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It’s been a while, but set-piece again! Odegaard swings in, Merino runs towards, and his flick, intended as a flick-on, soars into the far side-netting. And that was coming – Arsenal have started with bad intentions, Chelsea haven’t started.
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“Arsenal's Mikel Merino celebrates by scoring the first goal,” “caption”: “Arsenal's Mikel Merino scores the first goal.”, “credits”: “Photo: Tony O'Brien/Reuters”}}]”Attribute”: { “Pinned”: false, “keyevent”: true, “summary”: false}, “blockcreatedon”: 1742133050000, “blockcreatedondisplay”: “09.50 edt”, “blocklastupdated”: 1742133465000, “” 0.57 edt”, “blockfirstpublished”: 1742133136000, ” blockfirstpublisheddisplay “:” 09.52 edt “, “[]”PrimaryDateline”: “March 16, 2025 Sun 10.20 EDT”, “SecondaryDateline”: “First published March 16, 2025 08.30 EDT”}, {” id “:” 67D6C4E38F0881BE55EF5989″, “Element”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”
Arsenal (4-3-3): Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Partey, Rice, Odegaard; Martinelli, Merino, Trossard. Subs: Neto, Tierney, White, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Jorginho, Calafiori, Butler-Oyedeji, Nwaneri.
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Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Fofana, Badiashile, Colwill, Cucurella; James, Caicedo; Enzo, Nkunku, Sancho; Neto. Subs: Jorgensen, Bettinelli, Tosin, Chalobah, Gusto, Acheampong, Lavia, Dewsbury-Hall, George.
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There are few emotions more acute than disappointment. Though, on the face of things, it is more benign than its more intense relations – devastation, wrecked and so on – it is that exact benignity that makes it so powerfully consuming, a sense that things haven’t gone as the cosmos planned for them to go, leaving a lingering, nagging, feeble sense of entitlement, powerlessness and injustice.
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Arsenal weren’t meant to sit 15 points off the top of the table with 10 games to go. After the surprise challenge of two seasons ago, they got closer still the following year and, fortified by those experiences, were expected – expected themselves – to have another serious tilt at the title.
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Not so, and if that weren’t enough, the champions this time will be not a state-funded front under investigation by the football authorities and managed by the foremost football genius of the generation. After pushing Manchester City so hard and even injuring the man who makes them tick, it is Liverpool set to benefit from the subsequent drop-off. And because it’s happened slowly, without drama, there’s no sense of rebuild and repair, rather the constant irritation of opportunity spurned, with no guarantee it will return to a team now three years into a cycle.
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However there’s a however: Bukayo Saka is nearing full fitness and might be available when, early next month, Arsenal meet an unconvincing Real Madrid in the last eight of the Champions League. Immortality is still not beyond them.
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In the meantime, though, they must secure their spot in next season’s competition, with today’s visitors, Chelsea, keen to do the same. After a decent period early in the season, in recent times they’ve found it harder to hit a consistent level as Enzo Maresca seeks the best deployment of his frankly ludicrous resources. But they have the talent to give anyone a game and if they win today will be just three points behind their London rivals, bringing the various teams behind them back into the equation, which is to say disappointment may morph into devastation yet.
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Kick-off: 1.30pm GMT
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Important Events
Half-time Entertainment: There was development at Park Head!
Halftime: Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea
That wasn't great, but Arsenal is leading on the break.
45+3 minutes Arsenal hasn't done much since scoring. They need Odegard and Rice to control the midfield, but we barely see both.
45+2 minutes Martinelli takes on the cross with Kukurera and Sanchez shakes his flap again, but Torosad has no control and Chelsea is eventually cleared.
45+1 min There's an additional 3 minutes.
45 min Fofana disputes the header before landing awkwardly and clutches the middle, but I think he's fine.
43 min “I know what you're doing,” Zach Neely emails. “It's even more frustrating when you take a handoff stance and swing when you microanalyse something for seven minutes later and make nonsense decisions.”
My biggest problem with Var – the world's biggest emotional ruin, saving your team's goals – is a legal issue with regard to drafting and application. I've been watching football for 43 years and I'm also a qualified lawyer, but I can see the cases from all angles and I'm sure what happened, but I don't know what the authorities will decide.
42 minutes But Chelsea have been getting a little better in the last few minutes.
39 minutes “Looking at me from my own standpoint lying on the couch, I might regret Maresca doing what Guardiola had done on this Chelsea side last night,” says Adam Griffith. “All the fun and unexpected things are covered, well, off of this. Boo everything.”
Mourinho and Joe Cole have always been my go-to examples, but it's worth noting that Cristiano Ronaldo did it to himself in 2007-2008. But while Chelsea should be fun to watch Chelsea given the players they have, what all managers, especially those at the bridge, is building something without being fired before it ends. It's a difficult line to walk.
37 minutes Now Raya is acting in a dangerous way, with Neto's shots blocked, bouncing, and cacrela falling into the volley. He also makes decent contact, but the shot is straight at the keeper. The keeper somehow twitches out of his grip and can see the ball spinning just outside the far post.
