LESS MESSI, MORE MESSY!
It’s a derby thriller but they serve up a comedy of errors
It WAS one of those games. Marcos Alonso looked to have won it for Chelsea, then made the mistake that gave Arsenal their injury-time equaliser.
Hector Bellerin gave away the penalty that brought Chelsea back into the game, then earned Arsenal a point with almost his last kick. And Jack Wilshere scored his first Premier League goal since May 24, 2015, a momentous occasion Arsenal celebrated by holding that lead for all of four minutes.
In other words, a mess. An exhilarating, entertaining, lovely mess — but a mess nonetheless for two teams angling to secure places in next season’s Champions League.
the result probably suited Chelsea more as they are higher up the table and were away from home, but there were still grounds for concern. When a striker has three one- on- one chances and misses all of them, a manager should worry. Alvaro Morata was supposed to replace the intimidating presence of Diego Costa. Last night he appeared to be channelling the spirit of Fernando torres at Stamford Bridge. And not in a good way.
We have come to expect games like this against the elite at the Emirates Stadium this season. Losing to Manchester United, drawing with Liverpool, it was very much the same. Knockabout; no structure. Manchester City can concede goals, we know that, but they have a clearly defined game plan. Arsenal have a go, then the other lot have a go. It finished 2-2, it could have been 5-5.
thibaut Courtois and Petr Cech made excellent saves. Morata and Alexandre Lacazette missed plenty. Even after Bellerin had made it level, Davide Zappacosta had time to hit the bar. It is thrilling, but will it get Arsenal back in the Champions League next season? Probably not via domestic qualification.
If tottenham beat West Ham tonight, Arsenal will be four points and at least 10 goals adrift of them in sixth place — and they are already five points off Liverpool in fourth. this was great fun for the neutrals, but it lacked the precision required to nail down Arsenal’s future. they may have to take the Europa League route pioneered by Jose Mourinho at Manchester United last season. Watch UEFA get the vapours if England get five clubs into the Champions League, back to back.
that’s for another day, though. For now, what a game. Four goals in the last 27 minutes and every one changed the balance of power. Arsenal led, Chelsea equalised. Chelsea led, Arsenal equalised. Both sides will feel as if they won, and lost.
Chronologically, the action begins with Wilshere’s first league goal since the final game of the 2014-15 season, a 4-1 home win over West Bromwich. this, most certainly, should have made a bigger splash. A significant intervention. Wilshere has been in lovely form since finally getting his chance again, but the goals do not come. Just one, in a 6-0 Europa League victory over Bate Borisov. Not what one might call crucial.
THIS would have been different. A finish that belied close to a three-year goalscoring drought. Mesut Ozil cut the ball back, Rob Holding vied with Morata on the edge of the area, the Chelsea man getting a fateful touch. Wilshere collected the scraps and, outstripping none other than N’Golo Kante, defeated Courtois with a superb, powerful, first-time shot.
It would have capped an excellent spell in the first team for Arsenal’s prodigal son. Instead, his side gave the lead away at the first opportunity.
the moment Chelsea tried to force a way back, Arsenal blinked. Bellerin had no need to make the challenge on Eden Hazard, clipping the bottom of his foot as they jostled for the ball in the area. the home fans cried dive, but it was a foul. Hazard stepped up, waited for Petr Cech to commit and, cool as you like, brought Chelsea back into the game.
three minutes later, Morata missed his second one-on-one of the match. In the first half, he had let Arsenal spectacularly off the hook after their naivety had presented him with a gift. A long ball hit in hope from the back was allowed to drop by Calum Chambers, who cannot have appreciated the position occupied by teammate Shkodran Mustafi. Either he didn’t see him, and presumed Morata was offside, or he saw Mustafi and presumed he was already dealing with the loose ball.
So Chambers stopped and let it roll, and Morata ran on, somewhat surprised, and now with only Cech to beat. Instead he flopped, embarrassingly so, missing at the far post, just as he did when set clear by Cesc Fabregas in the 70th minute, Chambers in pursuit.
It remained for a full back, Alonso, to show Chelsea’s striker how it should be done. the goal was simplicity itself. Zappacosta, brought on to test Ainsley Maitland-Niles with fresh legs, did exactly that, turning the young man inside out before crossing for Alonso, who got in front of Mustafi for his sixth goal of the season. He has 12 in the Premier League since the start of the last campaign, five more than any other defender. Wilshere would kill for such a return.
And that looked like Arsenal done. But are they ever? Leicester, Liverpool, how many times at the Emirates this season have they been written off, only to rally? Alonso’s poor headed clearance put Chelsea under pressure, substitute Danny Welbeck got a touch, Bellerin met the loose ball just inside the area, rifling it past Cour- tois. What remained? Another Morata miss. One- on- one again, straight at Cech, Zappacosta off the bar with the rebound.
Earlier, Alexis Sanchez contrived to hit both posts — Courtois tipped it on to his right, it travelled across the goal-line and hit the left — Morata missed his kick at the near post, and Lacazette let a couple of sitters go to waste. tiemoue Bakayoko should have scored at least two, Ozil came close, and Wilshere escaped a second yellow for diving having already been booked for a late tackle on Fabregas.
Phew. And now breathe. the players, apparently, have been left absolutely exhausted by this holiday schedule. What this match would have looked like had they been properly at it, then, heaven knows.
ARSENAL (3-4-2-1): CECH 8.5; Chambers 6 (Walcott 88min), Mustafi 6, Holding 6.5; Bellerin 6.5, Wilshere 7, Xhaka 6.5, Maitland-Niles 6.5; Ozil 7, Sanchez 7; Lacazette 6 (Welbeck 80).
Subs not used: Mertesacker, Ospina, Iwobi, Coquelin, Elneny. Scorers: Wilshere 63, Bellerin 90+2. Booked: Wilshere, Holding, Ozil.
Manager: Arsene Wenger 7. CHELSEA (3-5-2): Courtois 7; Azpilicueta 7, Christensen 7, Cahill 6.5; Moses 5.5 (Zappacosta 56, 7), Bakayoko 6.5, Kante 7, Fabregas 7 (Drinkwater 70, 6), Alonso 7; Hazard 8 (Willian 82), Morata 4.
Subs not used: Caballero, Rudiger, Pedro, Batshuayi. Scorers: Hazard pen 67, Alonso 84. Booked: Fabregas, Courtois. Manager: Antonio Conte 7. Referee: Anthony Taylor 6.5. Attendance: 59,379.
ARSENE WENGER branded referee Anthony Taylor’s decision to award Chelsea a penalty ‘farcical’ as he launched another scathing attack on English officials.
Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin scored a last-gasp leveller to earn a 2-2 draw after Chelsea had battled back from Jack Wilshere’s opener to go ahead through Eden Hazard and Marcos Alonso.
But Wenger fumed at Taylor punishing Bellerin for a foul on Hazard, which allowed Chelsea to level from the spot.
‘The regret we have is we were first to score and after that we have a farcical