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Arsenal went three points clear of the Premier League rankings, defeating London rivals Chelsea 5-0 at Emirates Stadium.
Leandro Trossard scored his second goal in three days to put Arsenal ahead in the fourth minute, and despite both sides having their fair share of chances in a vibrant, end-to-end first half, Mikel Arteta’s side went into the break with a slim lead.
However, Chelsea, who had smashed Everton 6-0 in their previous top-flight encounter, were blown away after the break, with Arsenal duo Kai Havertz and Ben White both scoring twice to help the hosts clinch their greatest win over the Blues since a 5-1 victory in 1930.
The Gunners’ victory ended a two-match winless streak at the Emirates and moved them three points clear of second-placed Liverpool at the Premier League summit, despite the fact that the Reds have a game in hand, while reigning champions Manchester City, who are four points behind in third, have two games in hand.
Chelsea, who lost the reverse fixture 3-1 at Stamford Bridge earlier this season, have now lost consecutive games against Arsenal for the first time since a run of three defeats between 2001 and 2003, and their eight-game unbeaten streak in the Premier League has ended.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side has now lost 11 Premier League games this season, and they remain in ninth position, three points behind sixth-placed Newcastle United and seventh-placed Manchester United, both of whom play on Wednesday night.
Arsenal back on track for the Premier League Title
Prior to kickoff, the absence of Cole Palmer from Chelsea’s matchday squad made headlines; the attacker, who has been directly involved in 41% of Chelsea’s goals this season, was absent due to illness, and captain Conor Gallagher was tasked with filling in at number 10.
Pochettino made four changes to the Blues’ team that lost 1-0 to Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-finals last weekend, starting Benoit Badiashile, Axel Disasi, Mykhaylo Mudryk, and Alfie Gilchrist, the latter making his Premier League debut.
Arsenal’s Arteta made two changes to the squad that defeated Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-0 at Molineux last time out, bringing in Takehiro Tomiyasu and Thomas Partey, the latter making only his second start since August at the cost of Jorginho.
Trossard scored in the Gunners’ win over Wolves and opened the scoring against Chelsea in the first four minutes, his third goal in four games and tenth in the Premier League this season.
Declan Rice began the scoring with a powerful maneuver that escaped Djordje Petrovic’s knee moves. Trossard then attempted a close-range left-footed shot. Petrovic may become irritated if he fails to stop the Belgian at close range.
Arsenal vs Chelsea | Match Details
The two clubs had a total of 16 attempts on goal in the first half-hour, with Arsenal recording 11 of them, but Chelsea came close to regaining parity on several times.
Badiashile glanced at Mudryk’s initial pass, which was blasted into the danger zone while he was covering corners. It raced out for a goal kick and Disasi could do nothing to stop it.
Nicolas Jackson, who was fortunate to remain on the field after a late stud-raised challenge on Tomiyasu’s ankle was cleared by VAR, outpaced William Saliba down the left flank before having a cross bounce off Gabriel Magalhaes and hit the outside of the post.
Petrovic then made a fantastic reaction stop when Trossard’s shot deflected off Disasi inside the area, before Enzo Fernandez rolled an effort from the edge of the box just inches past the left-hand post.
Chelsea played well in the second half, and just as the half was coming to an end, Jackson had a good chance.
The Senegalese player failed to meet Gallagher’s tempting cross from the right after Saliba lifted his boot.
As soon as the ball bounced off Jackson’s face, David Raya immediately recovered it.
