This Sunday afternoon saw The Arsenal play Chelsea for the fourth time this season, probably one reason I am sick of the sight of them. They are Chelsea would be another reason I suppose. Over the years, I’ve noticed that when teams play each other too often over a short period of time things generally turn a little tight and fractious. Both sides have grown to know each other’s play and also too truly dislike each other’s annoying habits. Fortunately, our annoying habit from Chelsea’s point of view is not letting them win, a very handy habit that! And so it would prove to be again, as we pocketed the three points with a 2-1 win that featured goals and assists from across our defence. It wasn’t pretty at times but we got the most important job of the day done – three points in the bag to mind the gap in the Premier League title race. Of course, it would be remiss of me not to mention another gap that has been given an extremely serious minding this season – a glass is raised to St Totteringham. Cheers and better luck whenever next time might be chaps.
The Team
The Arsenal started with an unchanged XI from the previous week’s hammering of the hapless, and exactly in line with our own GHF preview expectations (nod to Ned):
Raya
Timber Saliba Gabriel Hincapie
Eze Zubimendi Rice
Saka Gyökeres Trossard
Another start for Eberechi Eze then, and with a strong bench that featured a welcome return for Kai Havertz but lacked Martin Ødegaard and Benjamin White, both still out.
The Game
Declan Rice got the game going on what I must admit was a measured start as little of note happened in a fairly even first 15 minutes. They had a half chance that the Chelsea debutant Sarr miscued and the jittery Sanchez in goal was nearly caught on the ball by Viktor but that was about it until Eze attempted a long-range punt over a retreating Sanchez that was worth a try I suppose but I did see that a look left might have put Hincapie clean through on the left-wing. In fact, Sanchez dropped the ball over the line from Eze’s shot and it should have been a corner, we didn’t get that one but we did earn another a few minutes later which Saka delivered expertly to the back post…………….
The Arsenal 1 Chelsea 0
Gabriel dominated the ineffective challenges of I think James and Pedro, nodded the ball across to Saliba who nodded it home off the luckless Sarr. Top delivery and execution. After that we largely controlled matters for the next 20 minutes really without taking advantage of some good situations around their penalty area and looked well worth the lead. The only real moment of alarm being a hospital ball back from Zubi to Raya, well Raya seemed calm, but I might have required medical treatment for sudden and unnecessary shock. Fortunately, a medicinal Caol Ila was at hand. Things then went downhill in the last couple of minutes of the first half, but just before that a tale of two penalty appeals, one for Viktor and one against Rice. I have rewatched carefully and objectively today and my considered opinion would be……
Victor – stone cold penalty
Declan – nothing in it
And there you have it.
Anyway, Raya had just done fantastically to scoop the ball over from the first of two Chelsea corners but could do nothing about the second as the ball skimmed off Hincapie’s head and straight into the net. Basically, when you have a good delivery at speed bad things can happen. No blame to Hincapie from me – he had an excellent first-half I thought, and his interchanging with Leo wide left was really good but the result was 1-1 at half-time again. Quite frustrating really, as clearly reflected in Saliba’s face as he walked off I thought.
2nd half
Last week we had started the second half strongly and quickly put things right at the toilet bowl. Could we do that again? No, is the short answer. The first 15 minutes were fairly even in terms of possession, but with the better chances for them in truth. Leo went off to be replaced by Gabi and the game wandered along until an Arsenal free-kick was punched incompetently out for a corner by Sanchez.
The Arsenal 2 Chelsea 1
This time the delivery was from Declan and the header from Timber, we were just too strong for them in the scrum, Timber dominating Sarr this time, and the lead was restored. Sanchez complained, I think he was gesturing to the referee that it wasn’t fair as he isn’t good at catching the ball. On seeing the replay, I laughed and VAR ignored him. After that, Neto did his bit for the cause by idiotically getting sent-off and then, presumably in embarrassment, whining pathetically. Oddly enough, the red card for Fofana last week was probably important as well, the unfortunate Sarr played ok but inadvertently helped us out on both goals. Did we see out the game well against 10 men? Not particularly, Eze could have wrapped it up around the 80th minute but shot too close to Sanchez and then we were too passive. Happily, Raya was on hand to did his job admirably and that was that.
