Arteta says Arsenal can surpass title-winning level after statement win over Chelsea

LONDON – Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said his side’s performance in their 2-1 victory over Chelsea on Sept 6 showed that they can become even better than last season’s title-winning model.

Goals by Kai Havertz and captain Martin Odegaard, after Morgan Rogers had scored for Chelsea in the second minute, ensured a third win from three games for Arsenal.

After an easy win against promoted Coventry City and a 1-0 grind at Aston Villa, however, this was the most impressive as Arsenal ripped into the visitors.

“I think it was an exceptional performance. I enjoyed every minute of it from the beginning to the end, and the beginning was tough,” Arteta told reporters after the Gunners stretched their unbeaten run against Chelsea to 12 games in all competitions.

“I enjoyed it because the team reacted in a spectacular way. The conviction, the determination, the quality of which I intend to have them constantly, it was beautiful.

“It’s an indication for us of how capable we are to perform at an even higher level than last season, and it depends on how we maintain and sustain that desire.”

Arsenal did not beef up their forward options in a relatively quiet transfer window, with the Brazilian duo Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli, as well as Belgian Leandro Trossard, departing.

But with Havertz, Odegaard and Bukayo Saka all looking sharp and new signing Christos Tzolis again producing some eye-catching moments out wide, Arsenal looked a real threat.

Norwegian Odegaard, in particular, looked back to his best after last season’s injury disruptions.

“Odegaard has a point to prove from last season after missing so much football,” Arteta said. “When that happens, Kai the same, Bukayo the same, we miss so many attacking players last season for long, long periods.

“I don’t know how many times they’ve played together, those two, in the last year or so, but probably not much, and when you start to feel the chemistry they have between them and what they can produce, it’s great.”

Arsenal and Manchester City are now the only two teams with a 100 per cent record in the Premier League, while Chelsea’s impressive start under new manager Xabi Alonso got a reality check as they dropped their first points under the Spaniard.

His side have now conceded seven goals in three games and while they look a threat in attack, there is clearly work to do at the other end of the pitch before they are in a position to end a title drought dating back to 2017.

“We want to start having clean sheets; they will come,” Alonso said. “The players are committed to working hard, to knowing that we’re on the way to compete in each game.

“Not happy that we couldn’t get anything, but we need to keep calm and carry on.”

He was frustrated with the way Chelsea failed to take advantage of their early lead.

The Blues beat Arsenal in the race to sign Rogers from Aston Villa in the close-season after the Gunners refused to match their £117 million (S$200 million) bid for the England midfielder.

Rogers showed why Chelsea made him the most expensive British player in history as he put the Blues ahead after just 77 seconds.

The goal made Chelsea the first team in Premier League history to score inside the first five minutes of their first three games of the season and lit the fuse for a breathless opening period on a balmy afternoon in north London.

“It hurts because a defeat has to hurt,” Alonso said. “After we scored, there were 15 or 20 minutes where we had to defend too much and we were struggling a bit to get control. Overall, it was a very tight, very intense game.

“We could do better with the second goal. You need to control the overloads on the right side.” REUTERS, AFP