It was a classic ‘1 – 0 to the Arsenal’, and in many ways a classic gunners victory at Stamford Bridge.
Although, not many Arsenal fans will have experienced it that way. Only fans of a certain age will remember the days when Arsenal won regularly against Chelsea away.
Once Roman Abramovic took over, Chelsea became the top dogs in London and regularly held Arsenal at arms length. Gunners who grew up in the Wenger era are still terrified of Didier Drogba, who left Chelsea ten years ago.
They’ve seen their team beat Chelsea. They’ve seen their team win at Stamford Bridge, but they’d never seen their team dominate Chelsea at their own ground.
Read: Antonio Conte May Be Doing His Best Work At Spurs, But For What?
That’s what they were treated to on Sunday when Arsenal were the better team from start to finish. The assured 1-0 win was another fillip in their transformation into a bonafide good team.
This may not be the most fearsome Chelsea team in recent memory, but do not underestimate the achievement. Going away to one of the other big 6 teams is difficult no matter what. In fact, Sunday was the first time one of the big 6 beat another away this season.
As well as that, this game was played just 64 hours after their Europa League game on Thursday. Considering the insane schedule this season, Arsenal’s harrying, pressing performance against Chelsea was immense.
Read: Top Four Finish Now The Aim For Ailing Liverpool
Some of Arsenal’s one-touch buildup play from the back was scintillating on Sunday. Chelsea were chasing shadows and were it not for Thiago Silva, could have lost by more.
It’s all the more significant considering both Manchester United and Spurs lost on the same day. The Gunners returned to the top of the table, two points ahead of City and widened the gap between themselves and their rivals for a Champions League position.
Mikel Arteta’s team still have much to prove, but they are flying over every hurdle in front of them at the moment.
