Jose Mourinho's midas touch over Arsene Wenger continues as Blues ease to victory
Sam Wallace
Like all the famous assassins in the movies, his eyes betray little emotion and the coup de grace is delivered in one devastating moment - and for the prolific Diego Costa today was no different.
There were 12 minutes left when he took a long ball from Cesc Fabregas into his stride, looked up to ascertain the position of Wojciech Szczesny and lifted a gentle lob over the Arsenalgoalkeeper that condemned Arsene Wenger’s team to yet another defeat at the hands of Chelsea. It is becoming a habit that is getting harder to break and although this was not a six-goal humiliation like last season, the old problems were just as evident.
Wenger has now failed to beat Mourinho’s Chelsea on all 12 occasions he has faced them in the latter’s two periods in charge, including seven defeats. The two men as good as squared up to each other in the first half when Wenger shoved his smaller adversary and Mourinho flicked Wenger’s red club tie in response. All that was missing was the schoolyard headlock and knuckle rub on the top of the head.
For anyone in any doubt of the level of loathing between these two men, it was an education - even if they calmed down for the second half. On the pitch their two teams fought each as fiercely as their two managers would have wanted and there might have been red cards for Gary Cahill and Danny Welbeck for wild tackles in either half. Either way, the referee Martin Atkinson kept all 22 on the pitch to the end and the game was decided by Chelsea’s ruthlessness in front of goal.
Eden Hazard scored the first from the penalty spot having torn Arsenal’s defence to win the penalty himself. Then Costa finished them off with that cold instinct of his in front of goal. As for Welbeck, he barely got a sight of the Chelsea goal, and his two-footed lunge on Cesc Fabregas in injury-time was evidence of his frustrations. For Fabregas, this will have been a satisfying afternoon.
It was a rattling good first half, complete with tackling that went right up to the limit, that moment of brilliance from Hazard and Mourinho’s best tie flick of the season so far. It meant that the most serious moment of the half, the injury to Thibaut Courtois, passed by in a blur as the two managers’ animosity increased and the pace of the game rattled on.
Courtois had come out to seize the ball from Alexis Sanchez on 12 minutes and taken a thigh from Sanchez on the right side of his face. Those thighs are not inconsiderable, Sanchez is fond of rolling up his shorts to display their full might, and for a few seconds it looks like Courtois might even have been knocked out.
As ever, it is difficult to make judgements about the condition of a stricken footballer in the immediate aftermath of an incident. However, there was enough concern for a significant break in play and then, ten minutes later, when the ball was at the Arsenal end, the Chelsea bench ran onto to the pitch to draw Martin Atkinson’s attention to their goalkeeper who had sat down in a daze.
It looked like the team doctor, Eva Carneiro, was wiping blood away from the goalkeeper’s right ear. He was replaced by Petr Cech, and later followed down the tunnel by the pitch-side paramedic team. Later Chelsea confirmed he was taken to hospital as a precaution. Back on the pitch there was barely time to draw breath.
Wenger had decided early on that his team were not getting what he considered a fair hearing from the referee Atkinson and had no hesitation in letting the fourth official Jonathan Moss know at every opportunity. When Cahill launched a right boot studs-up into Sanchez by the touchline, the situation escalated and very soon we had famous football managers shoving and flicking one another.
To be precise, Wenger shoved Mourinho in the chest and Mourinho flicked his old enemy’s tie. It was puerile stuff and marvellous entertainment. Even a stern talking to from Atkinson and the threat of being sent to the stands did not deter them. For a while it rattled on between their assistants Rui Faria and Steve Bould, a mismatch if ever there was one.
Later in the first half, Mourinho began giving the Wenger his “shut-your-mouth” gesture - the thumb pressed to his first two fingers. Only after half-time did they seem capable of moderating their behaviour.
By then Chelsea were ahead after a great moment from Hazard. His burst on 27 minutes took him past Santi Cazorla and Calum Chambers before either could decide whether to foul him or not. Laurent Koscielny had no choice. Hazard had the ball past him in an instant and then tumbled over the French defender’s leg.
It was a clear penalty and Hazard deceived Szczesny to dispatch it past the Arsenal goalkeeper. Arsenal’s grievance was legitimate: there was a case that Cahill should have gone off for his earlier foul on Sanchez. Then, Chambers, already booked pulled Andre Schurrle on the edge of his area and escaped a second yellow card.
With the managers a little more calm after half-time, Arsenal pursued the equaliser. In the first half they had done a good job of denying Fabregas time and space on the ball. Concentrating their resources there, however, meant that Hazard became a problem. A shot from Jack Wilshere on 63 minutes flicked off the hand of Fabregas and Arsenal’s appeals went unheeded.
