Match report
So Leicester sit top of the league going into February! That’s Arsenal’s first home defeat since West Ham on the opening day of the season and after beginning the weekend on top, they are now third, behind the Foxes and Manchester City. There is still a very long way to go, though, and plenty of twists and turns to follow.
As for Chelsea, this was their best performance of the season, albeit aided by having an extra man for the majority of it. They defended well, Cesc Fàbregas was exceptional and Diego Costa scored again.
That’s all from me for this one – I’ll be back for Real Betis v Real Madrid later on if you’re not yet footballed out. Thanks for reading. Bye!
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Full-time! Arsenal 0-1 Chelsea
90 min + 5: Hazard takes it to the corner. And that’s the end!
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90 min + 4: Ramsey wins a corner off Ivanovic and Cech is coming up! The delivery is abysmal and fails to beat the first man.
90 min +3: Özil is robbed of the ball by Hazard on halfway. He finds Rémy again but the Chelsea striker loses it. Then Hazard finds Willian free on his right but he shoots across goal and wide. It will suit Chelsea to kill off precious seconds though.
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90 min +1: Oxlade-Chamberlain finds Özil in the box but he is crowded out. They then attack down the left but Ramsey, marked tightly by Willian, is penalised for handball. Wenger is shaking his head.
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90 min: Rémy is played in by Hazard but is offside. There will be five minutes added on.
88 min: Arsenal deserve some credit for how they have responded here. Can they find a goal? An equaliser will feel like a winner at this point.
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87 min: Bellerín crosses from the right. Oxlade-Chamberlain mis-hits it and it reaches Flamini off all people and he cannot connect cleanly with a back heel.
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85 min: Özil sends in a free-kick from the right. Courtois spills it under pressure but danger is eventually cleared. The Chelsea player believes it should have been a foul but play continues.
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84 min: Özil wins a corner. But his delivery is headed away by the commanding and impressive Zouma.
79 min: A lovely move from Sánchez and Monreal sees the former skip into the box but Zouma blocks his shot. Arsenal are really putting the squeeze on now but Chelsea are defending solidly.
78 min: Özil is beginning to get involved more now and sends a teaser in from the right corner towards Koscielny. Terry is there to clear, though.
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77 min: Oscar is replaced by the Belgian.
76 min: Fàbregas is fouled by Ramsey near halfway and Hazard is getting ready to come on.
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75 min: And Walcott is the man coming off for him. He was bad today. Very bad.
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74 min: Oxlade-Chamberlain is getting ready to come on.
72 min: Mikel underhits a pass back to Zouma and puts an arm out to stop Sánchez from pressing. He receives a deserved yellow card.
72 min: Chelsea have a much-needed spell of possession to kill off Arsenal’s resurgence, momentarily at least.
70 min: Oscar lays off to Fàbregas. His shot is saved comfortably by Cech.
69 min: Play restarts and Sánchez produces a #classytouch by giving the ball back to Courtois.
68 min: Costa is coming off to a predictable chorus of jeers. Loïc Rémy is on in his place.
66 min: Bellerín picks out Sánchez on the D but he is closed down by Matic. Arsenal come straight back on the attack though, where Bellerín wins a corner from Azpilicueta. Özil’s effort is picked from the sky by Courtois, who then throws the ball out of play after Costa sinks to the floor with what looks like a hamstring injury.
65 min: I’ve almost forgotten Theo Walcott is on the pitch. Not really been his day – so far.
63 min: Fàbregas fouls Ramsey on the left. Özil’s delivery is flapped at by Courtois. Azpilicueta fails to clear and some pinball ensues. Arsenal, all of a sudden, look dangerous. Sánchez’s introduction has galvanised them.
A picture that paints a thousand words.
60 min: Sánchez’s first action is to draw a foul from Matic, who is booked for a similar block to that of Koscielny on Fàbregas. The free-kick is wasted, overhit and wide by Özil.
