Full time: Chelsea 3-1 Arsenal
Chelsea go 12 points clear with an ultimately emphatic victory over Arsenal. They were ravenous without the ball; with it, they had the genius of Eden Hazard, who scored a gorgeous second goal. Marcos Alonso’s opening goal will be debated but the real story is that Chelsea were the better team and are the best team in England by a distance. Thanks for your company, night.
Updated
90+2 min That Arsenal- supporting following moron has his ‘ENOUGH IS ENOUGH, TIME TO GO’ signs on show again. “That guy’s an idiot,” says Gary Neville. Amen to that.
Updated
GOAL! Chelsea 3-1 Arsenal (Giroud 90+1)
I’m not sure this is even a consolation goal. Monreal’s clipped cross is headed through Courtois by Giroud at the near post. Courtois should probably have done better, but he’ll live.
Updated
90 min Diego Costa monsters Mustafi on the left wing, hares into the box and smashes the ball over the bar from a tight angle. He could have given a tap-in to Willian or Fabregas.
89 min Fabregas’s chip is headed straight at Cech by Alonso. This is hard to watch; after a good start to the game for Arsenal, this now verges on humiliation.
87 min Chelsea’s final substitution: Kurt Zouma replaces Victor Moses. This has been a day of perfect revenge for Chelsea after that 3-0 defeat at the Emirates in September.
Gabriel threw the ball back to Cech, who for some reason tried to clear it first time with his left foot. He sliced it straight to Fabregas, who controlled the ball and lobbed it into the open net from 25 yards. That was a complete shocker.
Updated
GOAL! Chelsea 3-0 Arsenal (Fabregas 85)
Well that was a complete disaster.
Updated
83 min A double change for Chelsea: Willian and Cesc Fabregas replace the excellent Pedro and the entirely magnificent Eden Hazard.
81 min “Hey, Rob!” says Daniel Elseus. “I am watching the game on Swedish television. And everyone in the studio including the commentators thought that it was a free kick. And that the goal should have been disallowed. So maybe there might be some cultural difference regarding what we consider a free kick in Sweden and what you in England consider a free kick. Who knows!”
Yes, very good point. Mind you, I bet Zlatan loved it.
Updated
80 min Gabriel concedes a corner with a crucial defensive header which denies Alonso a clear headed chance.
Updated
78 min Sanchez retrieves a loose ball on the right and plays it back to Mustafi. His flat cross is helped across goal by the head of Welbeck, and Courtois flings himself to the right to push it away. From the resulting corner, Mustafi thumps a header wide at the near post. He had a clear run at the back, was totally unmarked and should have scored.
76 min “Congratulations to Chelsea,” says Ian Copestake. “They were despicable under Mourinho but this manager makes them spicable.”
The funny thing is that they play just like a Mourinho side.
75 min For the first time in the match, Arsenal look like they are feeling sorry for themselves. This is the end of their title challenge, and it might even be the end of an era. Who knows if Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez and even Arsene Wenger will be there next season.
Updated
74 min A frustrated Gabriel throws his arm into the face of Hazard and is lucky not to be booked.
Updated
72 min “Gary Neville,” begins Simon Loft. “Why do you keep quoting him? What does he know about football?”
71 min Matic takes a yellow card for the team.
70 min There have been better sides on paper in the last eight years, but on the pitch this Chelsea are probably the best team since English football began its post-Ronaldo lull in 2009. They are so much more than the sum of their parts, which reflects pretty well on their magnificent coach.
Updated
69 min Another Arsenal change: Danny Welbeck on, Theo Walcott off. Their formation now a kind of jazz 4-3-3.
67 min Ozil dithers and is robbed by Azpilicueta, a microcosm of the game. Chelsea break again and eventually Alonso’s long-range shot is blocked.
65 min Arsenal are going for it now: Giroud is on for Coquelin. The midfield is Iwobi, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Ozil. “How can Arsenal compete to win a league with that midfield?” says Gary Neville.
64 min Another superb low cross from Monreal flashes right across the face six-yard box.
63 min As Gary Neville says, once Hazard gets into the box with the ball under control, any defender is helpless because they can’t tackle him. It was an absolutely glorious goal.
61 min Hazard leads a three-on-two break but his pass towards Pedro is blocked by Monreal. Pedro would have been in.
