Premier League: Corner kings Arsenal stun Chelsea on their way to the title
League leaders Arsenal won a battle of corners on Sunday against Chelsea (2-1), who were again reduced to ten men, and sent a strong signal to the competition with ten matchdays remaining.
Two successful derbies, against Tottenham (4-1) and then Chelsea (2-1) , have put the Gunners back on track after a brief period of doubt. Mikel Arteta ‘s team has a five-point lead over second-place Manchester City after 28 matchdays. However, they have played one more match, the 31st matchday against Wolverhampton (2-2).
Chelsea represented a major obstacle on the road to the title, one that Arsenal hadn’t won since 2004, and the Gunners overcame it with composure, resilience, and invaluable assistance from goalkeeper David Raya.
The Gunners were also aided by weaknesses in the opposing defense, particularly goalkeeper Robert Sanchez, an Achilles’ heel that Paris Saint-Germain will undoubtedly target in the Champions League round of 16 on March 11 and 17.
Winger Pedro Neto continued another of Chelsea’s bad habits this season: picking up a plethora of red cards. He received his second yellow card after a mistimed tackle (70th minute).
The Gunners started stronger than their visitors and quickly broke them down with their specialty: a corner, taken by Bukayo Saka, flicked on at the far post by Gabriel, and headed home by his central defensive partner, Frenchman William Saliba (21st minute, 1-0).
The “Corner Kings” have struck again
The Blues pushed forward and equalized just before the break, stealing their hosts’ recipe: chaos created in the penalty area from a corner, taken by captain Reece James and pushed into his own net by defender Piero Hincapié (45th+1, 1-1).
But in this particular game, Arsenal reigns supreme. The “Corner Kings” struck again, with Declan Rice setting up the attack and Jurriën Timber finishing with a header (66th minute, 2-1). This third consecutive match without a win drops Chelsea to sixth place, three points behind fifth-placed Liverpool.
