The London Derby

Arsenal Vs Chelsea

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Historic Rivalry:

This encounter was not the best but one of the most anticipating fixtures on a Sunday. These 2 cross-town rivals locked horns at the Emirates. At present, even though these 2 teams are in the rebuilding process, there is no denial by the fact that the rivalry between these teams does have a history of players and controversies. Back then in the late '90s and early '20s, these two teams did begin to compete for the title. The Gunners boosted a variety of extremely talented players such a Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Patrick Viera, Robert Pires, Ashley Cole, Tony Adams, and the list goes. This army indeed was fearful and went on to achieve 3 premier league titles and their most memorable win was the 2003-04 undefeated season. Eventually, these men have known as 'The Invincibles. Since this famous victory, no other team has achieved this feat. This team then managed by the Professor (Arsene Wenger) had built a fortress at Highbury until their move to the Emirates in 2006. Various critics and pundits have pointed out that there to move to the Emirates are one of the major reasons for their lack of success. Meanwhile, Chelsea, on the other hand, was then managed by Claudio Ranieri in the early '20s were trying to build a name. They did show some promising signs under his leadership, but the lack of success prompted the management to sack the Italian. 

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In 2004, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich purchased the Blues and indeed changed the entire structure. He made headlines when he announced that Jose Mourinho would be leading the team as the head coach/manager. Back then, Jose was a hot favorite for any team as he guided Porto F.C. to the European treble. His 1st press conference would be remembered by many fans as he signaled his arrival by announcing himself as the 'Special One'. Players such as Didier Drogba, Michael Essien, Frank Lampard, John Terry, Claudio Makelele went on to form a formidable team under Jose Mourinho's leadership. Ashley Cole was jeered by the fans as he signed for the rivals as he was one of the fan favorites and players such as Lampard, Makelele and Terry were signed by Claudio Ranieri before his departure. Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger had indeed created an intense rivalry between them when they frequently clashed one against the other. The rivalry was intensely heated when Chelsea secured back-to-back titles under the Portuguese manager something that the professor failed to achieve. Wenger made headlines when he criticized Mourinho's tactics stating the lack of English players in his teams. Mourinho responded on his own when he called out Wenger 'voyeur' meaning that someone interested in other matters rather than his own. These two made headlines frequently until Jose departed from Stamford Bridge abruptly. 

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But Wenger did not spare his rival when he criticized Mourinho's time-wasting tactics. The Special One responded by saying that Wenger's team was turning old after they lost in Champions League. Eventually, Jose returned to Chelsea in 2013 and their rivalry was re-ignited. Wenger began to criticize the tactics of his rivals stating 'Chelsea always park the bus'. Mourinho responded by calling Wenger ' a specialist in failure'. 

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That was the last time we saw the 2 managers clashing against one another. Since then, they have developed a respect for each other when Wenger praised Mourinho for his achievements and trophies while Jose praised Wenger for creating a legacy at the Emirates. Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho presented a trophy to Arsene Wenger when Manchester United faced Arsenal which would turn out to be the last encounter between these 2 managers and Wenger departed after the season concluded. Even though the rivalry has ended, it is surely well remembered by various pundits, critics, and fans. That's too much of history, now back to the present. Now the times have changed. The Blues are currently under the tutelage of Frank Lampard while the Gunners have appointed Mikel Arteta. The former Chelsea midfielder has been impressive this season but there have been setbacks for him. Arsenal meanwhile, are in a rebuilding process under Arteta since they sacked Unai Emery. Now, let us find out who prevailed?

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Pre- Match thoughts and summary: 

Mikel Arteta made two changes from his side from their draw against the Cherries. Granit Xhaka was out due to illness while Sokratis Papasthathopolous had a concussion. Chambers and Guendouzi came into the fold to replace the duo in the starting line-up.

 Frank Lampard had also made two changes from his side to their defeat at the hands of the Saints. Callum Hudson-Odoi and Jorginho were excluded from the starting line-up and were dropped to the bench. Mason Mount and Matteo Kovacic were recalled to start in the final third and the midfield respectively. 