For me, in summary, we got the little things right a little more than they did and none of our players is as idiotic as Neto so we have 3 points and they none. Mikel, however, a far better summariser than I, put it this way:
“A big win. I’m very happy. For big periods, I think the team performed in an excellent way. I think the margin should have been bigger at half-time. The moment, especially, that we conceded, it was painful. But as well as the quality of Chelsea, the players and what they can deliver. After scoring the 2-1, we had another big chance with Ebz. And then the red card, and I said that we should have managed that situation better. We can talk about that tomorrow!“
What to make of it all?
In all honesty I don’t think we can read too much into that game and I am not going to try, Manchester City had ground out their win the day before, we needed to do the same and did. Of course, we can enjoy that it’s three wins out of four against Chelsea – World Club Champions you’re having a laugh – with the added bonus of quite probably getting into Rosenoir’s head as his only three losses as manager of the classless crowd have come against The Arsenal. However, in a day of 2-1 wins in the Premier League this was the most important. Well done lads, put your feet up for the 10 minutes our crazy schedule allows, and then it’s on to Brighton. Nine league games to go, plus those other little cup things. Come on you Gunners!!
Cheers Matt. Enjoyable result, not enjoyable match.
Suspect there will be a few more like that. Which is fine s long as the first half of that sentence remains true.
Happy St Totteringham’s everyone!
Cheers Matt. Well done as wagyu beef, which I tried once with n the distant past. Better, actually. 😎
An accurate report Matt, that is a far more enjoyable read than the match itself was a watch. The first half was very much the tight match I expected with the visitors going toe to toe to try to stop us playing our game and until a couple of well taken corners in the dying minutes, the second of which rendered their equaliser, the biggest threat to our goal was Zubi’s inexplicable hospital ball to Raya. In truth we should have been more than one goal up by then, failing to take the final shot on several occasions when in good positions in their box.
The second half followed a different trajectory. The Chavs had a series of corners at the beginning of the second half, exerted a lot of pressure on our defence and we seemed unable to construct the moves we had produced in the first half – in truth, they looked the more likely team to score a winner until lo and behold we finally got another corner and Timber got on the end of Rice’s curling ball. Neto kindly, needlessly, won himself a second yellow and we hoped that would further relieve the pressure. Not a bit of it. We got even worse at retaining possession and the defence and midfield seemed to lose focus, organisation and strength with the result that the Chav forwards seemed able to run through them at will. We have to be very grateful to Raya for a couple of cat-like saves that delivered all three points. The media will probably again talk about the nervous crowd affecting the players but while the crowd was tense throughout, they were vocal and the nerves only began when we seemed to let the Chavs dominate the ball with ten men, run through our lines and threaten to rob us of the points.
Not pretty but job done, just! I fear that there will be more days like this before this season ends.
A fine review, Matt, tied up perfectly in your final para. Like you, I’ve already seen too much of the Bus Stop boys this season. They and the throng who tag a long with them are a difficult bunch to like.
That game was not the most easy nor the most enjoyable watch. Frankly, the period after Neto’s sending off was excruciating. However, the sole object for the team at commencement was to secure three points ad that mission was accomplished – if only just – when the final whistle blew some 96 minutes later.
There will be days when we pass to our opponents less often, mis-fire in our opponents final third less frequently and look less nervy at the back under pressure. But there won’t be many days when Gabriel is less determined to leap higher than any other player and Timber break through any defensive wall to secure a win for the Arsenal.
Win the next nine starting at Brighton.
Thanks Matt
An early start for us both and a nervy way to start the week.
However, we got it done with plenty of help from Raya – what a performance.
Gyokeres looked like a penalty but maybe Rice got away with one as well.
That was a tough one, but I doubt that any will get easier now.
Funny that the press narrative now seems to be that it’s Citeh’s title if they win all their games, comfortably ignoring that the same is true for us.
Siege mentality please, let’s get it done.
UTA
Very true, Noosa. It is indeed very much in our hands as much as in 115’s at the present time. So only pre-established narratives guide the presentation from the media.
