Chelsea tightened their grip on the Premier League title, as they comprehensively defeated rivals and fellow title-challengers Arsenal 3-1 at the Stamford Bridge to go 12 points clear at the top of the table. The lead was reduced to 9 points later in the day by Tottenham after their 1-0 win against Middlesbrough, but Antonio Conte’s side remains the most favourite to take home the trophy.
First half header from Marcos Alonso gave the home side the lead, before Eden Hazard doubled the advantage early in the second half with an incredible goal and to rub salt on Arsenal’s wounds, then former Gunners’ captain, Cesc Fabregas, made it three on the night for the Blues, before Olivier Giroud scored a consolation goal in the added time.
It was an emphatic statement made by Chelsea against an Arsenal side that looked way off the pace and were completely outplayed on the day. The loss surely spelt the end for the Gunners’ title hopes and they will have to make do with the Champions League qualification for another year.
Here we take a look at three major talking points to emerge from this important London derby:
Title Is Chelsea’s To Lose
The last time these two sides met, it was impossible to imagine things would turn around this way. Chelsea were handed a 3-0 drubbing by Arsenal at the Emirates and Conte’s side were already lagging 8 points behind then-leaders Manchester City and looked out of the contention for the top four, let alone title.
But following that loss, Chelsea made the tactical switch to the 3-4-3 setup and have been on a juggernaut ever since. In the 18 league games that Chelsea have played since that loss to Arsenal, the Blues have won 16 and lost only one. With the second best defensive record in the league and their attack is firing on all cylinders, it is no surprise that they have amassed such a wide gap at the top. And if the game against Arsenal was a sign of things to come, there are no doubts that Conte will be celebrating his first Premier League trophy come May.
Arsenal Bow Out of Title Race, Again
Over the years, Arsenal have developed the habit of capitulating from strong positions to throw away their chances of a shot at the title. And Arsene Wenger’s men have done it again this season.
After having started the campaign strongly, the Gunners looked set for a tilt at the title for certain this season. They came unscathed from the month of November, where historically they are known to drop points in huge amount and survived the festive period as well. However, two bad results against a lowly Watford and then the champions-elect Chelsea on Saturday, seem to have sounded the death knell in the title race for Wenger’s side once again. It was the case of the same old issues for Arsenal at the Stamford Bridge. The desire wasn’t there, the midfield overran and the defence looked in shambles, leaving them 12 points behind and crashing out of the title race.
Eden Hazard’s Moment of Magic
Eden Hazard began the game against Arsenal on a subdued note. Having failed to do anything of note, the Belgian, who has been reportedly struggling with injury issues, was brought down by a poor challenge by Gunners’ defender Shkodran Mustafi. Hazard hobbled off the pitch, received some treatment and then came back on.
But once he returned, there was a notable change in his attitude. There was a sudden spark, a fire had been ignited. He was running at the Arsenal defence with more purpose, started to make them look foolish with his pace and trickery. But the best moment of the night came eight minutes into the second half, when the Belgian received the ball inside his own half and then went on a mazy jinking run first going past Laurent Koscielny, then powering past Francis Coquelin and getting the better of Koscielny once again before beating the challenge of Mustafi and the onrushing Petr Cech with a lovely finish for Chelsea’s second goal of the night.
It was a special moment, a display of the array of abilities from the wonderful Hazard. A special goal from a special player and surely it will be a prime contender for the goal of the season.
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