The Gunners have won two of their last three Premier League home games against the Blues. Arsenal have never lost a premier league home game against Chelsea when they have scored the 1st goal. Mikel Arteta is yet to win his 1st game as the Gunners boss. The Gunners did lose their last league game in 2018 at the hands of Liverpool with score ending 5-1.  Now let us find out who bagged 3 points.

The match ended with the Blues winning in the final minutes of the game in spite of Arsenal having a strong start. Aubemaeyang opened the scoring to give the hosts lead. It all looked that Arsenal would win the encounter until Chelsea bounced back in the closing minutes to win the game. The score ended with 2-1 to Chelsea. This defeat meant that Mikel Arteta had to wait for his 1st win as the Gunner boss while the Blues hang on at the top 4. Let us see the talking points.

Talking Points:

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1. Arsenal Fast start:

The Gunners fantastically began the match with the hosts beginning to mount pressure on their rivals. Pierre Emerick- Aubameyang made used his pace to cause problems in the Chelsea backline. The opening chance came in the 5th minute of the game when Arsenal won a set-piece courtesy to Nelson. Ozil delivered a ball in the box for David Luiz to attack with an ambitious overhead kick only for the ball to travel away over the bar for a goal kick. The Gunners again had an opportunity to score in the 9th minute when David Luiz struck a fine effort only for Kepa to make a comfortable save. Their attack was finally paid when Aubameyang headed his team into the lead in the 13th minute when Ozil's corner flicked into Chambers at the near post only for the Gabonese striker to pounce ahead of Emerson before stooping a power header past Kepa in the back of the net.

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2. Chelsea's response and Leno's costly error: 

The visitors did respond even before hosts broke the deadlock. The Blues had an opportunity in the 11th minute when Willian squared the ball to Mason Mount to strike and struck an effort towards the goal from inside the box only for Leno to make the save before gathering at the second attempt. Chelsea again threatened the hosts in the 36th minute when Abraham released Willian down the right flank and won a corner. Abraham shouted for a penalty when Guendouzi pulled him down, but the referee was not interested. 

The visitors repeatedly threatened the hosts in the 37th minute when Willian's corner was headed towards the path of Zouma at the back post by Azpilicueta only for him to lose his footing when tried to strike the ball. The 2nd half was dominated by Chelsea and they had another opportunity in the 66th minute when Abraham received a fine pass from the right. The striker waited for the ball to strike only for David Luiz to make a vital block. All seemed well for Arsenal and it looked like they would claim all 3 points until the 83rd minute. The visitors won a set-piece and Mount whipped the ball into the box and Leno was clearly the favorite to punch the ball away only for him to commit a hilarious howler as he missed the ball which landed at the feet of Jorginho who was unmarked and made a touch towards the goal and Chelsea were back in the game.

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3. Abraham seals the game:  

The Gunners were shell shocked after the Blues equalized when everything seemed so well for the hosts. Arsenal brought in their record signing Nicolas Pepe into the game to replace Nelson in the closing minutes of the game. The moment of the match came in the 87th minute. 

Chelsea made an incredible comeback in the dying minutes of the game when they made use of a brilliant counter when Abraham got the ball and sprinted with full pace and offloaded the ball to Willian who cut it back to Abraham in the middle. The striker turned Mustafi and held his composure to fire a low strike through the legs of Leno to claim all 3 points for his team. Such a devastating blow to Arsenal. 

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Post-match thoughts:

Mikel Arteta's first home game ended with heartbreak and in a worst possible manner.  His team succumbed to a late comeback from Chelsea. Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang's opener put the Gunners in the lead, but the hosts were not able to utilize their advantage. It left them open in the second half and failed to capitalize on their chances. The game turned towards Chelsea's favor when the German shot-stopper failed to punch the ball from Mason Mount's free-kick which landed on Jorginho's feet who tapped the ball towards the back of the net. The Blues confidence surged and scored the winning goal in the counter-attack when Abraham provided a cool finish through Leno's legs and secured the win. 

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With this defeat, Arteta looks to make improvements in his team as they had lost the match in the closing minutes of the game. Chelsea remains safe in the top 4 for now with this win. What lies next for Arsenal? Will Mikel Arteta be the right man to lead the Gunners or will the Gunners look for an alternative option?

Author,

Zaid