Kevin Whitcher
Arsène Wenger has had some unhappy landmarks where Chelsea are concerned, defeated at Stamford Bridge in his 500th and 1000th matches in charge of Arsenal, but this game, marking his 20th year at the club, will be more fondly remembered by himself and the fans.
Reminiscent of the victory over Manchester United last season, Arsenal were fast out of the traps, playing in the first half with the kind of intensity not seen often enough, but devastatingly effective. Harrying and hassling to win possession of the ball, and then using possession and territory effectively to create chances and dominate.
It helped a little that Chelsea were prepared to sit a little deeper than some, often isolating Costa. Generally, their attempts to counter attack were foiled with well timed tackles and interceptions, errors forced by pressure on the man with the ball or an intended target of a pass.
It was Premier League football at its best in terms of the pace and commitment, and all over the pitch there were excellent performances from Wenger’s players. It shows what they are capable of, and Mustafi apart, the starting eleven were all at the club last season. If they had played like this in all of their home fixtures, they would have walked the title. Where did this performance come from? Perhaps indignation with some of the injustices suffered at the hands of Chelsea in recent times, and the desire to prove a point. I cannot recall even someone like Mesut Ozil looking so motivated.
Antonio Conte will have been tearing his implanted hair out with the first goal. What can be said about Gary Cahill’s error? It was a shocker and Sanchez, playing at centre forward again, pounced. Arsenal’s finishing for the goals was faultless. Even Theo could not miss the tap-in for the second from Bellerin’s pass, but credit due to him for getting in the position to convert the chance. Whisper it quietly, but he is actually beginning to play with some kind of consistency, justifying the manager’s faith after a decade of waiting. Let us hope this isn’t a flash in the pan. From memory, what happens now is either he signs a new extension and his form goes to pot, or he gets injured. Iwobi’s role in the build up to Theo’s goal was top rate and he had an excellent match all round.
The third goal was a thing of beauty. Two players of quality combining on the break and a great finish from Ozil. Chelsea were simply caught cold by the pace of Arsenal’s attacking movement, pace and exploitation of space. There were several good chances after the interval and the margin could have been higher. Playing such an attacking game did provide the visitors with a few opportunities at the other end, but by and large Arsenal dealt with them, not allowing Chelsea to get any kind of foothold of any sort. Now Conte can see that Premier League football is a different beast to Serie A and it will be fascinating to see how he adapts. Being 3-0 down gave him the opportunity to play his favoured three at the back formation, although it wasn’t until later on that he put on a second forward. By then it was too late. As they chased the game, the extra space led to more chances for Wenger’s team.
Coquelin went off in the first half injured after a committed tackle on Kante, but Xhaka’s introduction certainly did not weaken the side. Many thought he would start the game after the form shown in his last two appearances. However, Coquelin did a fine job and it looks as if Xhaka might start the next couple of fixtures if the former’s injury needs time.
By far and away it was Arsenal’s best performance of the season. With other clubs demonstrating that they are capable of excellent performances, including Liverpool, Spurs, Manchester United (without Rooney) and quite obviously Manchester City, it promises to be a fascinating season. Everton are also in the mix and it is too early to write off Chelsea. Arsenal showed they can be part of a title race if they play to their potential. It is frustrating that they have demonstrated this kind of quality all too rarely in recent time, but at least reassuring to see that they are still capable of such football. Long may it continue.
A happy anniversary for Arsene Wenger. If this were to be his final season, I think everyone would want to see his team playing this way throughout.
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