The startling stats suggest Arsenal have not turned a corner amid attacking woes

Arsenal returned to winning ways with an emphatic 7-1 victory over PSV on Tuesday night to virtually ensure their progression to the Champions League quarter-finals.

The result all but wrapped up the tie with the second leg still to be played at Emirates Stadium on March 12.

First-half goals from Jurrien Timber, Ethan Nwaneri and Mikel Merino put Mikel Arteta's men in control before a brace from Martin Odegaard along with strikes from Leandro Trossard and Riccardo Calafiori added further gloss to the scoreline.

While Arsenal may have looked like a well-oiled machine in Eindhoven, they were allowed to dictate the game thanks to the paltry performance of their opponents, who resembled a spluttering Morris Minor by comparison.

It would be easy to assume via a glance at the result that the Gunners were relentless in their play and fully deserved the seven goals they scored.

However, the underlying stats tell a different story - one that is more consistent with the north Londoners' attacking struggles of previous games.

In the Netherlands, they only notched an expected goals total (xG) of 2.35 from a total of 13 shots on goal.

Expected goals are measured by a number of factors to determine how likely a particular shot is to hit the back of the net when it is taken.

Factors include the type of assist leading to the attempt, whether it was a shot taken with the head or foot, the angle and distance of the shot, and whether it was determined as a big chance.

For instance, a rebound falling to a player in front of an open goal six yards out will have a high xG score, but a shot taken from 35 yards at a narrow angle will have a low xG score.

Expected goals are measured on a scale of 0.01 to 0.99 with a shot that has an xG rating of 0.5 meaning a player would be expected to score from the chance 50 per cent of the time.

Against PSV, Arsenal's highest-rated chance in terms of xG came when Calafiori scored his team's seventh with his right foot from just under 12 yards out - garnering 0.36 xG.

By contrast, the two goals from Timber and Trossard generated just over 0.16 xG despite both coming from inside the six-yard box.

As a result, Arsenal could consider themselves lucky to have put the tie to bed at such an early stage, particularly given their struggles in front of goal against West Ham United and Nottingham Forest in their last two Premier League matches.

In those two games, they created a total of 1.34xG and 1.17xG respectively - numbers they will need to improve on should they realise their ambitions of catching runaway league leaders Liverpool or winning the Champions League.

Amid all of this, it is worth remembering for balance that Mikel Merino is currently playing as the side's auxiliary striker - with Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka all injured.

Indeed, Arsenal also struggled in the knockout stages of the Champions League, drawing blanks away from home against FC Porto and Bayern Munich.

To score seven on the road in Europe's elite competition - the first time any team has ever done so - will boost the spirits of players, coaches and fans.

The Premier League title may be too far out of reach after consecutive games in which the Gunners dropped points.

But all involved with the club will maintain hope of winning the Champions League for the first time, thanks to the presence of such a strong defensive core and a solidity and resilience in Europe that the team has lacked during Arteta's tenure.

On the evening that many Arsenal fans will have chosen to have pancakes for dinner back in the UK, Arteta will hope this result flips Arsenal into gear for the final stretch of the campaign.