Another week, another impressive performance from Chelsea. On another day, Arsenal might have presented a formidable challenge to the Blues, but their midfield was noticeably thin without Aaron Ramsey and Mikel Arteta. The Blues looked in control throughout, and their 2-0 victory at Stamford Bridge was well deserved.
3 things we learned from Chelsea’s comfortable 2-0 victory over Arsenal
It continues to look like the title race won’t be that much of a race.
Paul Gilham
This match was delayed by 20 minutes after Arsenal fans reportedly set off flares inside Stamford Bridge, which allowed the remaining Arsenal fans outside the stadium inside.
The first big incident of the game came in the 10th minute, when Alexis Sanchez collided with Thibaut Courtois and made contact with the Chelsea goalkeeper's head. Courtois appeared to be knocked out, and didn't move at all when Sanchez shook him. But astonishingly, after evaluating him, the Chelsea medical staff allowed him to play on. Ultimately, this proved to be a poor decision -- Courtois was subbed 12 minutes later and taken to the hospital.
Things got physical after that collision, and Gary Cahill could have been sent off for a nasty tackle on Sanchez in the 20th minute. Arsene Wenger took such exception to the challenge that he shoved Jose Mourinho, forcing Martin Atkinson to warn both of them.
Chelsea found a breakthrough in the 25th minute, and again, there was a case for a red card that wasn't given. Laurent Koscielny chopped down Eden Hazard in the penalty area, leading Atkinson to point to the spot, but he didn't see it as denial of a goal-scoring opportunity and only showed yellow to the Arsenal defender. Hazard converted the penalty, firing Chelsea ahead.
There was yet another case for a sending off just before the halftime break. Already on a yellow, Calum Chambers shoved down Andre Schürrle on the edge of the box, but Atkinson merely gave the free kick despite cries from Schürrle and the Stamford Bridge faithful for a red card.
Both teams had chances early in the second half, with Mathieu Flamini rescued from scoring a 58th minute own goal by a Wojciech Szczesny save, while Arsenal were unlucky not to get a free kick in the 64th minute when Cesc Fabregas blocked a Flamini shot with his arm. As the half wore on, Chelsea got a bit more defensive, bringing on John Obi Mikel for Schürrle, and that ultimately helped them to score their second goal.
With Arsenal pushing forward, Diego Costa was able to catch them out on the break. He split the Gunners' central defenders to get on the end of a brilliant long ball from Fabregas, then chipped the ball over an onrushing Szczesny to double his team's lead in the 78th minute, notching his ninth league goal of the campaign.
The Gunners grew frustrated late and Danny Welbeck was lucky not to pick up a red card and long suspension for violent conduct at the end. Atkinson only showed him a yellow card for a two-footed lunge, and given the rather unsurprising nature of the result, his poor performance will end up being the most memorable thing from this game.
Chelsea: Courtois (Cech 23’), Azpilicueta, Terry, Cahill, Ivanovic, Matic, Fabregas, Hazard, Oscar (Willian 87’), Schürrle (Mikel 69’), Costa
Goals: Hazard (penalty 27’), Costa (78’)
Arsenal: Szczesny, Gibbs, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Chambers, Flamini, Wilshere (Rosicky 83’), Cazorla (Oxlade-Chamberlain 69’), Özil, Sanchez (Podolski 79’), Welbeck
Goals: None.
3 things
1. Martin Atkinson was atrocious -- The first half should have featured four red cards, three for players and one for a manager. Cahill’s tackle on Sanchez was straight red worthy, Wenger should have been sent to the stands for his shove of Mourinho, Koscielny denied Hazard a clear goal-scoring opportunity and Chambers’ foul on Schürrle was clearly a second yellow. That’s four huge, potentially game-altering decisions wrong in the first half. He then proceeded to miss Fabregas’ handball in the 64th minute, then didn’t send off Welbeck for an awful two-footed challenge in stoppage time. Astonishing.
2. The Premier League’s concussion protocols still stink -- Courtois was clearly knocked unconscious by his collision with Alexis Sanchez, nothing resembling a concussion test was performed on him and he had absolutely no business being on the pitch for the 12 minutes that he played after the incident. This is clearly a problem everywhere in the league, not just at Chelsea, and the Premier League needs to do something about it.
3. Chelsea's title credentials just keep getting stronger -- Another test for Chelsea, and another one passed with flying colors. They never looked that threatened by Arsenal, their goals came on excellent bits of play and they changed their tactics based on the game situation perfectly throughout the game. It'll be tough to catch them.
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