Costa had made a chance for Hazard just minutes before the naturalised Spain international scored the second. On that occasion he broke between the two Arsenal centre-backs just as Fabregas sent the ball over the top and it took one touch with Costa’s chest to guide it into his path before he beat Szczesny.
At full-time, Mourinho went down the tunnel without waiting for Wenger to shake his hand. The Chelsea manager had already got what he wanted.
Chelsea: Courtois (Cech, 23); Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Matic, Fabregas; Hazard, Oscar (Willian, 87), Schurrle (Mikel, 70), Costa.
Substitutes not used: Luis, Zouma, Salah, Remy.
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Szczesny; Chambers, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Gibbs; Wilshere (Rosicky, 83), Flamini; Cazorla (Oxlade-Chamberlain, 69), Ozil, Sanchez (Podolski, 79); Welbeck.
Substitutes not used: Martinez (gk), Monreal, Campbell, Coquelin.
Referee: M Atkinson
Man of the match: Fabregas
Booked: Chelsea Ivanovic, Cahill, Schurrle, Oscar Arsenal Chambers, Koscielny, Welbeck
Rating: 8
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Guardian:
Arsène Wenger and José Mourinho go toe-to-toe as Chelsea beat Arsenal
Chelsea 2 - 0 Arsenal
Daniel Taylor at Stamford Bridge
There was a point of this match when, briefly, Arsène Wenger had lurched into full-on Begbie-from-Trainspotting mode and was squaring up to José Mourinho by the side of the pitch, as if someone had spilled his pint one time too many. Wenger had already shoved his bete noire in the chest and when he went back to prolong the argument the Arsenal manager could be seen pushing his face into Mourinho’s so they were almost nose to nose. Those were the lingering images of a tempestuous derby when, once again, Mourinho came out on top and everyone could see exactly how much he has got under Wenger’s skin.
Mourinho’s superiority over Wenger has stretched now to 12 games unbeaten and the man he branded a “specialist in failure‚“ will be fortunate to escape further action from the Football Association. Chelsea have won seven matches during that sequence and, once we had waded through all the different subplots and controversies, the bottom line is the Premier League leaders have re-established a five-point advantage ahead of Manchester City – and nine from Arsenal – courtesy of Eden Hazard’s expertly taken penalty and the latest demonstration of Diego Costa’s penalty-box prowess.
The list is fairly considerable, though, because even ignoring, for one moment, that first-half spat between Wenger and Mourinho, with the older man very much the aggressor, it was a difficult match for the referee, Martin Atkinson, to control and one that left Chelsea facing some awkward questions about their handling of a head injury for their goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois.
Courtois had to be taken to hospital with blood coming from his right ear after the club’s medical staff decided he was fit to play on even though the Belgium international had been left flat out, eyes closed, and clearly badly hurt after a collision with Alexis Sánchez. Courtois carried on for 13 minutes before suffering a relapse and Chelsea will have to explain themselves bearing in mind the FA brought in new guidelines for head injuries at the start of the season.
Yet they emerged through the maze of side-issues in a new position of strength and the suspicion remains that Wenger would never get this worked up if it was not for the inferiority complex that tends to engulf his team during these fixtures. Arsenal, to give them their due, had played with far more authority than the 6-0 ordeal on this ground last season and, from manager down, there was far more determination to stand up to their opponents.
They might also believe Gary Cahill could have been sent off for the challenge on Sánchez that persuaded Wenger to stride from his technical area into Chelsea’s and then respond to Mourinho’s orders for a retreat by putting both hands into his chest to give him a shove and then remind him, close-up, who was the taller, more imposing man.
Wenger’s team will also reflect on that moment, at 1-0, when Cesc Fàbregas threw himself at Jack Wilshere’s shot and the ball deflected off his hands inside the penalty area. Equally, Laurent Koscielny should have been shown a red card for halting Hazard’s brilliant run into the penalty area, when the Belgian would have been running clear on goal. Calum Chambers could feasibly have been sent off for two bookable offences before half-time and Atkinson’s leniency went way too far when Danny Welbeck lunged in, two-footed, on Fàbregas. Both teams will deflect the other’s grievances with complaints of their own but ultimately the victory came down to Chelsea’s greater penetration and defensive line and a bad day for Wenger’s side was compounded by the fact it was Fàbregas playing the ball over their backline for Costa to run clear and lob Wojciech Szczesny in the 78th minute.
