And indeed it was 'nothing personal'. Arsenal have moved on from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. And it's clear why and how they have done so. But I'll get to that later.
Another 'statement' win took Arsenal back to the top of the table, having been usurped by Manchester City's somewhat fortunate last-minute penalty winner over 'only Fulham'. And it's interesting to note, by the way, that we've now played 4 matches against the rest of the so-called Big Six, and have registered three wins and a somewhat unfortunate defeat. As many points as we gleaned from 10 matches against the same group last season. Citeh have three points from just two corresponding matches; but Arsenal have apparently had an easy schedule so far... Point of Order - Newcastle are going to have to go into this mix any moment now.
So, in case anyone is still in doubt about Arsenal this season (I'll start with Gary Neville, shall I?), Arsenal are right in the title race. And if you look at the table it could be argued that it's already a two-horse race.
Now, I'm aware that Chelsea have injuries (James, Chilwell, Fofana and Kante out, Kovacic not fully fit), and that Arteta could pick his first choice XI; a group of players who know exactly what they're doing. And Arsenal bossed them all over the pitch for fully 90 minutes, and the only surprise is that it was only 1-0. Of course, there's always that sense of jeopardy when a lead is so slender and one mistake can change a team's fortunes, but... Chelsea had 44% possession, just 5 shots (one on target), an xG of 0.3, committed 20 fouls and had 5 players booked. At home, where they hadn't lost since last April (also to Arsenal, by the way). Arsenal took charge immediately, and barely gave Chelsea a sniff.
And this is the mighty Chelsea, remember. How the wheel has turned! But it's possible that we merely caught them at a bad time. What I'd like to see is Arsenal go to Liverpool, or Tottenham, and do this. I reckon that a victory at one of those grounds might just mean a bit more. The black heart was torn out of Chelsea when Abramovich was forced to sell, and it's going to be a while before they recover. But there again, do we care?
Now to player analysis: Ramsdale had little or nothing to do, and didn't put a foot wrong. His distribution was excellent throughout. Ben White had whoever Chelsea put up against him in his pocket, and could additionally afford to spend a lot of time supporting Bukayo Saka. Zinchenko - just back from injury - helped to overload the right side of Chelsea's defence, putting Azpulicueta under intolerable pressure. Chelsea tried to exploit the space in behind him by popping long balls up to Sterling, but Arsenal's high line, plus Gabriel's pace and Xhaka's positioning helped nullify that particular threat.
Gabriel got the crucial goal - again, I'll come to that - and did a really solid job on Aubameyang and the sporadic threat of Havertz. And William Saliba... is he really just 21 years old? He was absolutely majestic in this match, and even when he made a mistake he soon made up for it himself. If Arsenal's kit man turned out his pockets post-match, he'd surely have found Auba skulking at the bottom of one of them. And Broja in the other one; that moment when he played Broja offside, gave him two yards start and still got back to take the ball off of him was something to behold.
In midfield Xhaka was popping up everywhere, as usual, and Odegaard continues to quietly oil the wheels. And as far as Man of the Match is concerned Thomas Partey cannot have been far behind Saliba. Once again, a majestic performance. Irreplacable.
Up front, whilst not having their very best games both Saka and Martinelli made a right nuisance of themselves (I could easily get on the Protect Saka bandwagon again here, as he had to seek his own retribution on Cuccurella, seeing as the referee wasn't protecting him). And Gabriel Jesus did everything required of him but put the ball in the net.
This was as comprehensive as it gets. There were two or three moments when I was completely blown away by the quality of Arsenal's one-touch passing, as they embarrassed Chelsea time and again. If Jesus had managed to get a decent contact on that header from Martinelli's cross - at the end of a sweeping pitch-length move - then Goal of the Season could have been wrapped up in November!
But it's not just about their quality. They work so hard, from front to back, and barely give the opposition a moment's peace. Quite simply, when they're in that mood, how do you play against this Arsenal team? I'm hopefully not getting ahead of myself, but I cannot wait for the games against Manchester City, and I can't wait to see what happens when Haaland comes up against Gabriel and Saliba.
I think that's quite enough hyperbole. Because I think we've actually seen them play even
better than this during the season. But they did more than enough and, as I say, it was a 'statement' performance by what is turning out to be a Rolls Royce of a team. I'm basking in its glow.
Just a few extra points to add: Firstly, the goal. And Chelsea made an absolute pig's ear of defending that corner. Havertz out of position. Three defenders unable to deal with the delivery, Mendy rooted to his line, Cuccurella pinned by Xhaka, and a tap in from all of a foot for Big Gabi. The very least that Arsenal deserved.
Secondly, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's ill-advised BT Sport promo. Sure, it was nothing personal. But with just 8 touches of the ball in the 64 minutes he was on the field, a single shot, two fouls committed and a well-deserved booking, what more needs to be said? Easy to compare him to Gabriel Jesus and see why he's yesterday's man. I've personally got nothing against him - he single-handedly won us an FA Cup, after all - but Arsenal have well and truly moved on now.
And finally Granit Xhaka's on-pitch interview straight after the game had finished. If you haven't see it, find it on the internet and have a good laugh.
And so onto Wolves next week - they're languishing in 19th, but it won't necessarily be easy - and hopefully we can go into the World Cup where we belong. What are we? We're top of the league. COYG!
PS - I liked this Tweet :)