And another thing…
The referee pulled us back to award us a free kick, on two or three occasions in the second half as we broke out in numbers rather than play advantage as we normally see nowadays. It was such a perverse thing to do. It was almost as if a PGMO agenda was being implemented to ensure that the title race became truly neck and neck to maximise consumer interest and engineer a showdown in the Emtihad in April. Conspiracy theorist? Moi?
Oh yes, baff. That was particularly irritating.
Spot on report, OM. It was a painful watch and the nerves on the pitch ramped up bizarrely after they went down to 10. Credit to them, I guess.
A few points. Firstly, St Totteringham’s Day was barely celebrated as far as I could see. Testament to just how much of an irrelevance they continue to be. FIOS.
Secondly, I’m rewatching the game on Sky, having been in the ground yesterday. Gary Neville is officially the equivalent of a wasp in human form. He fulfils precisely no function other than annoying. His commentary seems to consist almost entirely of saying what he wants to see, rather than what is happening. For all those who haven’t jumped on the BtM bandwagon, I would heartily recommend synching up the visuals with the .com audio.
Thirdly, Eze , I thought, kind of reverted to the mean yesterday in terms of switching on and doing the defensive work. It doesn’t seem as though he has fully received the message yet. Work to do.
Finally, and wholly unsurprisingly, I thought the referee was appalling. As Bath says above, the number of times he blew up when we were in advantageous situations was just too many. It was as though he was trying to disrupt us. Perhaps if the stoppages had resulted in bookings, I could understand a bit better. If not, then I have to ask yet again what the purpose was.
Job done, 3 points, Brighton next.
Also, for the corner prior to their equaliser, there ought to have been a foul given on Raya, who still made a superb save. Sarr is holding Raya with both arms. But VAR.
That’s a great report of a nervy match Matt. I am simply loving how us scoring from corners is winding everybody up. I love it when we score from corners! Like Bath I thought the crowd was loud and proud, despite it being tense.
Zubi looked mentally tired yesterday. Time to sit him down for a week. Raya immense.
We were royally entertained on the way to the game by Spurs falling over again at the Cottage. Especially good to hear son of Hale End Iwobi scoring a peachy winner.
Evidently the Fulham fans were giving it to the Tottenham fans yesterday singing 🎵Say hello say hello say hello to QPR. Say hello to QPR🎵
By the way
If anyone says we don’t deserve to be top of the league –
We’ve won the most games
We’ve lost the fewest games
We’ve scored the most goals
We’ve conceded fewest goals
So there!
The Arsenal won again.
Let them stew on that for a few days.
Excellent report, OM. Catches the game to a T.
Flowers for Raya, beyond doubt. Honourable mention to Hincapié, too.
Flowers for Ollie, too, for his GHF Predictathon performance this week. The latest leaderboard has now been posted. Did you deserve flowers or brickbats? You know where to find out…
Thanks Ned, as my score regressed just a smidgen perhaps I only deserve the bat and not the brick…….
And thanks all for the kind words. Only two league games to negotiate in March I think, Brighton away and Everton at home. Think the next one is probably going to be the toughest, other than Cheaty away, of our remaining games.
The Opta data shows that the share of set-piece goals (from corners, throw-ins and free-kicks but excluding penalties) in all PL goals this season is 27.5%, up from 20.6% last season and 19.8% the season before last. So people who live in glass houses, and all that…
To expand on C100’s list@12: only City has scored more goals from open play than us this season.
According to Ornstein, if Spurs are relegated most will be facing a 50% cut in wages.
Panic amongst purveyors of fancy haircuts in London.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7080564/2026/03/02/tottenham-relegation-clauses-player-contracts/
The Swiss Ramble has published his breakdown of the club’s recently published financial results: https://swissramble.substack.com/p/arsenal-finances-202425
Much fascinating detail (for those fascinated by financial accounts!) and his analysis rams home the financial importance of deep runs in the Champions League, but his conclusion is:
There is plenty of good news in Arsenal’s latest set of figures, as the club just about broke-even, while setting a new club record for revenue for the third year in a row, with new highs in all three revenue streams.
However, their budget has also continued to grow apace, with steep increases in wages and player amortisation, while other operating expenses have dramatically grown…
…the club has clearly come a long way, but the process will have only truly worked if Arsenal manage to get over the line after so many frustrating near misses.
