An audacious back-heeled goal by eternal foe Didier Drogba and an imperious free kick by Alex were enough to give Chelsea a hugely deserved victory over a battling Arsenal side, who were dominant for most of the game but failed to breach the tenacious Chelsea fortress.
The home team were without the services of Frank Lampard, which meant Ramires held his starting place in the line-up. Cesc Fabregas was unfit for the clash, so the visitors named a three man midfield comprising of Song, Diaby and Wilshere; Fabianski’s good show in the midweek earned him a spot between the sticks, while Squillaci was named as the captain. The stage was set for an engrossing London Derby.
The Gunners started a frentic period of attacking football with a Sagna cross from the right in the second minute, and Alex’s deflection saved a Chamakh header from going into the far post. However, Koscielny missed an open header from the resulting corner, which was cleared by Essien onto his head. In the fourth minute, a long ball from Terry landed onto the path of the onrushing Malouda, but his chip from outside the box floated harmlessly over the bar. Four minutes later, Arshavin did well to beat a couple of defenders inside the box, but his shot cannoned into Cech’s body.
Arsenal were the more pressing of the two sides. Song and Wilshere were doing all the dirty work in the midfield, while Nasri pulled the strings in the midfield and Diaby played higher up the pitch. However, the Chelsea defense weathered the early onslaught, and Drogba and Anelka made attempts to crack the Gunner fortress at the other end. The advantage continued to oscillate between the two sides at frequent intervals, both looking for the crucial early lead.
In the 28th minute, a neat exchange of moves between Diaby and Song saw the ball land at Arshavin’s feet, and Cech did well to tip the Russian’s twenty-five-yard screamer around the post. Three minutes later, Nasri cut in from the right and slotted the ball wide off the far post, with only Cech to beat. The visitors were a constant threat but failed to convert their chances. Drogba attempted to release the pressure on his side with a powerful shot from outside the box, but Fabianski comfortably parried the ball out of danger.
However, Arsenal’s eternal nemesis Drogba continued his fine record against Wenger’s lads, cleverly back-heeling a weighted pass from Ashley Cole to open Chelsea’s account. His shot showed Arsenal precisely what they should be doing – capitalizing on their chances. If that wasn’t enough for Wenger, Diaby suffered an injury scare, when Essien was too late to reach for the ball and inadvertently crunched the quicker Frenchman’s ankle. The first half ended in Chelsea’s advantage, despite Arsenal being dominant prior to the goal.
Drogba continues to be Arsenal’s hoodoo…
Arsenal started the second half in a similar fashion, attacking in droves for the equalizer; Diaby had surprisingly recovered from the Essien tackle, and continued his services up the field. Chamakh headed a ball narrowly wide off the right post from Nasri’s corner in the 51st minute, while Diaby saw his fine effort deflected for yet another corner to the Gunners. Chamakh had a chance to score into an open goal, but his brief hesitation allowed Ramires to clear the ball.
Chelsea nearly doubled their lead when Anelka seized on Squillaci’s fumble, and rounded off Fabianski before slotting the ball into the side netting of the wide agape goal, to the consternation of the French striker and the Stamford crowd. Arsenal were more than glad to accept this lifeline, and continued their assault on the Blues.
Against the run of play, Chelsea thought they had put the game beyond doubt in the 68th minute, when Cole converted Anelka’s long pass into a goal, only for the linesman to wave his flag for a correct off-side call. Wenger injected Rosicky in place of Diaby to increase his sides chances of scoring, and he nearly scored after a fine run towards the box but could only muster a weak shot into Cech’s waiting hands; at the other end, Anelka replicated this effort with a more powerful shot, which rebounded off Fabianski’s hands and back into Song’s path. The chances were looking increasingly slim for the red and white brigade, as the gritty Chelsea defense absorbed all attacks with resolve while the clock continued ticking.
Arsenal’s off-side tactics were working to perfection, which saw the hosts forced to sit within their own half for most of the last twenty minutes of the game. The first yellow of the match came in the 79th minute, when Paolo Ferreira pulled down Rosicky in the Chelsea half. From the resultant free kick, Chamakh saw yet another header go wide off the mark. Wenger made a tactical change, taking off Wilshere and introducing Jay Emmanuel-Thomas to add more presence upfront.
In the 84th minute, Koscielny pulled down Anelka outside the box. From the spot, Alex ran forward and unleashed an unstoppable screamer into the far right corner, through the gap left by Malouda in the defensive wall. The game was truly well and over for Arsenal, and Fabianski did well to come forward and deny Essien an open goal as the defense came apart.
The rest of the game was a mere formality, and the final whistle ended in cheers from the home crowd as Chelsea deservingly added three more points to their tally to strengthen their pole position.
TheHardTackle’s Player Of The Match
Jon Obi Mikel (Chelsea)
The Nigerian was solid in his role, performing in tandem with Essien and Ramires to stifle the Arsenal creativity outlets and standing up in physical encounters with Song and Diaby. He was calm and composed and did not misplace any passes, and ensured Chelsea were able to regain possession of the ball on counter attacks.
TheHardTackle’s Referee Report Card
Name: Mike Dean
Grade: A
The referee had a very good game, ensuring fair decisions for both the sides. The fact that there were no eventful incidents and the sole two yellow cards being dished out towards the end of the game is testament to his performance in this high octane encounter.
Match Statistics
Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal
Venue: Stamford Bridge, London
Attendance: 41,828
Chelsea line-up: Cech, Ivanovic (Ferreira 73′). Alex, Terry, Cole, Obi Mikel(Sturridge 89′), Essien, Ramires(Zhirkov 83′), Malouda, Anelka, Drogba
Manager: Carlo Ancelotti
Cautions: Ferreira(80′)
Sent Off: None
Scorers: Drogba 39′, Alex 85′
Arsenal line-up: Fabianski, Sagna, Squillaci, Koscielny, Clichy, Song, Wilshere(Emmanuel-Thomas 81′), Diaby(Rosicky 70′), Nasri, Arshavin (vela 87′), Chamakh
Manager: Arsene Wenger
Cautions: Koscielny(84′)
Sent Off: None
Scorers: None