36 minutes At Parkhead, Celtic went 2-2, with the Rangers leading 2-0 at halftime.
34 min Gabriel's strong challenge to Fernandez. Fernandez, who is on track for him as Odegaard slips through the pass to Martinelli and is on track to the top, offers him moral guidance.
33 min What Chelsea is trying to do here isn't far away. We barely see their Central Midfield 3, Kayseko, James and Fernandez struggling to get on the ball.
32 minutes When the ball came in, Badiaseal appeared to have thrust out the wood and he spent a bit of time recovering. VART believes there is no reason to engage in the lawsuit.
half an hour Rice finds Torosad on the left side and sees Colwill coming and flicking his insides and feet before he puts on the inevitable sickle. Colwill is reserved and a free kick transferred to the box by Odegaard brings the throw.
29 minutes On the other hand, if Chelsea were playing for Nkunku, when they return to goal, he and Neto both have the ability to play a one touch pass like a possible opening Arsenal.
27 minutes I don't want to chase Jadon Sancho, but he's very non-nainamic. Maresca was surprised to see how he liked his team playing. And his lack of strength and strength makes him a limited use on the Arsenal-like aspect, especially the right outer side where he is today.
25 min Chelsea has not offered anything so far. Arsenal is faster, stronger, and more clearly plagued.
24 min Fofana defeats Rice and then steps on him. Rice cannot see the funny side, and VAR arbitrates the force that applied insufficient force to impose a red card.
22 minutes No, I didn't contact my local turf accountant.
goal! Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea (Merino 20)
It's been a while, but once again the set pieces! Odegaard swings, Merino runs towards, and the flick intended to flick soars into the far side net. And it was coming – Arsenal started with bad intentions, Chelsea didn't start.
19 minutes Nice from Marinteri, taking a pass from the wood and running around the outside of Badi Sahile – Chelsea struggles to the left – but there are too many defenders between him and the man in the middle that his low cross is blocked back due to the horns.
18 minutes It's down the line to wood. The wood is sent nkunku in one way or another before crossing. Naturally, Sanchez flaps into the ball, which falls for the Torosad.
16 minutes Disagreeing with the loose ball, the party rushes into the stretch, feathering the ball before introducing the studs to the Neto shins. Var looks and decides everything is fine.
15 minutes Chelsea have yet to collect one touch in Arsenal's box.
13 minutes Looking again, Kukurera clears his arms with the ball down his path. I don't know why it's not a penalty.[itch decision then Rice scuds a low drive wide of the far post.
12 min Perhaps nudged by Timber, Cucurella falls on the left edge of his own box, the ball coming off his arm as he falls. Timber then takes over, his low cross hitting a defender and forcing Sanchez to adjust position and push out, before Colwill clears into Badiashile’s head and Merino hammers over.
11 min It’s not often we see the words “sublime” and “Roger Sanchez” in the same sentence, but EXCUSE ME WHILE I INTERRUPT MYSELF!
9 min Raya humps one downfield and Trossard almost gets on the end of it, then Sanchez, not atypically, passes straight to Martinelli, who dips inside Fofana and drags a shot straight back at the keeper.
7 min At Parkhead, the second half of the Old Firm derby has just kicked off.
5 min I watched a really good interview with Pedro Neto recently, in which he said because he’s not a big guy, he likes to initiate contact before the ball arrives, so that he can then move away rather than absorb the physicality of a bigger man. I can’t say I love him through the middle – his skillset makes me think he should be playing off the flank and running towards goal, especially when Nkunku is there for him to play off.
3 min Immediately, though, Arsenal go again, Martinelli picking a nice cut-back that Odegaard misses, allowing it to reach Trossard … who should shoot first tie but doesn’t, taking a touch before curling wide.
2 min Rice swings into the near post but doesn’t get enough air on the ball, Timber flicking behind.
1 min Chelsea are looking to press high, but very quickly, one pass from Raya through the middle of the pitch finds Rice, and seconds later, Lewis-Skelly wins a corner down the left.
1 min And off we go.
Gosh, North London Forever; it’s not great is it?
Our players are tunnelled … and here they come!
Myles Lewis-Skelly is another – like James – I only had to see once to say “player”. I love his fearlessness and intelligence and like Saka – another in that category – I think he could excel almost anywhere on the pitch.
Maresca laughs that Palmer is “not in the toilet, for sure; Palmer had diarrhoea ugh, ugh*, last week. He should, though be back after the break.
Otherwise, he accepts Arsenal are ahead of them now, and offers very little else.
*was this just a chant in my primary school?
That said, I’m far from certain James could’ve saved Tuchel – even winning the Champions League couldn’t convince Todd Boehly that good management outranks insufficient deference.
“Emphatically agree about Reece James,” says Rob Hobson. “I’m convinced that if he and Chilwell had stayed fit, Tuchel would still be manager. For me, James has the skill and engine of Ashley Cole with an extra stone of muscle on top. I sincerely hope his career won’t be a series of brief returns from injury.”
