Chelsea boost title hopes with 3-1 win over Arsenal

But the Blues have not looked back since that loss, and the west London side are now the firm favourites to win the Premier League title this season.

A brilliant solo goal from Eden Hazard for Chelsea’s second of the afternoon underscored the superiority of Conte’s team who finished the game 12 points clear of Arsenal in third. Have your say below.

Arsenal’s German midfielder Mesut Ozil (C) battles with Chelsea’s Brazilian midfielder Willian (R) and Chelsea’s French midfielder N’Golo Kante (L) during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Chelsea at The Emirates stadium in London, on September 24, 2016.

It wasn’t a score anyone from Arsenal wanted to remember on a day little went the visitors’ way at Stamford Bridge.

The loss of focus and the late concession of a goal was unfortunate but arrived exclusively out of the knowledge that the game was already won.

Speaking on the Gary Neville Podcast at full-time, he added: “Men against boys is a cliché that’s used too much, but there are far too many times over the years that we’ve watched this type of game involving Arsenal”.

“It’s really worrying the way we turned up in the first half”.

Arsene Wenger insists that Chelsea’s first goal against Arsenal should have been ruled out, as Marcos Alonso caught Hector Bellerin in the face.

The team is more streetwise and organised, as shown in the 1-1 draw at Liverpool on Tuesday when Chelsea absorbed lots of early pressure from the home side before growing into the game and being a late penalty miss from Costa away from winning. The team gave everything to the end but they lacked some maturity in the build-up. “This Arsenal team, for the past five or six years, just don’t seem to pay enough attention to it”. In the 54th minute, Hazard won possession well into his own half and then weaved and bulled his way through the entire Arsenal half before beating Petr Cech.

Meanwhile, Liverpool has not lost to a team near the top of the table this season.

Gylfi Sigurdsson’s 70th minute effort earned Swansea a second consecutive win to keep them just above the trapdoor.

“With the mentality we have here, we would be upset to finish in the same position as last season”, said Tottenham’s Eric Dier, whose team lost out to Leicester in the title battle last term. It was wins over Burnley and Crystal Palace and Middlesbrough and all the other minnows and mid-tablers in the Premier League that bolted it to the top.

Of course, they would have to be careful what they wish for but some sections of the Arsenal fanbase are losing patience.