'1-0 to the Arsenal,' sang the Gooners and it was more than enough to down Chelsea
By Paul Lagan at The Emirates Stadium
Arsenal 1 v Chelsea 0
Mikel Merino scored the goal that keeps Arsenal 12 points behind runaway leaders Liverpool, but more importantly cements their position as the top team in London after downing attack-shy Chelsea.
The Blues lost their most creative player Cole Palmer to a “small injury” on Saturday, and that lack of creativity was enough to determine their containing tactics.
That Arsenal only managed to hit one goal, was more a testament to their lack of striking prowess and clinical finishing.
Such was the north Londoners dominance, that a three-goal margin would not have been an understatement.
As it is Chelsea stay in fourth place, with a Champions League spot next season still in their hands.
Arsenal started like they meant business, while the Blues looked a little shocked.
Leandro Trossard, had the first attempt on goal on two minutes. But is edge-of-the-area right-footer went wide of Robert Sanchez's left post.
Sanchez, restored to the league side made a howler of a clearance with his right boot, on eight minutes, and almost gifted Arsenal a goal. But somehow the visitor's survived the short kick-out blunder.
Chelsea survived another Arsenal attack, through sheer luck than anything else after Marc Cucurella was dispossessed on his byline, and Sanchez then managed to push out a goal-bound Gabriel Martinelli shot on 12 minutes.
Declan Rice then screwed his daisy-cutter inches wide, as the home side threatened to blow Chelsea away.
Yet somehow they survived.
Or did they? After Cucurella hacked the ball away for a corner after more pressure, the kick was sent in and Metino was first to the ball and glanced the ball into the back of the Chelsea net, with Sanchez diving after air on 20 minutes.
Enzo had the Blues first effort on goal, on 26 minutes, an embarrassingly weak long-range shot after he broke free, that dribbled away for a goal kick.
On the rare occasion Chelsea kept the ball, they almost equalised on 37 minutes. Cucurella tried a left-footed volley, which David Raya misjudged and the ball inched across the goal line, but just went the wrong side – for Chelsea.
There were no changes by either side at half-time.
There is no doubting Sanchez's shot-stopping ability and that was in evidence on 59 minutes when he produced a wonderful save on the line from a Merino left-footed volley.
The game became increasingly fractious, as every challenge was greeted like an assault and a demand for a yellow card.
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca made his first change on 76 minutes when Tyrique George and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall replaced Jaydon Sancho and Christopher Nkunku.
This was countered by Mikel Arteta who brought on Ethan Nwaneri for Martinelli on 79 minutes.
Maresca then took off Reece James for Romero Lavia on 82 minutes.
With Chelsea needing a goal, Maresca opted to bring on centre-back Tosin and right back Malo Gusto with five minutes left on the clock
Kieran Tierney got a couple of minutes late on for Martin Odegaard.
Teams: Arsenal: Raya, Saliba, Partey, Magalhães, Odegaard, Martinelli, Timber, Trossard, Merino, Rice, Lewis-Skelly
Subs; Neto, Tierney, White, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Jorginho, Calafiori, Butler-Oyedeji, Nwaneri
Chelsea: Sanchez, Curcurella, Badiashile, Colwill, Neto, Enzo, Nkunku, Sancho, James, Caicedo, Fofana
Subs: Jorgensen, Bettinelli, Tosin, Dewsbury-Hall, Chalobah, Gusto, George, Acheampong, Lavia
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