Arsenal continued their perfect start to the Premier
League season with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Chelsea in a pulsating London
derby at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Morgan Rogers gave Chelsea an early lead after just 77
seconds, but Kai Havertz returned to haunt his former club by scoring the
equaliser before Martin Odegaard completed Arsenal’s comeback shortly after
half-time.
The victory saw Mikel Arteta’s side maintain their 100
per cent league record after three matches, keeping them second behind
Manchester City on goals scored.
Chelsea, meanwhile, suffered their first defeat under
new manager Xabi Alonso, ending their impressive three-game winning run in all
competitions since the Spaniard took charge at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea stunned the home crowd when Rogers reacted
quickest to a poorly cleared Reece James free-kick before firing a low volley
beyond David Raya from the edge of the box.
The goal exposed Arsenal’s usually dependable defence,
which had conceded just once across their opening two league fixtures.
However, the champions quickly regained control and
found their equaliser in the 25th minute.
Havertz drifted into space on the right side of the
penalty area and was allowed too much room before firing a low effort through
Maxence Lacroix’s legs and past Emiliano Martinez at his near post.
The former Chelsea forward made no mistake against his
old employers as Arsenal grew increasingly dangerous.
Chelsea nearly restored their advantage before the
break when Pedro Neto’s effort struck the far post, leaving Raya beaten.
Arsenal returned from the interval with greater
intensity and completed the comeback in the 50th minute.
Christos Tzolis, one of Arsenal’s impressive summer
arrivals, produced a perfectly weighted pass that split the Chelsea defence and
found Havertz.
The German cleverly allowed the ball to run beyond
him, creating space for Odegaard, who calmly slotted the ball home from close
range to put Arsenal ahead.
Chelsea pushed for an equaliser but struggled to find
the same attacking rhythm that had produced emphatic victories over Fulham,
Luton and Brighton.
Malo Gusto missed a good opportunity to level the
score, while Estevao Willian came close late on when his powerful strike was
tipped over the bar by Raya.
Rogers also became involved in a heated exchange with
Declan Rice, prompting Arsenal supporters to mock the Chelsea midfielder with
chants suggesting he should have joined a “big club”.
The defeat highlighted Chelsea’s defensive weaknesses,
with Alonso still facing significant work to turn the Blues into genuine title
contenders.
For Arsenal, the victory represented another statement
of intent from the reigning champions as they pursue back-to-back Premier
League titles for the first time since the 1930s.
Arteta also got the better of his longtime
acquaintance Alonso, with the pair having known each other since their
childhood years in the Basque region of Spain.
Arsenal now move forward with three wins from three,
while Chelsea will look to regroup after suffering their first setback of the
new campaign.
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