Title-Contending Arsenal Blank Chelsea at the Emirates

The campaign has had some tough humps, rocky stretches, glimpses of greatness, and everything in between for Mikel Arteta’s men. In a Premier League title race between Arsenal, Manchester City, and Liverpool, every chance to get a victory is vital. The Gunners showed up today in a massive performance, earning three points over London rivals Chelsea, 5-0. In a game that was dominated by Arsenal from start to finish, key performances from Kai Havertz, David Raya, and the entire back four made this one possible. With Chelsea dropping points in the league, a hopeful chance for European football next year slims down. They are currently residing in 9th, with two games in hand on 8th place West Ham United. This victory will put Captain Martin Odegaard and the team three points ahead of Liverpool, who also have a game in hand on the Gunners. 

In the first half, it was all dominated by Arsenal from kickoff, making the pace and style of play uncomfortable to deal with for the visiting Blues. In a quick sequence, we saw Kai Havertz through on goal within 30 seconds of the match, while moments later being called offside. This fast start for Arsenal ignited a first half where they saw most of the chances and took a great chance in the fourth minute. As the back line for Chelsea was scrambling, Declan Rice slipped a beautiful pass through to the oncoming Trossard, who tucked it near post against Keeper Djordje Petrovic, who could have dealt with the shot a bit better. Scoring within five minutes of the game allowed Arsenal to put their stamp on the match and maintain possession while connecting passes in the final third. A bombardment of shots was heading at Petrovic, who did well in defending the pipes after that mishap early in the half. Other than a few counterattack opportunities, Chelsea was not making much of an offensive impact on the match. One key reason could be the absence of Cole Palmer, who is tied for the Premier League Golden Boot with 20 goals. Palmer missed the match due to an illness and will look to get healthy for Chelsea’s next fixture at Villa Park. 

Arsenal in the second half imposed their will on the game, showing their contrasting style to the Blues and being successful. Both sides knew the next goal in this game would be the deciding factor in how the game pans out. It was off another corner for Arsenal, where they took it short and put the ball in the box. With the ball right outside of the six, it fell to Ben White as the defender notched a well-deserved goal to make it 2-0. In just five minutes, it would be the skipper Ødegaard who would slip the German through, who muscled off a Chelsea defender and roofed the breakaway in the back of the net. With the celebration being contained, it was a great moment for Kai Havertz to score against his former club in a pivotal spot. However, Havertz and Arsenal were not finished as the floodgates were truly open at the Emirates. Starboy Bukayo Saka would cut inside, and find Havertz where he would make no mistake once again. A shot that froze Petrovic would bounce off the post and in, for a four-goal advantage, but there was more to come for the home side. As Arteta’s men smelt blood in the water, so did Ben White. Moments later, a beautiful chip pass from Ødegaard was precise where it fell to Ben White, who would volley home the game's fifth goal in a marvelous effort. Arsenal was clicking on all cylinders with the gates open and putting the nail in the coffin on this game multiple times. With the many substitutions made after the fifth goal, the dominant performance would wrap up in North London. Arsenal would see this one out and take all the points in a home thumping against their rival club.

Chelsea will in fact be the visitors once again this weekend against Aston Villa, where they will try to spoil a late push into the top three for Ollie Watkins and his team. What's next for first place Arsenal is yet the biggest derby match of the year, in an away match at Tottenham Hotspur. The fifth-place Hotspur will host the league leaders, in one of the most highly anticipated rivalries we will see with title hopes on the line. In yet another battle of London, Arsenal will try to keep London red, and potentially gain more points on Liverpool and Manchester City, who are respectively three and four points behind them in the table with a few games in hand.