Updated
60 min This could turn nasty for Arsenal, such is Chelsea’s hunger and proficiency on the counter-attack.
59 min It was supposed to be a six-horse race this season, almost impossible to call. Chelsea have turned it into a canter.
Updated
58 min A superb low cross from Monreal almost finds Walcott at the near post. Cahill gets there first to put it behind for a corner.
Updated
56 min The close control and balance of Hazard were just wonderful. When his head is right, he is a breathtaking footballer.
Updated
Hazard picked the ball up just inside his own half and set off towards goal. He swerved away from Koscielny, held off Coquelin and continued to zoom towards goal. Koscielny got back but Hazard wriggled past him in the area and crunched the ball over Cech from close range.
Updated
GOAL! Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal (Hazard 53)
There’s your answer, Ian McCourt. Hazard has made it 2-0 with a majestic solo goal!
Updated
52 min Brilliant play from Kante, who mugs Ozil in a dangerous position and surges towards the edge of the box. He slips the ball through to Costa, who is flagged offside before his first-time shot hits Cech.
Serious question. Who would you rather have in your side?
— Ian McCourt (@ianmccourt) February 4, 2017
51 min Hazard Cruyff-turns Coquelin 25 yards from goal but then crashes his shot high over the bar.
48 min The last man Koscielny makes a vital sliding tackle on Hazard 30 yards from goal. Had he got it wrong he would have been sent off.
48 min “If it’s a contact sport, Chelsea’s goal stands - if not, it doesn’t,” says Gary Naylor. “Sometimes players get hurt and I wish Bellerin well, but risk can’t be taken out of the game - the players know that, as shown in the absence of any reaction to the challenge.”
47 min Arsenal have switched to the usual 4-2-3-1, with Ozil behind Sanchez and Iwobi on the left.
Updated
46 min Peep peep! Arsenal kick off from right to left.
Also, since when the eff did it become wrong to say you can see both sides of an argument? Are we all Donald Trump now?
Updated
“Re: the elbow. Rob, there comes a point where you should stop digging,” says Paul Leighton. “Nuff said.”
Thierry Henry, Graeme Souness, Gary Neville and Lee Dixon all think it was a good goal. Should they stop digging as well?
Updated
Token half-time email looking for a row “So it was a perfectly fine goal when it was scored, and at the end of the half, then it was debatable, and now at the halftime, it has been declared to be a controversial one,” says Gary P. “So who makes this call? Someone at the Guardian or all the cacophony from Arsenal fans? Because clearly, you didn’t see anything wrong to begin with.”
Are you thick or just naturally aggressive? A goal can be fine (my opinion) and debatable/controversial (a collection of opinions) at the same time.
“Speaking of Devon Loch and Dick Francis, I think too many people overlook their sterling work in the world of 80s alternative rock as The Lochsies, when Francis went by the moniker Frank Dick,” says Mac Millings. “Oh, and ‘I was reading an old darts article from 2006 this week’ is the Smythiest thing you’ve ever written. Is there an opposite of Pseuds’ Corner?”
Half-time chit-chat
“Dearest Rob,” says Angus Chisholm. “I’m blinkered, but an indirect free kick is meant to be given when there is dangerous play involved: ‘Playing in a dangerous manner is any action that, while trying to play the ball, threatens injury to someone (including the player themself).’ In this case, it didn’t threaten injury; it caused it. The fact that he played the ball successfully shouldn’t be relevant. To put it another way, if Koscielny wins a penalty the other day against Burnley for having studs raked down his face by a defender failing in an attempt to clear the ball (a decision which was generally accepted to be correct), then why wouldn’t a defender earn a free kick for being unfairly whacked in the chops and injured by an attacking player as he attempts to do a goal?”
Because, rightly or wrongly, the laws are often interpreted differently depending on whether the player is attacking or defending. The other problem is that, if you were so minded, you could legitimately give 100 indirect free-kicks a match based on the wording of that law. That said, I understand why Arsenal fans have foamy keyboards; I’d be exactly the same in the circumstances. But I also think, if that incident happened 10 times around England today, a foul would be given maybe once or twice at most.
Half time: Chelsea 1-0 Arsenal
That was a very entertaining half of football. Chelsea lead through Marcos Alonso’s controversial goal, though Arsenal have had chances to equalise. It’s been great. See you in 10 minutes for the second half.
