Chelsea 2-4 Arsenal
Report by Layth Yousif
at Stamford Bridge

ARSENAL beat Chelsea 4-2 with an outstanding attacking performance to reignite their previously fading Champions League hopes in front of 32,249 at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening.

In an utterly pulsating match, Eddie Nketiah grabbed the headlines through his first Premier League goals of the season, with a brace against the club that released him at the tender age of 16, insisting he was too small for them.

The Lewisham-born 22-year-old proved the Blues wrong on a memorable night for the Gunners, while Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka also scored, as Mikel Arteta’s side ended their dismal run of three defeats on the bounce with a thrilling victory. 

Modest Nketiah said afterwards: “It’s nice to score, but it’s more important to be involved in a win in a London derby and getting the three points to bounce back, that’s the most important thing.”

In his best game in an Arsenal shirt, the lively Nketiah broke through the Chelsea backline, pouncing on a poor backpass from the underwhelming Andreas Christensen – expected to join Barcelona this summer – before evading N’Golo Kante to slot home with aplomb past Blues keeper Edouard Mendy, and put Arsenal 1-0 ahead after 13 minutes.

In an open game, Thomas Tuchel’s side were not to be deterred, with Timo Werner cutting inside to level 240 seconds later, when his shot evaded Aaron Ramsdale via a deflection off Granit Xhaka, after Ruben Loftus Cheek won the ball back to feed the German attacker.

Smith Rowe – who grabbed the winner when Arsenal won at Chelsea last season – then put the Gunners 2-1 ahead after an outstanding team goal with a move that started in their own box.

The flowing move culminated in the academy graduate guiding the ball past Mendy with a low right-footed curler into the far corner on 27 minutes, after being fed by Arsenal’s captain for the evening, Martin Odegaard, on the edge of the box. 

In a captivating spectacle, Chelsea levelled again to make it 2-2, when captain Cesar Azpilicueta nipped in to guide the ball past Ramsdale from close range following Mason Mount’s cross. And to think there were only 32 minutes on the clock.

Like two prizefighters slugging it out to a standstill, there was no surprise that the phenomenal pace dropped slightly, even if there was still time for Marcos Alonso to fire high over the bar for Chelsea. While the quick feet of Smith Rowe made space for a chance that he angled narrowly wide.

Reflecting on a breathless opening 45 minutes, a bewildered Tuchel said after the match: “It was a totally wild and open game in the first half. The level and amount of mistakes in consecutive games makes it impossible…you cannot win games [playing] like this.”

Everywhere you looked Arsenal showed fight and courage. 

Not least through a disciplined performance from Granit Xhaka –who completely eclipsed his jaded looking Chelsea counterpart N’Golo Kante – alongside the eye-catching urgency of Mohammed Elneny. 

The intense pace continued after the interval which saw the persistent Nketiah squeeze the ball home 10 minutes into the second half to make the scoreline 3-2 to Arsenal. The goal prompting a wild eruption of joy between players and visiting supporters behind the goal. 

Faltering £97.5m Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku was hooked by Tuchel on the hour mark with debate sure to intensify about his long-term future in west London. 

The match was also notable for the first limited crowd at Stamford Bridge, after former owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the British government for his ties to Russia’s Vladimir Putin – the gate was 10,000 down on what could have been expected, with only Chelsea season ticket holders and the travelling Arsenal contingent allowed to buy tickets. 

The visitors’ vibrant performance was made even sweeter by the realisation that the depleted Gunners were without the influential Thomas Partey,  Kieran Tierney and long-term absentee Takehiro Tomiyashu. 

As an exciting game drew to a close Saka was hauled down by Azpilicueta, following a cross from substitute Cedric.

Showing character, the 20-year-old attacker stepped up to seal the match with his first penalty since the Euro 2020 final at Wembley last summer – and a never to be forgotten victory that surely indicates that the balance of power in London is once again shifting from west to north, after residing so long at Stamford Bridge.

As if to underline the shift, Blues leader Azpilicueta embroiled himself in an unseemly row with a set of Chelsea supporters at the final whistle. “Perhaps they were Arsenal fans,” Tuchel said wryly after the match.

No wonder the loyal and vociferous 3,000 travelling Arsenal supporters sang loud and proud into the night after Tuchel’s side conceded 11 goals in their last three home games, as the race for Champions League qualification revved up once again.

Speaking afterwards, Arteta said: “We scored four goals with our academy players which is unique and great.”

“I know that our fans have been disappointed in the last two weeks, because of the expectation we have created for them, and thankfully today we give them something back.”

With the Gunners drawing level with Spurs with six games to play, who knows how this absorbing — and utterly unpredictable — season will end.

All we know in this enthralling race is that Arsenal host fast-fading Manchester United in the early kick-off on Saturday lunchtime, while Gunners rivals Tottenham travel to resurgent Brentford for the teatime clash.

“We’re going to go for it,” Nketiah said.

“We want to push and give everything and I think we’re right in the race and we believe in ourselves, we want to do it for the fans, so we’re going to give it our all until the end of the season.”