An email from Dante Danger, who makes a series of valid points: “This is easily the best I’ve seen Chelsea play this season and even before Arsenal went down to 10 men, Chelsea looked more than comfortable with arsenals arrack. It looks like Mikel / Matic are giving fabregas the platform he needs to influence the game without having to worry about defending. Also, that was a nailed on penalty. NAILED ON.”
58 min: Matic makes a rare foray into the box but is penalised for a foul on Bellerín after losing control of the ball. Watching replays of this Fàbregas-Koscielny coming together and it looks stonewall. The Chelsea player is still remonstrating with Clattenburg.
57 min: Sánchez is on for Campbell.
54 min: Azpilicueta wins a corner in front of the away fans via Bellerín. Willian takes it short to Ivanovic who returns the pass. But the move ends with Campbell sliding in on Matic, conceding another corner. It’s also taken short to Fàbregas, who chooses the cross to Matic. Another corner. Willian -> Fàbregas -> Oscar -> deflection for another corner. The fourth one sees Fàbregas stride into the area. He hits the deck after being barged by Laurent Koscielny. He wants a penalty but Mark Clattenburg is having none if it. It should be! Arsenal are a tad lucky there.
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53 min: Arsenal enjoy a prolonged spell of possession but the move ends with Walcott straying offside when trying to reach another L1+∆ pass from Özil.
51 min: Fàbregas has been everywhere so far. He has had 11 more touches than any other player so far (54), with Ramsey next best (43) and looks like he is really enjoying himself – but the obvious question for Chelsea fans is why could he not have performed this well earlier in the season?
50 min: Costa is offside is again.
49 min: Fàbregas tries to pick out Costa with a ball over the top but he is flagged for offside. Replays suggest he was actually level.
48 min: Alexis Sánchez is warming up!
46 min: Inside 30 seconds Flamini, booked in the first half, takes down Fàbregas. But it warrants nothing more than free-kick. Oscar wins a corner after the delivery from the free-kick is half-cleared to him on the edge of the area. Willian to take it.
Restarted!
46 min: Chelsea get us going again. How can Arsenal respond? The didn’t have a shot on target in the first half.
Some more of your emails during the break
Mustafa Nathoo: “People may talk about Chelsea playing better with more shots on target, howeverArsenal have had more attempts and are working much better as a team. Diego Costa is running in front of everybody and stealing chances for himself, which he misses.” He did well to “steal” the only goal so far.
Geoff Myint: “Anything to say about Costa’s dive? No shortage of replays already. No commentary as to the apparent lack of contact.” He played up to it, sure, but that doesn’t stop it from being a red card.
And Dom Thomas with a warning: “Seems Arsenal are playing with a ghost 9 at the moment. I did that for a season in Champ Man 93-94 with Middlesborough and lost the league title on goal difference.”
Half-time: Arsenal 0-1 Chelsea
And that’s the break. Costa has been the difference – drawing the foul for Mertesacker’s dismissal before scoring five minutes later.
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45 min +1: Big chance for Flamini but he hooks over with his right boot. It all came from a delightful scooped pass from Ramsey.
45 min: Flamini is booked for a late tackle on Willian near halfway. There will be one minute added on.
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42 min: Willian cuts it in to Costa from the right. He takes a touch, strides forward and forces Cech into a fine save. From the corner Ivanovic’s header is headed off the line by Monreal.
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39 min: Oscar tries to flick the ball over Ramsey but the Welshman is alert to the danger and does well to intercept. Arsenal then break down the right. It ends up with Ramsey, via Campbell and Özil, on the edge of the area feeding Walcott but the England attacker’s touch is heavy and Courtois is out to save.
37 min: Costa, excessive rolling about after Mertesacker fouled him aside, has been behaving so far. Gabriel comes from behind to clip him near halfway and Chelsea have a free-kick. They are in no rush to take it and resume passing it about from side to side.
35 min: Walcott drifts in from the left and shoots across goal and narrowly wide. He is offside too.