That was Costa’s ninth goal for his new club and an offside flag spared too much embarrassment from an inexplicable open-goal miss late on.
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Telegraph:
Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger in shoving match as Cesc Fabregas shines against his old club
Henry Winter
The only time Arsenal really got to grips with Chelsea, their serial nemesis, was when Arsène Wenger lost his temper and pushed Jose Mourinho midway through the first half. Apart from the ding-dong in the dug-out, Chelsea were again heavyweights against middleweights, again totally in control, again triumphant.
Eden Hazard scored their first, a firm, well-placed penalty after he was brought down by Laurent Koscielny. Cesc Fabregas had one of his quieter performances for Chelsea against his old club, yet still played the pass of the game, a second-half through-ball from which Diego Costa netted his ninth goal of the season. It was Fabregas’ seventh Premier Leagueassist for Chelsea. The two new boys at the Bridge have given Chelsea renewed belief that they can outlast Manchester City in the drive to the title as they moved back five points clear at the top.
Their defence was mobile and robust, far too strong for Danny Welbeck while Mesut Ozil was subdued. Wenger suggested that Arsenal had not been interested in bringing Fabregas back to Arsenal because they had bought Ozil; Fabregas looked better business on this evidence.
The Derby was delayed 15 minutes after a flare was let off in the away concourse, causing congestion for those Arsenal fans still trying to get in. Inside, new and old Derby day insults filled the air. Fabregas was villifed by the Arsenal supporters, especially when he caught Welbeck.
Frequent abuse was aimed at Mourinho from the corner of the Shed and East Stand where the Arsenal fans were situated. Chelsea supporters responded by backing Fabregas, Mourinho and reminding the visitors that Ashley Cole won a Champions League with them.
It was a game of attrition early on. Kieran Gibbs caught Hazard. Oscar nicked the ball off Welbeck. Alexis Sanchez accidentally caught Thibaut Courtois with his right thigh, the keeper appearing to be concussed but playing on for 10 minutes. It was surprised he was allowed to continue, particularly given Chelsea’s experience with head injuries following Petr Cech’s injury at Reading in 2006.
On it went, the incidents, the challenges and abuse. Andre Schurrle sent Mesut Ozil flying as Joachim Low looked on. Gary Cahill dispossessed Sanchez. Arsenal fans cheered when Ozil neatly turned away from Fabregas. It then got nastier, still lacking some of the kicking frenzies of the Seventies and Eighties but with plenty of malice aforethought. Cahill should have walked for a late, ugly challenge on Sanchez, earning only a booking from Martin Atkinson.
Wenger was enraged, marching over towards Mourinho, his tie flying up, his hackles equally raised and pushing Mourinho with both hands in the chest. Mourinho told Wenger where to go and pointed the way, indicating the away technical area that the Frenchman had vacated. The pair resembled smartly-suited commuters arguing over the last seat on the last train to Orpington. Atkinson delivered a brisk lecture when a couple of blasts of the vanishing spray might have been better.
Shortly afterwards, Mourinho was on the pitch, signaling to Atkinson that Courtois required more attention. Chelsea’s doctor, Eva Carneiro, dashed on, attending to the Belgian’s bleeding right ear. Courtois could not continue and was replaced by Cech in his protective headgear, a legacy of that incident with Steven Hunt at Reading. Courtois walked to the touchline before heading down the tunnel. Alarmingly, the paramedics were then scrambled and raced down the tunnel.
The attention was then on another Belgian. Hazard dribbled through at speed, a beautiful, weaving rund into the Arsenal area where Laurent Koscielny panicked, stretched out a leg and brought down the Chelsea No 10 for one of the clearest penalties imaginable. Koscielny could have departed but Atkinson showed some mercy, contenting himself with a caution. In a half with plenty of pointing, Atkinson then gestured to the spot. Hazard calmly placed the ball down, and then stroked it low to the left of Szczesny as the Matthew Harding Stand led the celebrations.
As the half closed, Jack Wilshere had a couple of chances but Cech was too quick for him and then Terry slid in with a perfectly-timed interception. Yet there could have been a third potential red when Calum Chambers, already booked, brought down Schurrle.
In the second half, Chelsea were annoyed when Flamini drifted an elbow into the face of Costa while Arsenal were furious at not being awarded a penalty when Fabregas handled Wilshere’s shot.
Chelsea were never really troubled. Their collective defiance was embodied by Oscar, who was back on the edge of his six-yard box to hook a Kieran Gibbs cross away. Oscar then threw himself in the way of a Flamini drive.
