The Stamford Bridge Diaries – The Chelsea perspective
The master-class finish from Drogba and the “rocket” from Alex fired Chelsea 4 points clear at the top of the table. It was the same old story for Chelsea in the London derby; a great game played at a stunning pace. The action
began in the very first minute when Chamakh pushed his header wide and seconds later Koscielny missed a header from two yards.
I believe that was where Arsenal lost the game. Had Arsenal converted those chances earlier on, things might have been different. So Arsenal shouldn’t have any excuse that they were unlucky. They had their chances; the only difference
between them and Chelsea was that the latter converted its chances.
Chelsea had a slow start to the game with Ramires finding it hard to fill up the space left by the injured Frank Lampard. But as the game went on, the young Brazilian grew in confidence and just before the half time interval, the number 7 won the ball deep
in the Arsenal half and played a perfectly weighted ball to Ashley Cole, who sent a great ball in to Drogba and the rest is history. It was a stunning finish that sent the home fans into a frenzy - a lovely back flick off the post and in.
After the interval, things did not change much and midway into the second half Chelsea could have sealed the deal when Squillaci dwindled and Anelka took advantage; but after beating Fabianski he managed to miss the open goal as
well – a sitter squandered in my opinion. Anelka, I believe, did not have a good game. He was average, he was slow, and his finishing was awful on the day.
Chelsea, as the game went on, started to attack more and more and in the 85th minute, Anelka won a freekick 30 yards out. With Drogba taking the previous ones, it was Alex’s turn, who unleashed a screamer into the top corner. The game was won there and then.
An emphatic performance and once again Arsenal found themselves at the wrong end of a London derby. Chelsea has won four of the last five encounters against the Gunners. It seems Chelsea love playing against their north London rivals and Drogba loves scoring
against them. There was a lot of hype created about his form against Arsenal, and he once again lived up to those expectations.
Arsenal throughout the game had their chances with Chamakh in the midst of almost all the attacks. He missed his headers and managed to stay away from the score sheet. The Gunners missed Robin Van Persie it can be said; or maybe even Bendtner. It makes me wonder
if Chamakh has got what it takes to play in the EPL. The physicality of the league may just be taking its toll on the Moroccan international. He had an awful game and hasn’t had real good games since putting on the red of Arsenal this summer. The former Bordeaux
striker has to work really hard to settle into such a competitive league. We can only give him time. Let’s see how long he takes to be at a level he impressed Wenger with – his outstanding performances in the French league and the Champions League.
On the whole it was a great performance, especially after the defeat at Eastlands last week. The only scar from this defeat could be injuries to Obi Mikel and Alex, with both limping off. How often have we seen Arsenal players
limp off against the physical Chelsea, but this time it was the opposite that happened. Let’s hope the injuries are not serious as we already have one populated injury list. Other than that, the season should be back on track (if someone ever felt it went
off track after last Sunday’s defeat). After winning against Arsenal and with United continuously dropping points, Chelsea should be the team to beat this season. Next up it is a daunting trip to Villa Park, a place where Chelsea hasn’t performed well for
some time now. However, with the weekend’s win the team’s confidence should be sky high and Chelsea should win the game as they have both the form and the capability.
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