ARSENAL MOVED BACK to the top of the Premier League as Gabriel Magalhaes sealed a gritty 1-0 win against Chelsea after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s revenge mission fell flat on Sunday.
Mikel Arteta’s side made it 11 wins from 13 league games thanks to a close-range finish from Brazilian defender Gabriel in the second half at Stamford Bridge.
The Gunners are two points clear of second-placed Manchester City after the champions briefly took pole position with a win against Fulham on Saturday.
With only one round of games remaining before the World Cup brings the Premier League to a halt, Arsenal have emerged as genuine contenders to end City’s grip on the tite.
After beating Tottenham and Liverpool at home earlier this season, winning in west London was another significant statement from Arsenal as their unexpected challenge gathers pace.
This was an even sweeter victory than their other landmark successes this term as it came at the expense of former Arsenal star Aubameyang.
Aubameyang was anonymous in his first meeting with his old team since he was stripped of the captaincy and sold to Barcelona in January after Arteta lost patience with the Gabon forward’s repeated disciplinary issues.
Exiling Aubameyang has proved an inspired move by Arteta as Arsenal look a far more unified and determined group without the sulking striker.
Booed by the travelling Arsenal fans, Aubameyang was so underwhelming that it might not be long before he becomes unwelcome at Chelsea as well.
Chelsea boss Graham Potter might also be feeling the heat soon after his side’s winless league run extended to four games with a second successive top-flight defeat, prompting jeers from Blues fans at full-time.
Seventh-placed Chelsea lacked Arsenal’s urgency and now trail the leaders by 13 points, with even a top four finish far from certain.
Arsenal have not won the title since Arsene Wenger’s Invincibles in 2004, but no Gunners team has amassed more points at this stage in the Premier League era.
- Authority and intent -
Facing the latest test of their title credentials, Arteta’s men were quickly into their stride, probing the Chelsea defence with authority and intent.
Ben White fired narrowly wide from the edge of the area after a flowing move cut through the Blues rearguard.
Snapping tigerishly at Chelsea, Arsenal were first to every 50-50 ball.
Gabriel Jesus robbed Ruben Loftus-Cheek and the Brazilian’s menacing run took him into the Chelsea area before Thiago Silva snuffed out the danger with a superbly-timed sliding tackle.
Aubameyang struggled to make any impact and lost his cool with a reckless lunging foul on White that earned a booking from Michael Oliver.
Gabriel Martinelli was a constant threat and his floated cross picked out the unmarked Jesus, whose face was a picture of frustration after his diving header missed the target from just six yards.
Aubameyang’s booking had raised the temperature in an increasingly fractious encounter.
Bukayo Saka was accused of diving by Potter after failing to win a foul when he went to ground after a shoulder barge from Marc Cucurella.
Arteta joined a furious exchange between the two coaching staffs and Saka responded by scything down Cucurella moments later as the Arsenal star was booked.
Having managed just four touches in the first half, Aubameyang finally had a sight of goal after William Saliba’s miskick but the Arsenal defender recovered to block the shot.
Played in by Saka’s deft pass, Jesus forced a good save from Edouard Mendy and from the resulting corner Arsenal took the lead in the 63rd minute.
Chelsea’s defending was woeful as Saka’s delivery was missed by three Chelsea players before Gabriel reacted fastest to poke home on the goal-line.
The sight of Aubameyang being substituted moments after Gabriel’s goal only added to the glee among the Arsenal fans crammed into one corner of the Shed End as they start to dream of title glory.
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Good on you, Joe Brolly. The best pundit, bar none, on GAA.
@Kevin Hayes: Are you wise? This is the same man who brought us the Black Card and what an omnishambles that has been.
@Tír Eoghain Gael: The black card rule was to be instated before that Monaghan v Tyrone match anyway. I can remember the proposed rule being described in the match programme that day!
@Tír Eoghain Gael: He didn’t get it brought in. He famously mentioned it after that toe rag Sean Cavanagh dragged Conor McManus to the ground, but it was passed by congress previous to that.
@Kevin Hayes: and by the sounds of it Joe is now also taking Tyrone training sessions!
Spoke with one of their players privately….. So that player wasn’t expecting it to be headline news a few weeks later Then!!!!! Joe brolly a man you can trust
@Anthony: what player was it? Brolly has protected his identity so the player(s) in question can have no issue with what he has said. I’m sure Joe didn’t torture him to get him to say it.
@Eireann go brach: you’ll have to ask Micky harte what player it is as I’m sure he’s currently in the process of finding out. So you think this player said this to Joe in order to publicise this to the wider public or he said it privately most likely in passing thinking it will go no further.
@Anthony: ah come out of the fog, the dogs on the street know if Brolly was told this about any squad in the country he would announce it in a similar manner when he felt it warranted it! Mickey Harte has been Tyrones most successful manager and he should be forever lauded for what he has achieved for Tyrone, both on and off the field, but maybe it was the member of the panel that felt if he was protected by anonymity, as an individual, then this should be made public knowledge. There is a reason he wasn’t given the full extension he was asking for, will he get another extension? I have my doubts.
@Eireann go brach: he spoke with one of tyrones really good players so it’s safe to assume it’s not a disgruntled player on the panel. Agree with your assessment on Micky harte but irrelevant to our discussion. Heres how I see this ‘private’ conversation go down. Brolly and a Tp meet at a funeral, function whatever in passing. Tp :hi Joe. BROLLY : How’s Tp, how’s training? Tp: going sh!te, lost the last couple of games it’s depressing stuff, cya later.
My point is Joe has a history of over exaggeration and read any of his paper articles he’s full of tales of people he met in passing who seemed desperate to unburden themselves with information that could harm them.
Anyways we’ll see in the summer where Tyrone are, my bet is they won’t be very far away at all…
Joe Brolly also said kerry football was finished as underage were poor. How many all ireland minors and schools have kerry won since? All joe wants with his comments is a reaction
@Tomf: kerry minors are unbeaten since he wrote that! Hard to take Brolly and Pat too seriously but they donget people talking which is their job I suppose.
@niall daly: ^ do get!
@nialk daly donget sounded better in a southern deep texan drawl
What a total runt.
@Tom Collins: Harte has to go
@Tom Collins: Be worst if he told him to say chase me chase me to the ones on the other team???
Joe is a master at self-publicity. Paper never refuses ink and Joe will commit anything to writing to keep his name in the spotlight whether that is slagging off Dublin’s ‘arrogance’, Donegal’s ‘puke football’, Kerry’s ‘demise’ or Tyrone’s defensive strategy, Joe doesn’t care because it get’s people talking about….Joe. You simply can’t take him seriously as a pundit because he’ll say anything to court controversy.
Brolly is the GAA version of George Hook, Hook is the rugby version of Dunphy, Dunphy is like a farmers foreskin……
@Bryan Holmes: Don’t even know what that means Bryan but gave me a laugh anyway!!
@Bryan Holmes: holyshit can’t get that image out of my head ,
Man Joe.Way to stir the pot .
I’ve a lot of time for brolly but this obsession for Tyrone is getting annoying now
Love Joe. Cares about the game.
Has lots of conversations with players without naming anyone.. can see obvious reasons for that, just find it hard to believe half them have actually happened!
Not likely to be spoken to ‘privately’ again Joe.
Has he money on Tyrone for the All Ireland!
Joe shut up please
@Joe Kennedy: Smelly, wrinkled and full of bullshit.
It really has become hard to watch. Enjoyment sucked right outa it.