da bet esporte： It’s one of the Premier League’s most well-known games. Everyone around the world knows about Arsenal and Chelsea. They are two of the best-supported teams in the country, and the glamour of their London homes only adds to the glitzy feel around the derby, not just in the UK but around the world.
da leao： Perhaps last season’s Premier League meetings between the two sides sum this up very well. It was Arsenal’s thrashing of Chelsea that has been widely seen as igniting the blue torch paper for the Blues’ title charge under Antonio Conte last term. But what that Gunners victory also did was persuade many onlookers that Arsene Wenger’s side could genuinely challenge for the title. By the time the second game came along and Chelsea reversed the result to a heavy victory in their favour, the shift in the balance of power was obvious.
Head to head – Overall, it’s evens
This is a fixture which really has had a massive say in the destination of the title even from the early years. And even if they haven’t challenged each other directly very often.
Overall, given the fact that both these clubs have won multiple titles in the Premier League era, it’s clear that this is going to be an evenly matched fixture when you look back over the years. But the balance in power and the fact that it has shifted is also very telling.
From the inception of Premier League to the turn of the Millennium, Chelsea beat Arsenal only three times in 15 meetings. Since then, though, Chelsea have had the upper hand, as the two have switched positions. Chelsea are now the team who usually challenge for the title, whilst Arsenal have had to make do with European appearances and occasional FA Cup triumphs. Much like Chelsea two decades ago. But what that has done is brought the overall head to head record between the two to a point where things are now relatively even.
Top scorers – Didier Drogba and Thierry Henry
The arrival of Roman Abramovich changed the nature of Chelsea Football Club and indeed this rivalry. That can’t be denied. But Chelsea certainly weren’t Premier League pushovers before their change in ownership. Games between the two were always top of the table clashes, even in the Wenger glory days when Chelsea weren’t challenging the Arsenal-Man-United duopoly. Chelsea still provided one of the toughest tests the league could offer.
Perhaps, in the decade-plus since Jose Mourinho arrived at Chelsea and Arsenal fell from their Invincible perch, that has changed somewhat. But what’s clear is that this is a big game that brings out the best in both teams’ big players.
And so it is unsurprising that Didier Drogba and Thierry Henry would be tied as the top Premier League scorers in this fixture. Both are legends of their clubs and the leagues, and both delivered when it mattered most.
The Unforgettable match
Whilst the fixture is fairly even overall, it doesn’t mean most of the games are.
Sure, there have been closely fought classics. Arsenal triumphed 5-3 at Stamford Bridge in 2011. Or another Gunners victory at Highbury in 2003, when four of the five goals were scored in the final ten minutes, might stick in the mind. But when you beat one of your most bitter local rivals 6-0 on the occasion of their legendary manager’s 1,000th game in charge, that has to be remembered forever by both sides.
It was a day to forget for Arsenal, but also for referee Andre Marriner, who sent off Kieran Gibbs after mistaking him for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who handled the ball in the box.
For everyone else, they might also forget the dominance of Chelsea that day. A red card on 15 minutes will probably ruin the contest in most games, and perhaps that explains the 6-0 scoreline to a degree, but not everyone remembers the fact that Chelsea were already 2-0 up inside the first ten minutes, and had Chamberlain not handled the ball, it would’ve been three. Indeed, it was when Eden Hazard converted the resulting penalty.
It was an unforgettable match, and on a day of such occasion, it simply underlined Arsene Wenger’s seeming powerlessness in the modern game. But when people look back on it, it wouldn’t be surprising if they focused on what it meant for Arsenal, rather than how good Chelsea were – a Chelsea side under Jose Mourinho who would go on to lift the title at a canter the very next season.
The Shared hero – Petr Cech
Plenty of players have crossed the capital city to play for both clubs. Some end up incurring the wrath of their former club when they do so. For his longevity at the top and the fact that he was genuinely one of the best full-backs of his generation, Ashley Cole would deserve plaudits here if it weren’t for the fact that he’s anything but a shared hero, a Judas to one and a King to the other. The fact that William Gallas went in the opposite direction tarnishes the Frenchman’s legacy, too; guilty by association.
Cesc Fabregas occupies a similar place, even if Arsenal fans must surely look back with reasonably fond memories at a young Fabregas making his way in the game at the Emirates. His move to Barcelona and then his return to west rather than north London means whatever heroism he’s remembered for, it’s certainly not shared, either.
But the greatest servant for both clubs is surely Petr Cech. The Czech goalkeeper who served Chelsea with distinction, winning everything there was to win on a great shared journey with the club and its fans. Since his move to Arsenal – his sale for a low fee and to a rival was presumably sanctioned on the basis of his loyalty to the club – Cech perhaps hasn’t been as good as he was in his prime at Chelsea. But he’s been the the Gunners’ number one for a while now, and has, once again, given his all to his new club. And despite his age, there are much worse keepers still out there.