Midway through the half, Mourinho withdrew Schurrle for the more defensive John Obi Mikel while Wenger, surprisingly, took off Santi Cazorla, who had been one of Arsenal’s better players. Wenger unleashed the quicker Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Arsenal flattered to deceive against heavyweight opposition again. Chelsea threatened on the counter. With 15 minutes remaining, Costa dribbled past Per Mertesacker before slipping the ball inside to Hazard, who eluded Koscielny but shot over. Then came that pass from Fabregas, a sweetly flighted ball through the middle, allowing Costa to sprint between Mertesacker and Koscielny, chested the ball on and then lift it almost arrogantly over Sczczesny.
The Spaniard carried on, celebrating in front of the Arsenal fans. As he ran back to the halfway line, as Chelsea fans chorused “Arsene Wenger, we want you to stay”, the statisticians from Opta were busy, reporting that of Costa’s “19 shots this season, 16 of them have been on target (with nine resulting in goals)”. He almost scored again but Sczcseny saved well. Welbeck then clattered Fabregas and could have been sent off as Arsenal faded. It was never going to be a 6-0 like last season but Chelsea’s control over Arsenal remains.
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Times:
Chelsea too strong for Arsenal as Diego Costa strikes again
Oliver Kay Chief Football Correspondent
For once, Arsene Wenger and Arsenal seemed ready – in more ways than one – to take the fight to Jose Mourinho and Chelsea, but by the end of this fraught occasion he left Stamford Bridge with a familiar sinking feeling.
Goals from Eden Hazard, from the penalty spot, and Diego Costa, set up superbly by Cesc Fabregas, sent Chelsea five points clear at the top of the Barclays Premier League table and extended their remarkable recent record against Arsenal. In 12 meetings with Arsenal, as Chelsea manager, Mourinho has never tasted defeat.
Mourinho’s delight was tempered, however, by concern over Thibaut Courtois after the goalkeeper was taken to hospital for tests after suffering a head injury in the first half.
Any victory over Arsenal, though, will be treasured by Mourinho, whose relationship with Wenger seemed to sink to new depths as the two managers clashed on the touchline in the first half.
Wenger will feel that his ire was justified not only by Gary Cahill’s wild, dangerous challenge on Alexis Sanchez near the touchline but by the referee’s decision to show only a yellow card when, as with a later offence by Danny Welbck, a red would have seemed more appropriate.
The Arsenal manager was furious, taking out his anger on Mourinho, whom he shoved in the chest. Mourinho responded, playground-style, by flipping up Wenger’s tie. Atkinson intervened, telling them to calm down, but the hostility lingered throughout the first half.
Even once Mourinho and Wenger had calmed down a little, having been warned by Atkinson that they risked being expelled to the stands, the barbs kept going and back forth, with Rui Faria and Steve Bould continuing on their managers’ behalf. The way things finally quietened down in the second half, one can only assume that Atkinson had reinforced his message at the interval.
It was a shame that the eye was drawn to the touchline so often because it distracted from an appealing spectacle on the pitch. This was one of Arsenal’s more convincing, more assured performances away from home against a rival team. Certainly there never threatened to be a repeat of last season’s 6-0 defeat, when they were 3-0 down and a man down inside 17 minutes.
Chelsea certainly played a more patient, less proactive game than they had in that previous meeting, but they also had to be on their guard defensively. Arsenal were playing some nice stuff, with Santi Cazorla and Jack Wilshere taking every forward to join the front three. It was from Wilshere’s carefully weighted pass that Courtois ran out, pounced on the ball and collided with Alexis, immediately dropping to the floor.
Was Courtois concussed? The reaction of Chelsea’s medical staff appeared to suggest not, as he was given the green light to continue, but shortly afterwards he fell to the ground again, looking shaken, with blood seeping from his ear. This time he was taken off and straight to hospital for tests. Amid concern for Courtois, these were not the circumstances in which Petr Cech would have wished to return to Premier League action.
Chelsea had struggled for fluency in the early stages, but with Hazard around, a match can be changed in an instant. The Belgium winger received the ball midway through the Arsenal half and embarked on a scintillating run, away from Cazorla and Calum Chambers and into the penalty area, where Laurent Koscielny’s only answer was to bring him down crudely for what could feasibly have been deemed a professional foul. Hazard was not to be denied his goal; he rolled the penalty past Szczesny to put Chelsea In front.