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34 min: Arsenal fans shout for a penalty after Ramsey tried to pass Willian and the Chelsea player chests the ball away.
33 min: Fàbregas runs perhaps more menacingly than any previous point this season. He skips past a couple of red and white shirts but his low shot is blocked.
31 min: Chelsea pass the ball calmly under little pressure across their own defence. The visiting support are chanting: “We are staying up”
An email from Geoff James, who I am going to guess is an Arsenal fan: “Except for the not insignificant fact that Mertesacker never touched Costa (who, it so happens, perpetrates a fraud on the game, on his fellow players and, incredibly, on the officials each time he sets foot on the pitch).” There was contact. It was slight, but there was.
Another from Ezra Finklestein: “I love Azplicueta’s facemask.It makes him look like batman.It helps that he looks like Ben Stiller.” Agreed.
And a valid point from Raymond Reardon: “Leicester and Watford are the only home teams to win this weekend. Leicester and Watford. Odds on that Arsenal will also get rolled then?” Chelsea were 5/2 before the game started. I suspect they are now money on.
29 min: Fàbregas sends a deep cross from the right towards Azpilicueta but Costa gets in front of him and shoot wide.
26 min: This is going to be a big test of Arsenal’s mentality. Whatever about Chelsea’s troubles this season – a team of seasoned campaigners know how to manage leads like this with a one-man advantage.
25 min: Arsenal win a corner via the head of Ivanovic, turning a cross from Bellerin away safely. Mikel heads the corner away.
Goal! Arsenal 0-1 Chelsea (Costa)
23 min: And there you have it! Who else but Costa? Ivanovic crosses from the right. Costa gets between Koscielny and his old pal Gabriel before ruthlessly tucking the ball home from close range. Cech had no chance.
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21 min: Azpilicueta fouls Campbell, who is NOT sacrificed. Giroud is taken off instead and the Emirates reacts furiously. Giroud, to be fair, was injured in training earlier this week. Walcott will go up front instead. When play restarts Courtois gathers easily.
20 min: It is floated up towards Terry but Cech is out to punch. The offside flag is up too. Arsenal are readying Gabriel. Who will be sacrificed? Campbell?
Red card
18 min: Mertesacker is off! And you’ll never guess who he has taken down … Costa is through on goal after an astoundingly beautiful pass from Willian and Mertesacker stretches out his long legs. It’s the right call. Wenger is having a good moan but there can be no complaints. Willian to take the free-kick from about 30 yards.
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16 min: Walcott breaks but eventually runs into trouble. He checks his run, sides to Giroud but he blasts high and wide from 3-wood range.
15 min: Good chance for Chelsea! Fàbregas feeds Azpilicueta this time and his deep cross drops nicely for Willian his first attempt is blocked and he rolls the rebound straight at Cech. Fàbregas is running the show at the moment.
14 min: Fàbregas waltzes forward and feed Willian but his cross from the right towards Costa is cut out. The Spain striker is offside anyway.
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11 min: An early booking for Oscar, who slides in on Campbell as the Arsenal man raced down the right. Özil sends the free-kick in but it’s easily cleared. Monreal recycles and Terry clears hesitantly.
10 min: A neat give and go from Campbell and Giroud ends with the ball reaching Flamini in an unusually advances position but he turns and falls over when trying to shoot near the penalty spot.
7 min: It has been a fairly even start. Özil has tried a couple of L1+∆ passes to Giroud but neither have found the Frenchman. For Chelsea, Fàbregas, met with boos every time he touches the ball, looks in the mood.
5 min: Willian feeds Fàbregas and he sends a low cross in from the right end-line but Mertesacker clears.
4 min: Flamini plants a stud on Azpilicueta as the Chelsea players hooks clear. A free-kick but nothing more.
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3 min: Now it’s Chelsea’s turn to make their first foray forward. Oscar shoots low at Cech’s near post but his former keeper is down to save for a corner. Willian’s delivery is easily claimed by the goalkeeper.