45+2 min Ozil misses a great chance! Coquelin played a beautiful disguised pass to find him in lots of space on the right of the box. Ozil took his time, had a quick siesta, ghosted across the box and then drove a low shot straight at Courtois.
41 min “The past week included Groundhog Day (again - LOL!),” says Neill Brown. “If that film were being remade by Arsenal, as part of a Premier League live broadcast, would Theo Walcott do anything differently?”
Poor old Theo. I was reading an old darts article from 2006 this week, in which Michael van Gerwen was described as “the Theo Walcott of darts”. How things change.
40 min “You can’t clear out an opponent with a stiff forearm to the ear anywhere on the pitch,” says Ken Dawson. “Alonso even snuck a peek at Bellerin as he approached. Clear red card if you do it near the halfway line.”
Yes I see your point but, rightly or wrongly, the laws have always been interpreted differently in the penalty box.
Updated
38 min This has been a cracking half, lurching from end to end at great pace. Now Arsenal are having a good spell - and Gabriel should have equalised. A corner was played short and worked to Oxlade-Chamberlain just outside the box. He played a golf shot behind the outrushing defence and onto the head of Gabriel, whose effort was far too close to Courtois. He was only eight yards out and should surely have scored. Instead it was straight down the middle of the goal and Courtois was able to flap it to safety.
Updated
35 min A promising break from Arsenal. Ozil stabs a straight pass towards Walcott, who has the run on Cahill but can’t control it on the stretch. Had he done so he would probably have been able to run through on Courtois.
Updated
34 min An extended spell of pressure for Chelsea. This is in danger of turning into Groundhog Deja Vu for Arsenal.
32 min Matic sprays a long pass out to Alonso, who controls it and drills a sharp low cross to Pedro. He sweeps the ball first-time towards goal from 15 yards and Cech makes a bit of a mess of a routine save, fumbling it behind from a corner.
Pedro swings the corner towards the six-yard line and Koscielny, facing his own goal and under all kinds of pressure from Diego Costa, produces a brilliant defensive header.
Updated
30 min The pattern of the match is entrenched: lots of Arsenal possession, textbook Contenaccio and, er, Conter-attacking from Chelsea. They are just a superb;y coached team.
Updated
29 min Moses is booked for a cynical block on Monreal. The free-kick is wasted. and Chelsea break superbly. Diego Costa has a two-on-one with Pedro but tries to go it alone instead and makes a Horlicks of it. That was unusually wretched from Costa. He had a simple pass on to put Pedro through on goal.
26 min Hazard is starting to trouble Arsenal, particularly on the break. His ability to wriggle away from players is wonderful. Arsenal are still well in the game but Chelsea look more penetrative.
24 min “Alonso didn’t ‘catch him’,” says Colin Mackay, “he cleared him out with an elbow before the header.”
I can see both sides. If Bellerin had been the keeper a foul would obviously have been given, but he wasn’t, at least not literally. If I was an Arsenal fan I’d have heat but you can make a fair case either way.
Updated
23 min Mustafi is booked for bulldozing through Hazard.
22 min “In the Football Lexicon, the page for “Football Intelligence” just has a big picture of N’Golo Kante on it, doesn’t it?” says Gary Naylor.
Why the flip did France leave him out at the back end of Euro 2016?
Updated
20 min Arsenal started this game well but they had a huge problem now, because Chelsea are the best counter-attacking team in the league. Not to mention the best team in the league.
19 min Diego Costa is in beast mode. He takes a pass from Pedro on the edge of the box, rumbles past Koscielny and rattles a shot into the side netting from a tight angle. Cech had it covered.
Updated
18 min An Arsenal corner is half-cleared to Coquelin, who stabs a half-volley over the bar from 20 yards. It was an awkward chance. The more you see the replay, the more you realise that Bellerin had no chance there.
17 min Gabriel replaces Bellerin.
16 min Bellerin is going straight down the tunnel, and at the moment Theo Walcott is playing right-back.
15 min Bellerin is still receiving treatment in the six-yard box. He looks pretty dazed. Alonso did catch him with his arm as he leapt to head the ball into the net.
