore visiting Newcastle United into shreds at the Emirates, with a rampant Theo Walcott leading the rout.

Described by one commentator as “pacy, dedicated, and surprisingly brutal,” Walcott justified his insistence to be converted to a top striker by grabbing a hat trick – with Giroud almost following in his footsteps.

Fittingly, Walcott, who has been receiving tutorials from Gunners legend Thiery Henry on how to be a lethal striker, started the goal run in the 20^th minute and ended it two minutes into extra time. The win took Arsenal to the fifth position on the log with 33 points from 19 matches, behind Manchester United (42 points), Manchester City (36), Tottenham Hotspur (36) and Chelsea (35 but with an outstanding match). Below is a summary of the goals as excerpted from Daily Telegraph:

20 min GOAL!! Arsenal 1 Newcastle 0 (Walcott)

Newcastle punished by their desire to push high, with their back four far too advanced, allowing Podolski to thread a clever 30-yard pass into the inside left channel. Walcott does tremendously with it, racing away from danger and slotting cooly into Krul’s bottom-left corner. Good goal, against the run of play, and that looked like legitimately excellent centre forward play from Walcott.

44 min GOAL!! Arsenal 1 Newcastle 1 (Ba)

That may well be a Wilshere own goal, and his deflection from Ba's free kick was certainly crucial. Ba's effort from out on the left looked good to begin with, possibly heading towards the top corner, but the ball glanced off Wilshere’s head and wrongfooted Sczcesny, who was still agonisingly close to keeping it out.

51 min GOAL!! Arsenal 2 Newcastle 1 (Oxlade-Chamberlain)

Ah, that’s great from Arsenal and rank from Newcastle. Poor throw from Simpson deep in his own half. Straight to Podolski who heads it down tidily for Cazorla. Beautiful control, as we have come to expect from the Spaniard with the controversially-pronounced name. He squares for The Ox who picks his spot and hits it hard and low. Krul gets a touch but can't prevent it from finding the bottom corner.

60 min GOAL!! Arsenal 2 Newcastle 2 (Marveaux)

Obertan, superb, again! Brings down a difficult ball at knee-height impeccably on the left wing then runs at Sagna. He's past him with a stepover then takes it tight to the line before squaring off the box. Ball takes a mild deflection off Vermaelen, but that doesn’t excuse Marveaux sneaking in unmarked at the far post to finish from inches out.

64 min GOAL!! Arsenal 3 Newcastle 2 (Podolski)

Fantastic for Wilshere, who hammers down his internal accelerator and steers his internal wheel towards the byline. Just about keeps it in, such is the pace he’s travelling at, and stands up a cross almost across the goal-line towards the far post. Coloccini heads uncertaintly, it hits the post and arrives fortuitously on the head of Podolski who can’t miss. Whadda game!

69 min GOAL!! Arsenal 3 Newcastle 3 (Ba)

Marveaux dinks a pleasing ball towards the right-hand side and Ba’s on the end of it with a deft volley that nutmegs Szczesny and means he has now scored more than half of his team’s league goals this season. Credit to Newcastle here, they are not performing like a team in dreadful form.

73 min GOAL!! Arsenal 4 Newcastle 3 (Walcott)

This is fantastic. Fantastic. More tremendous work from the bustling Podolski who works it left for Gibbs on the overlap, who'd escaped the attentions of a seemingly napping Cisse. This time Gibbs pulls it across the box as he should. Podolski makes a hash of his finish but crikey, Walcott doesn’t. Fluid turn, hard shot, roof of the net, 4-3. Enter Tiote.

85 min GOAL!! Arsenal 5 Newcastle 3 (Giroud)

Walcott caps what’s unequivocally become an excellent match with a marvellous cross and assist for Giroud, who stoops to head in Walcott's faultless ball from the right and beats Krul. I am one hundred per cent watching the highlights of this later. I very rarely feel this way after covering a game. Hooray for football. Hooray for everything.

87 min GOAL!! Arsenal 6 Newcastle 3 (Giroud)

More enterprising work from Walcott, who tricks past one then powers past another. Coloccini is far too slow to deal with the now-loose ball and Giroud is onto it in a flash and finishes impeccably. Harsh on Newcastle now.

90+2 min GOAL!! Arsenal 7 Newcastle 3 (Walcott)

Superb. Absolutely fantastic from Walcott. Takes the free kick then decides to run at the entire Newcastle defence from the left-hand side. Walcott beats two and is then probably fouled, but recovers from an entirely prone position ridiculously quickly, jinks past another, then clips an extremely cheeky finish over Krul. A hat-trick. A helluva game. Exciting times for him, and Arsenal, on this evidence.