Arsenal had plenty of the ball after that, but they found that Chelsea’s resistance had increased. There were few real opportunities. Cech dived at the feet of Wilshere shortly before the interval, while the Arsenal midfield player felt his team should have had a penalty in the second half when his shot struck the outstretched arm of Fabregas. Atkinson shook his head. Wenger seethed on the touchline.
With John Obi MIkel on alongside Nemanja Matic to protect an already formidable-looking back four, there seemed no way through for Arsenal, for whom Danny Welbeck found life nothing like so enjoyable as he had against Galatasaray in the Champions League on Wednesday. John Terry and Cahill defended superbly, while Branislav Ivanovic and Cesar Azpilicueta, at full-back, were similarly unyielding.
The winning goal, on 78 minutes, was made by a Fabregas-Costa combination, but the full-backs played a part too. Ivanovic won the ball and it was quickly moved via Azpilicueta and Mikel to Fabregas, who floated a perfect pass over the Arsenal defence for Costa to chase.
Costa controlled the ball on his chest and barely broke side before lobbing it over Szczesny. It was a lovely goal and a fitting way to send Chelsea five points clear at the top of the Premier League table. On this evidence, they will take some catching.
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Mail:
Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal: Gunners undone by Eden Hazard as Arsene Wenger continues to suffer against Jose Mourinho
By Martin Samuel
A one-man team? Chelsea are so much more than that this season. Those who believe the title race rests on the hamstrings of Diego Costa may have to reconsider after this.
For a good 75 minutes, Arsenal snuffed out Costa’s threat. It did not matter. Chelsea were still on course for victory, through the quite brilliant Eden Hazard.
Just when Arsenal began imagining they might get a point from the game, a perfect long pass by Cesc Fabregas killed them.
Outstanding at the back, tireless through midfield, this Chelsea team is the real deal. They are five points clear of their nearest rival, Manchester City, after seven games going into the October international break and if that margin is repeated through the season the title comes to Stamford Bridge before the first blossoms of spring.
As the Premier League does not get won by gaps of 25 points that it unlikely to happen, but finding a way of stopping Chelsea in this form is easier said than done.
Not least because when Thibaut Courtois, arguably the best goalkeeper in the league, gets injured, his replacement is Petr Cech, arguably the second best goalkeeper in the league.
Chelsea’s strength in depth sets them apart. Jose Mourinho has built a powerful squad, full of options and nuance.
This was not the 6-0 monstering of Arsenal from a year ago, but it was impressive nonetheless.
Aside from a Jack Wilshere shot that struck Fabregas’s hand, inspiring a penalty shout, Arsenal did not really threaten.
They had good possession, minus the cutting edge and Danny Welbeck was made to work too hard to have an impact.
He ran and ran, but barely got a touch in an area that mattered. Chelsea cut to the heart of the matter at least twice. Once, when Hazard burst into the penalty area, again when Fabregas set up Costa for his ninth goal in seven Premier League games.
Sanchez immediately shows concern for Courtois as the keeper appeared badly hurt on the pitch and the Chelsea goalkeeper had to be treated by paramedics after
There were two other occasions when Chelsea could have furthered their lead, and both were Hazardous. In the 58th minute, the Belgian broke down the left and hit a cross which Mathieu Flamini almost deflected into his own net were it not for the outstretched hand of Wojciech Szczesny.
Then, just before the second goal, Costa at last broke free of Arsenal’s back line and fed Hazard, arriving late, Frank Lampard style. From close range, he fired over.
Arsenal had no real equivalency, no moments when they opened Chelsea’s defensive four as completely. It was not that they were poor, simply that they are not as good.
The game went exactly as many imagined. Chelsea on top, physically imposing and clinical when it mattered. For all of Arsenal’s beauty, Chelsea were technically superior, too – and one man, in particular, shone.
Costa closely guarded for much of the game, Hazard rose to the occasion, winning and converting the penalty that initially separated the teams. He was exceptional, running at Arsenal, committing them, unnerving them every time he got in or around the box.
Although his goal was a penalty what preceded it was quite lovely, the breakthrough coming in the 27th minute with a touch of the mazy Maradonas. Hazard jinked his way through Arsenal’s defences, before Laurent Koscielny dashed across and felled him with a clumsy tackle that earned a booking and the inevitable gesture towards the spot by referee Martin Atkinson. Hazard slipped the ball low to the right as Szczesny dived the wrong way.
And then, with 12 minutes remaining, came the moment every Arsenal fan had dreaded. Fabregas, playing his first game for his new English club against the one that made his name, striking the sort of pass that used to define matches in the red and white of Arsenal.
It wasn’t a long ball. That sounds too crude. It was accurate and intelligent and left Costa free of Arsenal’s attention for once, setting him up for a chance that was only ever going to end with the ball in the net.
