Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
This win is most significant of Emery’s
BRITAIN’S BEST COLUMNIST FROM THE EMIRATES STADIUM
IT WAS only a goal-kick, won off the legs of Willian, who was not exactly threatening to do much damage anyway.
Yet Sokratis let out some sort of primal scream and landed a celebratory uppercut on some imaginary foe.
It was only a goal-kick. Without pigeon-holing a nationality, Sokratis can be an excitable sort of guy, but his zeal and commitment was typical of this Arsenal performance.
They knew, Unai Emery knew, this victory over a Big-Six rival was one of the most significant of the new manager’s reign.
They knew, Emery (below) knew, this victory over a Big-Six rival would lift a mood that had not turned sour, but was slowly becoming less upbeat.
Because in a way, recent times have felt like a return to the not-soold Arsenal days.
You know, those days when the natives were somewhat restless and few had a clue what was going on behind the scenes.
The days when transfer policy seemed slightly befuddled and there was always a selection of minor off-the-field issues to distract from the proper business.
Latest of those for this vintage was Per Mertesacker, main man at the academy, deciding to take in Washington Wizards against the New York Knicks rather than watch Arsenal’s FA Youth Cup win over Spurs.
Throw in the declaration that January purchases are off the agenda, a less-than-inspiring run of results, a lamentable performance at the London Stadium last weekend and a non-playing £350,000-a-week midfielder and you have a familiar north London cocktail of discontent.
Yet you could not fault the Emirates support from the moment Anthony Taylor whistled proceedings to a start. It felt like the crowd knew this carried more significance than a routine Premier League fixture. And the players did too.
They were demonic in their commitment, none more so than Aaron Ramsey. Quite how the club has allowed him to be in a position where he can haggle over wages with Juventus, and whoever else, is one of football’s impenetrable mysteries.
Inexhaustible, inventive, incisive, he is a quintessential, high-end Premier League player, perfectly complementing attacking duo Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette, whose movement and intellect was simply too much for Chelsea with David Luiz at his dizzy worst.
Lacazette’s finish for the first was Aguero-like in its precision and power and an irrefutable application for automatic starting rights. He would certainly get into Chelsea’s team, in that empty slot up top.
Yes, he has limited resources in that department, but Maurizio Sarri’s ploy of sometimes playing without a striker puzzles.
As for his deployment of N’Golo Kante, it’s becoming a long-running gag. There were times Chelsea switched play wide and the only target for a cross was Kante. He targets men, he’s not a target man.
Sarri-ball is becoming predictable and three wins in the last six Premier League games is not the sort of form that will keep pace with the leading trio.
And on this evidence you would not back them to stay ahead of Arsenal if Emery can build on this.
He will have to do it without the help of Hector Bellerin, whose knee injury looks serious.
That was the only dark moment on a bright evening for Arsenal, who also celebrated Laurent Koscielny making a rare, but welcome, appearance on the scoresheet.
No wonder Sokratis was one of the last to leave the pitch after saluting all four stands.
No wonder Sokratis celebrated a goal-kick.
It was one of those sort of nights.