I first saw James in October 2019, in a League Cup tie against Manchester United. There was a moment Marcus Rashford got away and usually when that happened he stayed away, but James had the gas to catch up and the ability to make a proper tackle. Obviously there’s loads more to him than that, but in that moment i was sure I was watching a player.
Arteta says this is a big game and the players are focused on that. They’re excited to face Real Madrid and the international break is coming next so they need to play well and hopefully get some players back afterwards.
Where is the game? Arsenal will fancy Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard to run off James and Moises Caicedo, while their left flank of Lewis-Skelly and Leandro Trossard will surely target Jadon Sacnho, unrenowned for his physicality or relentlessness, and Wesley Fofana, a centre-back playing out of position.
Chelsea, meanwhile, might feel able to commit more men forward than usual given Arsenal’s absent attackers. There’s not, though, much weakness in the hosts’ defence, so I’d expect Neto to dart in behind with the three behind him looking to move the ball quickly as they probe for space.
Also going on:
Email! “What perplexes me is why Arteta starts with Merino as a striker, rather than using him as the super-sub role that worked against Leicester,” writes Kieran McKintosh. “By that point there were some tired legs on the field bar Nwaneri, and the two combined for two goals. Lo and behold, when Merino starts as a striker he doesn’t get much of a look in. To me a wiser idea would’ve been to start with Martinelli in the centre and Newaneri on the left wing, then swap Martinelli for Merino about 70/80 mins in. But hey, I’m sat at home typing this and he’s at the Emirates. So we shall see.”
I imagine it’s not just about who is the better centre-forward, but about the physicality Merino brings. Arsenal will want to play into and off him, which isn’t doable with Martinelli, and I daresay his presence in both boxes will be useful at set-pieces. If we were a year further down the line, it’d be Nwaneri through the middle, I think, and I’m a little surprised he’s not playing off the flank today because there’s not much magic in Arteta’s front three.
So what do we make of Reece James in midfield, then? I guess I can see it because I think he’s a brilliant footballer who has the skill, will and brain to play anywhere, but I also think that if he can stay fit he can be the best right-back in the world. It felt like there was a time when England were arguing over whether Kyle Walker or Trent Alexander-Arnold should play there, but actually James, a mixture of the two, is better than both. Still, it’s great to see him back.
Enzo Mareca, meanwhile, brings in Benoît Badiashile and Reece James who, by the looks of things, will be playing in midfield; missing out are Cole Palmer, who’s injured, and Tosin Aderabioyo, who’s on the bench.
Mikel Arteta makes two changes to the side that drew at Old Trafford last time out: Myles Lewis-Skelly returns at left-back – though of course he also played in midweek – replacing Riccardo Calafiori – while on the right wing, it’s Gabriel Martinelli, not Ethan Nwaneri. Oh, and Raheem Sterling, player of the match in midweek, is ineligible to play against his parent club.
I’ll write these down, then we’ll look at them in greater detail.
Teams!
Arsenal (4-3-3): Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Partey, Rice, Odegaard; Martinelli, Merino, Trossard. Subs: Neto, Tierney, White, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Jorginho, Calafiori, Butler-Oyedeji, Nwaneri.
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Fofana, Badiashile, Colwill, Cucurella; James, Caicedo; Enzo, Nkunku, Sancho; Neto. Subs: Jorgensen, Bettinelli, Tosin, Chalobah, Gusto, Acheampong, Lavia, Dewsbury-Hall, George.
Preamble
There are few emotions more acute than disappointment. Though, on the face of things, it is more benign than its more intense relations – devastation, wrecked and so on – it is that exact benignity that makes it so powerfully consuming, a sense that things haven’t gone as the cosmos planned for them to go, leaving a lingering, nagging, feeble sense of entitlement, powerlessness and injustice.
Arsenal weren’t meant to sit 15 points off the top of the table with 10 games to go. After the surprise challenge of two seasons ago, they got closer still the following year and, fortified by those experiences, were expected – expected themselves – to have another serious tilt at the title.
Not so, and if that weren’t enough, the champions this time will be not a state-funded front under investigation by the football authorities and managed by the foremost football genius of the generation. After pushing Manchester City so hard and even injuring the man who makes them tick, it is Liverpool set to benefit from the subsequent drop-off. And because it’s happened slowly, without drama, there’s no sense of rebuild and repair, rather the constant irritation of opportunity spurned, with no guarantee it will return to a team now three years into a cycle.
However there’s a however: Bukayo Saka is nearing full fitness and might be available when, early next month, Arsenal meet an unconvincing Real Madrid in the last eight of the Champions League. Immortality is still not beyond them.
In the meantime, though, they must secure their spot in next season’s competition, with today’s visitors, Chelsea, keen to do the same. After a decent period early in the season, in recent times they’ve found it harder to hit a consistent level as Enzo Maresca seeks the best deployment of his frankly ludicrous resources. But they have the talent to give anyone a game and if they win today will be just three points behind their London rivals, bringing the various teams behind them back into the equation, which is to say disappointment may morph into devastation yet.
Kick-off: 1.30pm GMT