On he ran, outstripping Arsenal’s defence before drawing Szczesny and lobbing him, deftly, to put the result beyond doubt.
A lesser team than Chelsea may have been rattled by the misfortune of goalkeeper Courtois after ten minutes. Then again, a lesser team than Chelsea would not have been summoning Cech from the bench.
Arsenal’s stand-in, for instance was Emiliano Martinez, a 23-year-old Argentinian who spent much of last season on loan at Sheffield Wednesday. Cech spent it being the Premier League’s best goalkeeper.
Arsenal were rumoured to have wanted him this summer, but Chelsea would not sell to a rival on this occasion. This match showed why. Losing Courtois proved no loss at all. His replacement was as good, just older.
Courtois soldiered on for 13 minutes before conceding that, yes, an earlier collision with a charging Alexis Sanchez had affected his vision. He took the full weight of Sanchez’s thigh to the head and at first looked out cold, splayed like a boxer on the receiving end of a sucker punch. Revived, Courtois continued, but a break in play saw him sit down and call for treatment, and there appeared to be evidence of bleeding in his right ear.
There has been much discussion of late about the treatment of head injuries, but one of the complications is that players tend to disguise the extent of any problem. Courtois would no doubt have been asked whether he had lost consciousness and whether he could see straight, and would have replied to the medical team’s satisfaction, either being too brave, too foolhardy, or both.
Are football’s rules sufficient? As medical staff are club employees the suspicion will always be that they are under pressure to keep the team at its strongest, although this is a grave slur against any professional carer.
A compromise would be to have independent doctors, appointed by the league, at each game making the call on head injuries, and replacements to be provided without this counting as a substitution.
Yet how long before that advance was abused by an unscrupulous coach looking to make a change without cost? It could happen. Put it this way: who would have believed the circumstances of rugby union’s Bloodgate scandal before it occurred?
Back to the game, and the value of Cech was seen almost immediately. Within seven minutes of coming on he had made a quite magnificent anticipatory save at the feet of Wilshere, put in by a square pass from Santi Cazorla. By that time, however, Arsenal were no longer searching for the lead, but an equaliser.
Of course, as always when Wenger meets Mourinho – he is still without a win in 12 meetings – there was a sideshow. It unfolded in the 21st minute when a foul by Gary Cahill on Sanchez brought Wenger to his feet in a furious rage.
He marched down the touchline towards the incident, encroaching on Chelsea’s technical area in the process. This upset Mourinho who attempted to stop him, at which point Wenger placed both hands on the Chelsea manager’s chest and gave him a shove.
For a split second, Mourinho seemed a little concerned, as if he might have to summon John Terry or Didier Drogba as back-up. Instead, the fourth official stepped in and restored order, although Wenger did seem keen to go back for seconds. He retired to his corner, an amused smile on his face, with the look of a man who had taken round one on points.
Wenger later said if he had wanted to properly push Mourinho, he would have gone at it a lot harder. He doesn’t know his strength, that boy. Worryingly, Chelsea probably do.
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Mirror:
Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal:
Cesc Fabregas returns to haunt Gunners as managers tangle at the Bridge
By Martin Lipton
Blues keeper Thibaut Courtois was also forced from the field in an action-packed afternoon where Eden Hazard and Diego Costa ensured the Blues stay top
They say the three types of falsehood are lies, damned lies and statistics.
But sometimes the numbers do add up. Sometimes the litany of figures tell a story.
Now it is 12 games unbeaten for Jose Mourinho against Arsene Wenger.
Now it is 392 minutes, more than six hours, since Arsenal last SCORED against Chelsea.
And now it is nine points between them, a yawning chasm after just seven games.
As the Stamford Bridge victory chants rang out from the moment Diego Costa burst onto Cesc Fabregas' delightful pass to claim his ninth Premier League goal in Chelsea blue, it was Celebration Day for the home fans, Groundhog Day for the visitors.
Not six this time. Not a humiliation or anything close, from a match where the details were overtaken by the sight of ambulance staff sprinting down the tunnel to rush the stricken Thibaut Courtois to hospital and the flare-up between Mourinho and his arch-nemesis.
What will hurt Wenger more than the result, more than the headlines about his touchline spat, is the basic, fundamental truth.
That even when his Arsenal side are genuinely competitive with Chelsea, as they were for long periods on Sunday, they are simply not good enough to beat them.
Where it mattered, physically, emotionally, mentally, Chelsea were stronger. Much stronger. Far too good.
