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A brace from Nicklas Bendtner gave Arsenal a resounding 3-1 victory over West Brom at the Hawthorns in the Premier League.

Bendtner broke the deadlock inside the opening five minutes, before Chris Brunt equalised with a free kick driven straight through a non-existent Arsenal wall.

Kolo Toure regained the Gunners' lead in the 38th minute with a header from Andrei Arshavin's excellent delivery, with Bendtner effectively ending the contest on the stroke of half time with his second, and Arsenal's third.

Arsene Wenger surprisingly partnered Arshavin and Bendtner in attack, with Robin van Persie confined to the bench, but his decision was vindicated as early as the fourth minute.

Bendtner cut inside Gianni Zuiverloon and slotted past Scott Carson to open the scoring after being afforded far too much space on the edge of the box.

The Baggies were not deterred and hit back after Luke Moore was hauled down by Johan Djourou, with Chris Brunt drilling the subsequent free-kick under a hapless Arsenal wall in the 11th minute.

Bendtner squandered a clear-cut chance to regain Arsenal's lead minutes later when the striker beat the home side's offside trap before blasting the ball over the bar.

Arshavin almost beat Carson with a venemous strike from the edge of the area after cutting inside Paul Robinson in the 24th minute - and that was just the start of a frustrating night in front of goal for the Russian.

Ryan Donk mis-directed a point-blank header in the Arsenal box after Brunt had whipped in a pin-point corner, but the defender's contact was tame as Manuel Almunia watched his effort drift wide.

Donk was then made to pay after his opposite number Toure headed home from a superb pin-point delivery whipped in by Arshavin in the 38th minute; it was the defender's last meaningful action before having to be replaced by Abou Diaby at half time.

Bendtner then capitalised on some slack marking from Donk just before half-time, drifting wide but still managing to lash his shot home to regain his side's lead - which was the very least that their efforts deserved.

The second half was largely notable for Arshavin's abundance of skill and creativity, but sheer inability to convert what could easily have been a hat-trick, as he squandered numerous chances.

The Russian combined crisply with his strike partner in the 53d minute, before tamely stroking his shot into the body of the diving Carson.

Two minutes later, the forward jinked his way into the Baggies' box with delightful footwork, but again stabbed his shot poorly with the goal at his mercy.

It was then Bendtner's turn to rue his luck after striking Carson's far post with a fierce strike from the edge of an unprotected West Brom penalty area.

Moore continued to look bright for the hosts, but developed a frustrating habit of straying offside, which infuriated his manager Tony Mowbray, especially given his abundance of pace.

As the second half slowly petered out, Wenger took the opportunity to introduce Aaron Ramsey and Fran Merida, as the abject home fans streamed out of the exits.

The victory moved Arsenal to within three points of fourth-placed Aston Villa, having played a game more, while Mowbray's side remained four points adrift at the bottom of the table.

Dan Quarrell / Eurosport