Arsenal have warmed up for their Champions League trip to Juventus in magnificent style with a crushing victory over an inept Aston Villa.

If Arsenal, who are already 2-0 up on the Italian champions after the quarter-final first leg at Highbury, play to this standard in Turin, their passage into the last four is a virtual certainty.

Arsene Wenger's team were two goals in front at half-time thanks to an Aaron Hughes own goal and a Thierry Henry strike, and they added three more after the break thanks to a stunning Henry effort and further goals from substitutes Robin van Persie and Abou Diaby.

The only worry for Wenger will be the condition of midfielder Cesc Fabregas and defender Emmanuel Eboue, both of whom were forced off due to injury.

But these are worrying times for Villa, who have not beaten Arsenal in any of the last 15 meetings between the teams, and who were totally outclassed in a very easy win for the home team.

Their manager David O'Leary has pleaded repeatedly for patience and claimed he is capable of rebuilding the team, but the supporters' patience is beginning to wear thin - and it might not be long before chairman Doug Ellis feels the same way.

It was Arsenal - full of confidence after their Champions League win over Juventus - who had the first attempt on goal in the seventh minute.

Villa, however, had their chances - but Kevin Phillips failed to take them.

Arsenal were soon to make their visitors lack of precision pay. Sorensen pushed Emmanuel Eboue's raking cross-field pass away from Henry, but the Frenchman recovered to chip the ball goalwards.

Hughes headed it off the line, but only into the path of Emmanuel Adebayor, who nodded the rebound goalwards and saw the ball go in via a touch off the bar and off the head of Hughes.

Shortly afterwards, Henry made it two when he controlled Reyes' through-ball and showed outstanding technique to lob the stranded Sorensen from 15 yards.

Just before the half-time whistle, Eboue almost made it three, but Sorensen pushed his close-range effort wide following a perfect through-ball from Henry.

Villa brought on Juan Pablo Angel for the misfiring Phillips for the second half, but it made no difference because Arsenal scored a sensational third goal less than a minute after a restart.

Adebayor latched onto a lofted 50-yard pass from Eboue and flicked it neatly back to Henry with his right foot.

The France international needed no further invitation to compose himself and curl a majestic effort into the top-right corner from 25 yards for his 27th goal of another superb season.

Arsenal refused to show O'Leary - who had a glittering playing career at Highbury - any mercy, and scored two more goals.

In the 72nd minute, Van Persie galloped onto Pires' diagonal pass before showing superb skill to dodge Sorensen twice, outwit a defender and fire home a left-foot shot from a very tight angle.

And nine minutes later, Adebayor - who had been preferred to Alexander Hleb - ran clear before releasing Diaby, who slammed the ball into the roof of the net from close range.