LONDON: Arsenal returned to the top of the standings - for a day at least - by dismantling Chelsea 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday to end a four-game winless run that saw its control of the title race slip away.
Arsenal kept the Premier League title fight alive by beating up on a Chelsea team that seems to be in need of life support under Frank Lampard. The Gunners channelled their disappointment over last week's 4-1 loss to rival Manchester City into a dominant first-half display, going 3-0 up inside 34 minutes as Chelsea slumped to a sixth straight loss in all competitions under Lampard.
Martin Odegaard scored two nearly identical goals and Gabriel Jesus added the third minutes later. The visitors offered little in response until Chukwunonso Madueke pulled one back in the 65th but never came close to staging a comeback as the hosts saw out the game. "We came out with a different spirit, a different team to last time (against City)," Odegaard told Sky Sports. "It hurt after the (City) game and we used this anger and the disappointment in this game to bounce back." The win puts Arsenal two points above Manchester City atop the standings, but given that Pep Guardiola's team has two games in hand - including at home against West Ham on Wednesday - it may not stay there for long.
Arsenal was coming off the loss to City and a run of three straight draws before that. But Mikel Arteta's team couldn't have asked for much easier opposition as it tried to get back on track. "If we want to have any chance to win the league, we had to win today," Arteta said. Granit Xhaka created the two opening goals in similar fashion, sending a low cross into the box from the left to pick out Odegaard, who beat goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga with his left foot both times.
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