Yes, there were moments where Arsenal flickered. Where they looked lively, inventive, industrious.
But never, in truth, any point in the game where you thought they might get anything from it, especially after Eden Hazard's mesmerising sleight of foot induced the foul by Laurent Koscielny the Belgian nonchalantly punished from the spot.
That opener came in the aftermath of Courtois' exit, fully 14 minutes – scandalously long – after he accidentally crashed into Alexis Sanchez when the Chilean chased Jack Wilshere's deft ball over the top.
Under FIFA's new regulations, Chelsea medics had three minutes to assess Courtois. He was cleared to continue after just 56 seconds, before slumping to the ground, fluid coming from his ear.
In between, Wenger had rushed into Mourinho's technical area, pushing the Portuguese, after Gary Cahill's shocker launched Sanchez into orbit.
Had there been any remaining love between the two, it was lost then, as Martin Atkinson gave both a final warning.
But it was Chelsea who reacted better to the mood of festering aggression, Hazard dancing away from Santi Cazorla and Calum Chambers before Koscielny – surely denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity? - to bring him crashing down.
Only a yellow for Koscielny, but a goal for Hazard, his second of the season and back in Mourinho's good books.
It was the pivotal action, allowing Chelsea to play the way they wanted, inviting Arsenal on, confident their resolve would stand up to the test.
Rightly so, too. Petr Cech, on to a hero's welcome, came out at Wilshere's feet, Cazorla was just wide from the edge of the box.
But with Fabregas, jeered throughout by the Arsenal fans who once idolised him, pulling the strings, as Hazard jinked and weaved, Chelsea always had the greater threat.
Mathieu Flamini pinged Hazard's drilled cross against the outside of his own post, the Belgian fired over after trademark foraging by Costa.
And after Mr Atkinson gave only a corner as Wilshere's strike was diverted by Fabregas' left hand – the sort of incident that can be filed in the ''I've seen them given'' category - the final act.
Fabregas, inside his own half, sensing the space between and beyond Arsenal's centre-backs, playing the perfect lofted ball.
Costa brushing between Koscielny and Per Mertesacker, controlling expertly on his chest before dinking adroitly and gloriously past Wojciech Szczesny.
Mourinho suggested: ''At 1-0 up, the game was in our pocket, almost.'' He was right.
And one or two Arsenal fans might wonder, now, if they might find Wenger in Mourinho's pocket. The stats say he owns the Frenchman, don't they?
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Express:
Chelsea 2 - Arsenal 0: Jose Mourinho lands the sucker punch in derby clash
AS USUAL, Arsene Wenger won the first round but Jose Mourinho claimed the contest. Quite handsomely and deservedly by the end here.
By: John Dillon
It is actually seconds out, round 12 to the Special One. That is how many times he and Wenger have met across the dug-out divide now without a single win for Arsenal's increasingly cantankerous boss.
This particular victory also made it six league victories out of seven for Chelsea this season, who have ensured that their undefeated run will continue at least until mid-October, after the international break.
Even though they were clearly not at their best yesterday, they still had simply too much quality for Arsenal. Both their goals, a first-half penalty won and scored by Eden Hazard and an act of sublime counter-attacking ruthlessness by Diego Costa near the end, summed up this fact emphatically.
Wenger can push and shove all he likes and, in fact, he should consider himself fortunate that he was not sent to the stands for his extraordinary act of aggression by the touchline in the 19th minute.
For the sucker punch, however, there was Costa, who barely touched the ball for 78 minutes and then finished quite brilliantly on a surging run past Laurent Koscielny, as if he had simply decided that this was the right time to get involved and put the game to bed.
That is nine goals in seven games now since his £32million move from Atletico Madrid.
Mourinho had him nailed down months before-hand. This astuteness in getting all that he wanted put in place while the rest were still wondering what to do has now become the dominant theme of the early season.
The delivery which set Costa free had been hoisted with supreme elegance from within Chelsea's own half by the fabulous Cesc Fabregas who, uncomfortable as it may be for him personally, is fast becoming the symbolic figure summing up the gulf in talent, planning, foresight and ambition between London's two leading cubs and their warring managers.
Arsenal are already nine points adrift of Chelsea. It is only early autumn. But that statistic looks a powerful one when set against the sense of completeness and purpose currently being transmitted by this team put together by Mourinho.
Yesterday, he even managed to look like the wronged party in the flare-up by the technical area where he has prompted so much bother himself. With the passing years of Arsenal's frustrations in the league, Wenger has cut an increasingly simmering, frowning figure who came close to going over the edge yesterday.
