LONDON -- Arsenal cruised past Sunderland in a 4-1 win Saturday with a brace from the returning Olivier Giroud, allowing the Gunners to keep pace in the Premier League title race and to bounce back from a mid-week Champions League defeat. Justin Jones Chargers Jersey . Giroud, who wasnt in the starting lineup for two matches after allegations about his private life and a decline in form, scored twice in the first half. Tomas Rosickys chip made it 3-0 before half time at Emirates Stadium, while defender Laurent Koscielny scored an unmarked header in the second half. Sunderland scored a late consolation goal with a 25-yard strike by Emanuele Giaccherini. The result leaves Arsenal in second place with 59 points, one behind Chelsea, and Sunderland in the relegation zone in 18th place with 24 points. "We had a very demanding week physically and mentally and we gave the right response today," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. Record signing Mesut Ozil, who missed a penalty in the 2-0 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday and had an argument with teammate Mathieu Flamini during the match, was sidelined with a thigh injury. Giroud, who had to apologize to his club and family after a British tabloid published photos of a model who allegedly visited his hotel room, made up for lost time against Sunderland. He scored in the fifth minute after nice buildup play between Rosicky and Jack Wilshere led to the goal, with the France forward slotting the ball past Sunderland goalkeeper Vito Mannone. Giroud struck again in the 31st when he intercepted a sloppy back pass from Santiago Vergini intended for Mannone and rolled the ball underneath Arsenals former backup keeper. Giroud now has 12 league goals. "I had no hesitation about his strength of character," Wenger said. "Of course you want him to come back into the team and be successful, which he was today because he scored two goals." Rosicky scored in the 42nd with a chip after a string of one-time passes from his teammates, and Koscielny netted with a free header in the 57th. Sunderlands goal came in the 81st after Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny dealt with a free kick by punching the ball outside the area. It fell to Giaccherini and he unleashed a first-time shot to beat the Poland keeper. Despite losing to Bayern on Wednesday and dropping from the Premier League summit recently after months in first place, Arsenal fans were in high spirits before Saturdays match. The club unveiled a statue to former player Dennis Bergkamp outside the stadium, and Wenger compared Rosickys performance against Sunderland to Bergkamps style. "I am very pleased for Rosicky because today Bergkamp got a statue and I think Rosicky took the Bergkamp role well. Certainly Dennis will have been pleased to have seen him play," he said. In addition to Ozil, Arsenal has a few other injury concerns: Wilshere (hamstring), Koscielny (back) and Nacho Monreal (foot). While Wenger wasnt certain how bad Wilsheres injury was, he said Ozil, Koscielny and Monreal should be available next week. Sunderland plays Manchester City in the League Cup final next weekend and captain John OShea hopes his teammates have learned from the defeat. "Its a wake-up call for us, both in the league and ahead of next weekend," he said. "We have to make sure we look at ourselves individually and collectively, dust ourselves down and go again." Chargers Jerseys . Louis, MO (SportsNetwork. Kyzir White Jersey .5 million. University officials released the term sheet signed by Harsin Wednesday, the day the former Broncos walk-on player and Boise native was named the successor to Chris Petersen, who left for Washington last week. http://www.prochargersteamstore.com/Youth-Kyzir-White-Elite-Jersey/ . David Perron had a career high four-point night with two goals and two assists as the Oilers experienced an offensive explosion, blasting the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-0 to record a rare home win for their second victory in a row.FIVE QUICK HOOPS THOUGHTS 1. SPURS WIN TITLE: The model NBA franchise. Bottom line, Im hopeful that everyone saw how beautiful the game is when its played with the team concept in mind and thats the right way to play. In a society where if very "Copycat" aligned, this could be a really good development for the game as a whole on all levels. Every coach out there has the blueprint that we all witnessed for the sacrifice and selfless play that is the core principle of the sport. Now its on every coach to demand that the game be played (and important for folks in authority to back this concept and their leaders) in the proper fashion with We/Us always coming first before I/Me and a guys nonsensical "brand". Youre a player, not a "brand". Its a TEAM game - always will be. Fingers crossed that young players across the globe and particularly here in North America (where some have a warped view of what the sport is) see this as a cool way of playing the game and that the "pass" is a great way of "expressing yourself". 2. LEBRON JAMES (Heat): Im tired of the knuckleheads that bash him vs. Michael Jordan. Hes a totally different player in a different era. The guy plays hard, is a great teammate and is the only reason the Heat even were able to compete in short stretches. I saw no Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Horace Grant, Toni Kucoc, John Paxson or Steve Kerr out there for Miami in this series. The guy was fighting many times on his own. Hed be a guy that I would be honoured to coach and Id say more than 99 per cent of players - current and retired - would love to have him as a teammate. Is he as good as Jordan? No. So what? Its not like he isnt laying it on the line each night. Hes still terrific and not the problem. Im far from an apologist. He has made his fair share of mistakes but at the core, he carries himself properly and values the team concept. I would take him any day of the week on my team. 3. CARMELO ANTHONY (Knicks): I said this after Game 4 and Ill say it again, I think the Melo to Miami rumours were a distraction to the Heat - particullarly to guys like Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. Derwin James Chargers Jersey. By the way, the two of them played poorly to say the least (24 points combined on 26 shots in Game 5). Not sure where he ends up but hes a wonderfully talented player who is an amazing scorer who Im not totally sold understands the 10-man (5-on-5) game and the value of team play. He needs a very strong coach and point guard to get him to see the light. In my opinion, Jason Kidd really helped him last season in his final year as a player, allowing him to understand the right way to play. With him though, its a daily fight to continue to get him to shake off bad habits and buy in to the value of the team game. He knows right from wrong - hes a big boy with tons of talent and money. Accountability is key with him. You keep him on the right path and he can really help you but you have to battle him every day. Ask George Karl - thats tiring. It can be done though. You need great energy and persistence to get him to do it each day. Teams need to decide if they want to fight that fight. 4. SHANE BATTIER and RAY ALLEN (Heat): Battier has already announced his retirement (guys actually retire? Not too often these days - normally guys hang on for anther deal as long as possible) and Allen might choose the same path. Both of them are FIRST CLASS, top-notch professionals who got everything out of their games. They had work ethics off the charts and are coachable. Wonderful examples of the best the game has to offer. Have always admired their approach. When you think of all the lucky guys who had a chance to play with these guys over the years, it has made the game better. Their influence and maturity were impactful, as was their play. 5. DAVID BLATT (Coach): Has had great success overseas and in international competition. Happy to see his name mentioned for the Cavaliers head coaching job as well as the top assistant job with the Warriors. Long overdue. Hes a top-notch offensive coach and gets a ton out of the talent level at his disposal. Very adaptable and creative. Would be a nice addition to the NBA coaching fraternity in some role. Wholesale NFL Womens JerseysJerseys WholesaleCheap Nike NFL JerseysDiscount NFL JerseysCheap Nike NFL JerseysNike NFL Jerseys ChinaStitched Jerseys ' ' '