2 min: Good start from the hosts. Walcott cuts back a cross from the left but Campbell mis-hits his shot. He was under little pressure and that goes down as a ‘should have done better’.
Kick-off!
1 min: Arsenal get us going, playing from left to right as we watch.
Here come the teams! Theo Walcott, celebrating 10 years at the club, leads the home side out.
In praise of Vic Akers – an email from Charles Antaki …
Vic Akers, dontcha love him? Apart from leading Arsenal’s women’s team to various kinds of glory, his hypothermia-defying preference for shorts in all weathers elevates him above all other Premiership bench staff. I didn’t know that he also had responsibility for glad-handing the players as they arrive, as your photo shows, but that just adds to the legend.
The fist bumps (is Mertesacker punching fresh air?), the chant – there are so many things wrong with this.
‘We’ve got Ozil. Mesut Ozil. I just don’t think you understand. He’s Arsene Wenger’s man. He’s better than Zidane!' pic.twitter.com/xJGjLEx2GV
— Arsenal FC (@Arsenal) January 24, 2016
So no real surprises in either team. Özil is back to make his 100th appearance for Arsenal, while Matic becomes a Chelsea centurion too. Azpilicueta plays for the 150th time for the blues and a 100th time in the league. Hiddink makes one change by sw. Sánchez and Hazard are fit enough for places on the bench, while Elneny is also a substitute for the hosts. Will we see all three of them at some point?
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The cast!
Arsenal: Cech; Bellerín, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Monreal; Flamini, Ramsey; Campbell, Özil, Walcott; Giroud. Subs: Ospina, Chambers, Gibbs, Gabriel, Elneny, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Sánchez.
Chelsea: Courtois; Ivanovic, Zouma, Terry, Azpilicueta; Mikel, Matic; Willian, Fàbregas, Oscar; Costa. Subs: Begovic, Cahill, Baba Rahman, Loftus-Cheek, Traore, Hazard, Rémy.
Referee: Mr Clattenburg.
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While we wait: Everton are trailing Swansea 2-1 at Goodison. Nick Ames has the latest.
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Preamble
If Arsenal are to win the league – and let’s not beat around the bush, readers, this is their best chance for a very, very long time – nothing more than a win at home against a mid-table team will suffice. But then you remember that mid-table team are Chelsea and this is the season where we have become accustomed to expecting the unexpected, or as an old marketing campaign for the Gaelic Games Association in Ireland said: ‘Unexpect the expected’. (Nope, me neither)
Whatever about last season’s champions’ dismal campaign, this is a fixture where less heed than usual should be paid to form. Discount the Community Shield in August and Arsenal have not beaten the west Londoners since October 2011. Chelsea won the reverse fixture 2-0 against nine-men at Stamford Bridge after Gabriel was sent off and Diego Costa was punished retrospectively for his role in him seeing red. Santi Cazorla was also dismissed 10 minutes from the end. If you can’t recall it: here is Daniel Taylor’s match report. Losing will not derail Arsenal’s title quest, but winning will be a huge boost.
What mood will Costa be in today? He has shown improved form since José Mourinho was sacked – kicking goals instead of defenders – and Guus Hiddink spoke kindly of the Spain striker on Friday. “I’d prefer to have players who sometimes you have to control or tell them ‘a little bit less’ than have to push them a bit,” the interim manager said. “He has his character. Sometimes you are misjudged by images. He shows a lot of joy to everyone.” Costa should expect a frosty reception here, though, along with the former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fàbregas. Hiddink reckons he is thick skinned enough to take the flak.
A win will see Arsenal overtake Leicester at the summit on goal difference, and after Manchester City failed to win at West Ham this is an opportunity that Arsène Wenger’s team cannot pass up. The manager has warned his players to be ready for some Costa antics: “We have to be prepared for a battle because Costa gives you a fight. After that, it’s down to the referee.”
Team news should be with us 30 minutes from now, kick-off is 90 away so in the meantime have a read of this fine piece by Amy Lawrence on Mesut Özil.
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