What went wrong against Chelsea?
Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal squad were the standout favourites to win against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday night but in a surprise turn of events, Chelsea looked to be the better side for 70% of the game. Although Arsenal had a lot of possession, they didn’t do much with it and after such a huge win against Manchester City a few weeks ago, you can’t help but feel we dropped a needed two points.
Arsenal came out looking tired and not like the same side we’ve grown accustomed to seeing so far this season, a real lack of energy and desire and after being so solid in the first few games, it looked like there was something missing. Saka, Gabriel and Martinelli all started after coming back from injuries, should have brought a boost to Arteta system but for a lot of the game we looked completely lost.
Arteta again made the right changes at the right time that ultimately won us the point, but it still wasn’t the Arsenal performance we’ve got so used to seeing. A lot of our lads went away and played with their countries in the international break and could be tired after playing, travelling etc…but after a few days back at London Coloney you’d expect Arteta to notice if some weren’t up to the task.
But I personally think that having that two-week international break stopped our momentum, after such a great performance against City, where we walked away surprise winners, having a two-week break stops that momentum and can cause disarray in the dressing room and on the pitch. Maybe we thought going to Chelsea who have been an easier task than it was, Chelsea have been struggling since last season and maybe we underestimated Pochettino and what he’s doing at the club.
Chelsea also won their last three games and have looked to have started to gel properly together, and we’re also walking in with the momentum from winning after having such a rocky start to the season. Chelsea set up to 4-2-3-1 in attack but were set up in a 4-4-2 formation when defending ,which created a low block that for most of the game we couldn’t get through.
Ultimately, we were lucky to grab a point and Chelsea looked to be the better side, im not sure if its just an international break hangover or what happened but it doesn’t look like the side Arteta’s built up over the past few seasons. Although it was a tough match we still remain undefeated in the Premier League and a draw is always better than a loss. To come back from 2-0 down in the dying minutes of a game shows character and show’s the fans that they won’t stop fighting for the badge till the final whistle.
A lot to improve and a lot to take away from the match and hopefully we see a more confident side when we face Sevilla mid-week.
What’s your thoughts Gooners?
Daisy Mae