The goal was created down the Chelsea right. Moses played Pedro into space, and he ran round the ball before crossing first time towards the near post. Diego Costa flashed a majestic header onto the bar, from where the ball looped up in front of an open net with Cech trying to scramble to his feet. It was a contest between Alonso and Bellerin and Alonso won it emphatically, flattening Bellerin and heading into the net. Alonso had a running start, so there was only one winner there. The header from Costa was terrific, as was Alonso’s desire.
Updated
GOAL! Chelsea 1-0 Arsenal (Alonso 13)
Chelsea are in front!
Updated
12 min Moses gets away with a nervy header across the line of his area, which almost fell to Sanchez.
11 min A decent chance for Cahill. He beat Mustafi in the air to meet Pedro’s inswinging free-kick, but he got over the ball and headed it into the ground, after which it bounced tamely over the bar.
8 min This has been a terrific start to the match, with both teams full of pep and purpose.
5 min “I wonder if the Devon Loch incident occurred because the horse was being driven by a writer of fiction,” says Ian Copestake. “If you want a drama free run in surely you don’t want Dick Francis as your mount. Am hoping Kante is replaced for this match by Karl Ove Knausgård.”
4 min Now it’s Chelsea’s turn to win a couple of quick corners down the left. This has been a cracking start to the game.
2 min The Arsenal formation is not as advertised in the brochure. They are playing a 4-1-2-3, with Iwobi in midfield and Ozil on the left. And Iwobi almost scores straight away! A dreadful pass from Courtois is intercepted by Ozil, who finds Iwobi just outside the box. His low curling shot takes a deflection and dribbles just wide of the far post. Courtois had slipped and would not have got to it.
1 min Peep peep! Chelsea, in blue, kick off from right to left. Arsenal are in red and white.
Charity department In my finite wisdom, I’ve decided to have a year off booze. If you are feeling generous, or wish to provide a monetary demonstration of your unstinting admiration for my sober endeavours, you can do so here. Cheers!
Prediction
Possession Chelsea 29-71 Arsenal
Goals Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal
“With hilarious consequences...” Arsene Wenger is banned from the touchline again today. His seat is - and you’ll like this - in with a load of Chelsea fans.
Updated
“It feels like the midweek defeat to Watford derailed Arsenal’s title bid to such an extent that this is a relatively low-pressure match now,” says Phil Podolsky. “In other words, just what they need to perform. In other words, it’s on!”
So that means they’re favourites, which means the pressure is back on, right?
An email! “Typical MBM fails to report that Chelsea are 37 points from securing the title and will need to improve their recent 58% points winning form to 83% to do so,” says Gary Naylor. “Why is this not being reported? FAKE NEWS!”
I blame Bobby Ewing.
Team news
Chelsea (3-4-3) Courtois; Azpilicueta, David Luiz, Cahill; Moses, Kante, Matic, Alonso; Pedro, Diego Costa, Hazard.
Substitutes: Begovic, Terry, Zouma, Chalobah, Fabregas, Willian, Batshuayi.
Arsenal (4-1-2-3) Cech; Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Coquelin; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Iwobi; Walcott, Sanchez, Ozil.
Substitutes: Ospina, Gibbs, Gabriel, Maitland-Niles, Welbeck, Giroud, Reine-Adelaide.
Referee Martin Atkinson.
Updated
Preamble
Hello. This is a must-win match for Arsenal. And Spurs. And Liverpool. And the Manchester clubs. And neutrals. If there’s to be any hope of a title race this season, Arsenal must surely beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge today. Chelsea don’t play another of the Big Six until they host Manchester City on 5 April; if they avoid defeat today they will probably be on the cusp of their sixth league championship when that match comes around.
A twist should not be completely discounted, if only because the reverse fixture prompted the most significant twist of the season so far. Chelsea were so bad in the first half at the Emirates, when a 0-3 scoreline flattered them, that Antonio Conte switched to three at the back in the second half. Chelsea drew the second half 0-0 and then won their next 13 league games, just because they could, to move well clear of a group who are packed like sardines from second to sixth. Ruined a bloody good title race, Chelsea have.
They have had a tricky run since then, with trips to Spurs, Leicester and Liverpool in January, but are still nine points clear. It is hard to see any team managed by the entirely magnificent Conte doing a Devon Loch, so the process of reeling them in needs to start now.
Kick off is at 12.30pm.
Updated
