Premier League Gameweek 28
Arsenal
Mar 1, 2026 4.30pm
2
1
HT : 1 1
FT Emirates Stadium
Chelsea
  • William Saliba 21' goal
  • Gabriel Martinelli 56' yellowcard
  • Jurriën Timber 66' goal
  • Christian Nørgaard 76' yellowcard
  • Kai Havertz 76' yellowcard
  • goal Piero Hincapié 45'+2' (OG)
  • yellowcard Malo Gusto 75'
  • yellowcard Roméo Lavia 75'
  • yellowcard 76'
  • yellowcard Liam Delap 86'
  • yellowcard Alejandro Garnacho 86'
  • yellowcard Tosin Adarabioyo 90'

Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea: Highlights, man of the match, stats as Gunners equal two set-piece records in nervy victory

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The corner Colossi: Arsenal equal two set-piece records in nervy Chelsea win
© Iconsport / PA Images

​​​​​​Arsenal equalled two Premier League set-piece records as they nervously held out for a crucial 2-1 London derby win over Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium.

Once again having to respond to an earlier Manchester City victory, the Gunners picked the Blues lock in customary fashion - with a corner.

Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba combined for the latter to nod home the opening goal, but Mikel Arteta and Nicolas Jover were then fed a dose of their own set-piece medicine, as a Piero Hincapie own goal from a corner brought Chelsea level.

There would be another twist to the set-piece tale, though, as Jurrien Timber headed the hosts back ahead, just a few minutes before the all-too-familiar Chelsea red card - this time to Pedro Neto for two bookable offences.

Liam Rosenior's depleted side nevertheless looked the likelier to score in the dying embers, and they even had the ball in the back of the net in the sixth minute of added time through Liam Delap, but Joao Pedro was rightly flagged offside as Arsenal survived.

The Gunners have moved five points clear of Man City at the top of the Premier League table again, while sixth-placed Chelsea are now six points adrift of Manchester United in the race for fourth.

SPORTS MOLE'S VERDICT

© Iconsport / PA Images

Your quintessential Arsenal one-goal win in 2025-26 - set-piece excellence, open-play struggles, and the Gunners making life far more difficult for themselves than they should have.

Only the Gunners had got one over Rosenior's Chelsea before today, but to little surprise, the hosts were given much more of a sterner test than they faced against a relegation-threatened Tottenham Hotspur, who gave up open-play goals at will.

Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze's powers waned and then some against the Blues, so Arteta's men had to go back to basics - those basics being unstoppable corners that no side has figured out a way to stop.

The visitors tried to defeat the hosts at their own game, but more questionable goalkeeping from Robert Sanchez and more worrying indiscipline - two themes of their season - proved costly in a fatal four-minute period.

Chelsea still managed to give Arsenal some major scares late on, as a passive home side needed David Raya to bail them out of danger once again, but the restoration of the five-point gap is all that matters.

ARSENAL VS. CHELSEA HIGHLIGHTS

William Saliba goal vs. Chelsea (21st min, Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea)

The corner cheat code works its magic again!

Bukayo Saka whips in an inch-perfect delivery to the back post, where Gabriel towers over Reece James to nod the ball back into the mixer.

The Brazilian's centre-back partner Saliba gets first contact, and the Frenchman's header takes a big deflection off of Mamadou Sarr and into the back of the net!

Piero Hincapie own goal vs. Arsenal (45+2 min, Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea)

Chelsea might have had a penalty - they now have a goal!

Arsenal survive one corner as David Raya pulls off a wonderful reaction save from Declan Rice, who almost elbowed the ball into his own goal and could have easily conceded a spot kick.

From the resulting corner, Hincapie leaps to meet James's delivery at the near post, and the Ecuadorian inadvertently heads the ball into the far side of his own net.

With so many bodies involved in a melee in the middle, Arsenal had no one guarding the far post, and they are made to pay for it.

Jurrien Timber goal vs. Chelsea (66th min, Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea)

Copy. And. Paste.

Rice joins the corner party with a brilliant ball into the mixer, and Timber gets his head on the ball amid a sea of bodies to re-establish Arsenal's lead.

Sanchez was in complete no man's land and tries to salvage a sense of his own pride by wildly complaining for a foul, but that was just poor goalkeeping from the Spaniard.

Pedro Neto red card vs. Arsenal (70th min, Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea)

A potentially fatal four minutes for Chelsea!

Arsenal break through Gabriel Martinelli following a Blues corner, and the Brazilian is scythed down by Neto, who was just booked for dissent following Timber's goal.

Martinelli wants to keep going, but Darren England pulls play back - initially to Arsenal fans' fury, until they realise that Neto is taking the walk of shame.

That is Chelsea's seventh red card of the Premier League season!

MAN OF THE MATCH - DECLAN RICE

© Iconsport / PA Images

James did everything and more for Chelsea today, but the right-back's efforts were in vain, whereas Rice propelled Arsenal to a victory they may very well look back on come May.

The Englishman may have been fortunate not to concede a spot kick, but his corner was perfectly on the money for Timber to nod home the winner, while he also won five of his seven duels and completed 88% of his passes before picking up a potential injury concern.

ARSENAL VS. CHELSEA MATCH STATS

Possession: Arsenal 41%-59% Chelsea

Shots: Arsenal 12-9 Chelsea

Shots on target: Arsenal 5-3 Chelsea

Corners: Arsenal 5-10 Chelsea

Fouls: Arsenal 11-14 Chelsea

BEST STATS

WHAT NEXT?

Arsenal's midweek encounter is a taxing trip to Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday, the same evening that Man City take on Nottingham Forest.

Meanwhile, Chelsea visit Aston Villa in a critical top-four battle in three days' time, before travelling to Wrexham in the FA Cup fifth round next Saturday.

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