At least there was no capitulation from his team, as there had been in the 6-0 defeat here last season. This was a match with a derby's feistiness, particularly in the first half.
It was a searing, sliding challenge from Gary Cahill on Alexis Sanchez whch led to the trouble between themanagers. This was a response to a committed and positive opening from Wenger's team.
The trouble was - as it is so often - that Jack Wilshere's passing and prompting led nowhere but into the wall of a resolute Chelsea defence which did not allow Arsenal even a hint of a chance.
Santi Cazorla had even less success than Wilshere in opening up the game, while Mezut Ozil, back out wide, simply offered no presence or input at all.
There was no diminishing of this resolution at the back when Chelsea's goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, was forced off in the 24th minute - to be replaced by Petr Cech - when the after-effects of a nasty collision with Sanchez became too debiltitating and the left the pitch bleeding from inside one ear.
Three minutes afterwards, Chelsea unleashed the quality they had held in reserve and took the lead ruthlessly.
Hazard's dazzling run took him past two defenders before Koscielny was forced to stick out a leg and illegally halt his progress. From the spot, Hazard sent Wojciech Szczesny the wrong way.
There was more of the same commitment and effort from Arsenal after the break. Yet once more, it led them nowhere. Danny Welbeck's energy dimmed - he had grafted but threatened nothing - and he ended being booked for scything down Oscar.
Just before the second goal, however, Costa showed the first sign that he was rousing himself and once more Chelsea's superior quality was apparent.
His break down the left was expertly timed, as was his decision to wait and then turn in a pass for Hazard, with the subsequent shot flying just above the crossbar.
Chelsea's triumph was encapsulated in such small details yesterday. It was probably Wenger's understanding of that profoundly unassailable fact that made him so ill-tempered.
CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Courtois 6 (Cech 24, 7); Ivanovic 8, Cahill 7, Terry 7, Azpilicueta 7; Matic 7, Fabregas 8; Schurrle 6 (Mikel 69, 6), Oscar 6 (Willian 87, 6), Hazard 7; Costa 7. Booked: Ivanovic, Cahill, Schurrle, Oscar. Goals: Hazard 27pen, Costa 78.
NEXT UP: Crystal Palace (a) Oct 18, PL.
ARSENAL (4-1-4-1): Szczesny 6; Chambers 6, Mertesacker 6, Koscielny 6, Gibbs 6; Flamini 6; Ozil 5, Wilshere 7 (Rosicky 83, 6), Cazorla 6 (Oxlade-Chamberlain 69, 6), Sanchez 7 (Poldolksi 79, 6); Welbeck 6. Booked: Chambers, Koscielny, Welbeck.
NEXT UP: Hull City (h) Oct 18, PL.
Referee: M Atkinson (West Yorkshire).
STAT: Cesc Fabregas has seven Premier League assists this season - as many as any Chelsea player produced in the league last season.
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Star:
Chelsea 2 - Arsenal 0: Hazard and Costa net as Mourinho maintains unbeaten run over Wenger
CHELSEA are five points clear at the top of the Premier League after goals from Eden Hazard and Diego Costa saw off Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.
By Rhys Turrell
In a lively and sometimes tetchy contest, Hazard's first-half spot kick and Costa's 78th minute strike ensured all three points for the hosts, and protected Jose Mourinho's unbeaten record against Arsene Wenger.
There was to be no repeat of last season's humiliating 6-0 defeat for the Gunners, but they now find their title dreams in tatters, with the visitors already nine points behind their London rivals in the table.
The first half was a lively and physical contest, with both players and managers getting stuck in.
Referee Martin Atkinson had to seperate Wenger and Mourinho on the sidelines after the Frenchman took exception to a rough challenge on Alexis Sanchez by Chelsea defender Gary Cahill.
Meanwhile, Blues keeper Thibaut Courtois had to be taken to hospital after injuring his head in a clash with Sanchez.
The hosts made the breakthrough midway through the first half when the lively Hazard jinked his way past a host Arsenal defenders and drew a foul from Laurent Koscielny inside the area.
The Belgian stepped up and made no mistake from the spot, as he cooly slotted past Wojciech Szczesny.
Clear-cut chances were hard to come by in the second half, until Chelsea doubled their lead in style.
It came after former Gunners captain Cesc Fabregas picked out Costa with a delightful lofted through ball which the Spain striker controlled on his chest before chipping over the stranded Szczesny.
Arsenal were unable to find a way back into the contest, to ensure Mourinho's unbeaten run over rival Wenger continues.
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