Eden Hazard was in brilliant form when Arsenal were beaten 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
The Belgian international scored the opening goal from the spot after a stunning run through the whole Arsenal defence before Diego Costa scored again for the Blues.
First half
A few minutes into the match Thibaut Courtois was the victim of an accidental crash with Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez. Courtois got a head injury and was substituted and sent to hospital for further assessment.
Tackles were flying in right from the off and Gary Cahill might have been lucky not to see red when he chopped down Sanchez after 18 minutes.
The challenge sparked a lot of emotion on the touchline as Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho went head-to-head both vocally and physically. Wenger ended up pushing our gaffer before referee Martin Atkinson had to separate the two.
Calum Chambers was then booked for a tackle on Hazard before our winger cut got past three Arsenal defenders and was brought down inside the area.
With a clear path towards goal, Laurent Koscielny put a foot out and stopped Hazard, and the French defender was extremely lucky not to see red.
Hazard confidently converted the spot kick and we were in front.
Second half
Our midfield trio of Nemanja Matic, Cesc Fabregas and Oscar did a fantastic job in the centre of the park and kept Arsenal’s chances to a minimum.
The visitors saw a lot of possession in the second half but didn’t manage to create any real danger, much due to superb defending from our side.
13 minutes into the second half Hazard was on the run again and crossed from the byline. Mathieu Flamini tried to clear the ball but only hit his own post.
We always looked dangerous going forward and Hazard had another great opportunity to add to his first half goal, but 23-year-old failed to test the goalkeeper from close range.
12 minutes before the end Costa was on the end of a spectacular pass from Fabregas. The striker got his ninth of the Premier League season with a cheeky lob over Arsenal’s Wojciech Szczesny.
Into stoppage time Danny Welbeck should have been sent off with a two-footed challenge on Fabregas, but Atkinson only pulled out the yellow card for the English international.
It was a tactically great win and we showed real quality both defending and going forward. Mourinho’s unbeaten streak against Wenger continues, with the tally now at 12 matches.
We are now five points clear at the top of the table going into the international break.
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Courtois (Cech 23); Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry (c), Azpilicueta; Matic, Fabregas; Schurrle (Mikel 68), Oscar (Willian 86), Hazard (Man of the match); Diego Costa.
Chelsea Talk