Arsenal delivered a tactical masterclass at the Emirates Stadium, taming a spirited Chelsea side with a commanding 2-1 Premier League victory in a high-stakes London derby.
The Gunners conceded their first goal of the season when England midfielder, Morgan Rogers, stunned the home fans as he swung his right foot at a dropping ball to place a volley past goalkeeper David Raya.
Arsenal thought they had levelled shortly afterwards when Riccardo Calafiori bundled in after Ezri Konsa’s effort had come back off the post in a goalmouth scramble, but a VAR check adjudged Konsa to have been offside.
The hosts swarmed forward though and Bukayo Saka was denied by Emi Martinez. Chelsea’s defence cracked in the 25th minute when their former striker Kai Havertz cut in from the right and his low left-foot shot crept in past Emi Martinez.
Chelsea’s counter-attacking style almost rewarded them in first-half stoppage time as Pedro Neto’s shot hit the post.
Arsenal began the second half strongly and grabbed the lead when Christos Tzolis’s ball in from the left was dummied by Havertz and captain Martin Odegaard planted a shot high into the net.
The points never looked totally secure for Arteta’s side and it needed Raya to turn over Estevao’s dipping effort to ensure their 100% start continued.
Victory left Arsenal level at the top with Manchester City with both sides on a maximum nine points after three games. Chelsea’s first dropped points left them on six.
“It was a big game, massive game, tough opponent and we got there in the end so brilliant,” Odegaard said.
“Our mentality is to keep fighting. We have shown that many times. We never want to concede early but the reaction is top.”
Chelsea’s free-scoring start to the season under new manager Xabi Alonso had marked them out as potential title rivals to Arsenal and that still might well be the case.
But on Sunday, despite a dream start, they were overpowered by their London rivals, who were clearly seeking to make a statement, and could have few complaints as their winless run against Arsenal stretched to 12 in all competitions.
“They are hard to beat, they are hard to create chances (against), but we had three or four chances to score more than one goal,” Alonso said.
“This is a process. It’s still early days for us. Not happy that we couldn’t get anything but we need to keep calm and carry on.”
