Arsenal will view the game as a missed chance to grab control of the premier league.
The first half featured a somewhat edgy Arsenal controlling most of the possession, but generating no chances on goal. Their best moment came when Theo Walcott was fouled by Willian in the box, but it wasn’t flagrant and referee Mike Dean never gives Arsenal any such calls. In fact, he overlooked a nasty challenge from Mikel as well.
The best chance of the half came to Chelsea, when Frank Lampard smashed a volley off the upright. It was the only event of note in a night dominated by the weather and the slick surface it created.
Arsenal were stronger in the second half and gradually cranked up the pressure. During the last ten minutes they had their best chances, both gifted to Giroud, but he thumped one wide and forced a save from Cech on the other.
Player Ratings:
Szczesny 6. Made several easy saves, but was not punished for coming out rashly on a corner and completely misjudging the cross.
Sagna 6. Chelsea pressured Sagna most of the night and he wasn’t able to press forward as often. Many of the passes intended for him were unreachable due to the wet surface. He did have a weak header cleared off the line late in the game.
Mertesacker 7. Generally had a good game and tidied up at the back.
Vermaelen 7. Thomas had a good game, was safe at the back, came forward a little, and made no mistakes.
Gibbs 7. A solid outing for Gibbs. He managed to get forward and made a number of crosses, one really good one late in the game that Giroud couldn’t convert.
Arteta 7. A busy day for Arteta and he had a pretty good match, seeing a lot of the ball and doing his best to protect the defence. His one big mistake was letting Lampard get free to hit his volley.
Ramsey 6. Aaron made a number of errors and poor passes which could have cost the team. He does get through a lot of work, but he no longer has the magic touch right now.
Ozil 6. Mesut was not able to impress himself upon the game. Still, he makes a number of useful passes and he works hard. I enjoyed watching his tiff with Ivanovic.
Rosicky 8. My man of the match. Tomas gave an energized performance and his passing and energy always had the Gunners moving forward and looking dangerous.
Giroud 7. Another hard working outing for Olivier. He couldn’t convert two late chances, the first (and the best) he hit wide and the second he was smothered by Petr Cech. We really need him to score.
Walcott 6. The conditions made any pass forward to him dubious at best, but it kept Chelsea on their toes. He switched to the left wing, he played up the middle, all to no avail.