Blimey, thanks for the flowers, Ned.
And indeed, despite the unfortunate OG, I thought Hincapié played a pretty good match.
One of those details is that Islington permits only six non-football events a year at the Ems, whereas Haringey allows the neighbours 30. Another is that the women’s team, as it plays more games at the Ems, has attracted an average attendance higher than that of four men’s PL teams.
Re: the headline, “Rosenior to ‘adjust team selection’ based on discipline”
Comment: Good luck with that one Liam, seeing as NINE different Chav players have been awarded red cards this season. Sounds like a game of Whac-a-Mole to me.
Sorry, didn’t mean to post that twice but it’s a good read.
Thanks for your report Matt. Very fair and it catches the edginess of the game perfectly. I was all set for my trip to the game when midway through the morning Mrs TTG informed me that I’d better get home because water was pouring through our ceiling . Pouring was an exaggeration but it wasn’t a good sign. To cut to the chase the manifold and other parts of the radiator have given up the ghost like the Spuds have given up playing in the Premier League . I managed to get an engineer out, clear up the mess and put the ticket on the Exchange. It went in less than a minute .
I was disappointed to miss a game of this importance. I always enjoy seeing us beat the Chavs. Any Gooner who started going in the sixties will know this was a fixture we were invariably heavily beaten in .
We weren’t yesterday but it was an excruciating watch , not helped as CER says by tge execrable Neville . We could have achieved a worse result yesterday but thanks to Raya we didn’t . Several of our players were below par but the defence was very good . The attack less so but we won and at this stage it’s all that matters . St.Totteringham appeared on the roof of the Emirates near the end and waved benignly . He was the calmest person in the ground
From today’s Grauniad: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/mar/02/arsenal-fans-anxiety-timber-premier-league?CMP=share_btn_url
I don’t recognise these “anxious fans”, of whom Jurrien Timber speaks. There certainly aren’t any here, ARE THERE?
I’m not “anxious”. Just concerned, worried, paranoid, fearful, pessimistic. But definitely not anxious!!!
Brighton away won’t be easy and City have Forest at home. Not anxious at all!
I am very worried whether I am paranoid enough.
@26;thanks for the link Pangloss
and @22 bt8 for the Keown interview.
Keown is fully in tune with MA mantra, enjoy the ride, one game at a time
and no doubt they will talk about not panicking this week. Be a good test at
Brighton but I think we can come through, more like Leeds than Wolves
would be good 😊
I think it’s far too late to stop the fans panicking but even on the TV I could
hear the support loud and clear, grim as it was.
There was no panic in the ground on Sunday. I thought the support was typically solid. I think for a lot of fans, excluded from the ground due to the dearth of available tickets, feel that in order to feel part of the experience they have to make a virtual noise. They are easily manipulated by those in both mainstream legacy media as well as new media, for the most part hugely disingenuous, for whom whipping up apparent crises is their living. Perhaps these fans are more to be pitied than blamed. Both home and especially away support bases mirror none of this confected angst.
The issue is simple. On the assumption that C115y win their game in hand, they have to beat us at home. The title is on a knife edge. The Grown Ups embrace it.
Spot on CER @30.
Thanks Matt – a very enjoyable read of a game against one of the two most dislikable teams in the league. Make that three, actually.
Whether the fans are anxious or not it’s fairly clear that the players are feeling the nerves.
It is a bit worrying that we pass the ball around forever at 0-0 (not only in this game) and totally dominate possession while some / many / all of us are crying out for a goal, but faced with 10 men and holding a 2-1 lead we resort to long balls and panicked clearances as we sit back and invite pressure. It’s also true that earlier in the season at 2-1 up I was absolutely confident the opposition were not going to score. Currently my heart is in my mouth every time the opposition get in our half. It has to be the three second placed finishes getting to me but I am struggling to enjoy this boat trip of Mikel’s anywhere near as much as I would like.
Still, nobody expected this game to be easy – there are only two of those a season – and well done to the lads for grinding out the win.
While we’re looking ahead to Brighton it could be worth a quick look back on the weekend
>>>>>>>