‘Playing like kings’ - National media give same Arsenal verdict after Chelsea rout

Arsenal sent a clear message to their title rivals with their emphatic 5-0 victory over Chelsea on Tuesday night. The Gunners moved three points clear at the top of the Premier League table to keep the pressure on Liverpool and Manchester City ahead of their respective midweek clashes.

It remains to be seen whether Arsenal’s statement performance will have a lasting effect on the title race but it did brush aside the notion that the Gunners are set to falter, once again, during the final run-in. Leandro Trossard’s early goal set the tone before braces for Kai Havertz and Ben White led to a damning defeat for Chelsea.

The win showed that Arsenal are far from ready to give up on their dream of winning the Premier League title. Here’s what a selection of the national media made of the dominant performance from Mikel Arteta’s side.

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‘Turn up the heat’

“All that Arsenal can do is win, turn up the heat, ask the question of Manchester City, the defending Premier League champions, who retain control of their destiny in terms of this season’s thrilling title race,” David Hytner reported for The Guardian. “But how Mikel Arteta’s team won here and its message could not have been clearer. If City are to slip, Arsenal will be there to capitalise.

“One of the images of the evening was provided by a young Chelsea fan, who held up a cardboard sign towards the end. “I don’t want your shirt. I want you to fight for ours,” it read. That stung. Then again, Chelsea’s players had stunk out the stadium.”

‘Tore Chelsea to shreds’

“If this was one of their toughest games left, Arsenal had a funny way of showing it,” summarised Tom Allnutt for The Times. “They tore Chelsea to shreds, scored five goals and sent a resounding message that will have been heard loud and clear from Anfield to the Etihad: Arsenal are not done yet.

“Mikel Arteta challenged his players to capitalise on the schedule and crank up the pressure on their title rivals before Liverpool head to Everton tonight and Manchester City travel to Brighton & Hove Albion tomorrow.

“In that sense, it was not just mission accomplished. It was a rout, one that will generate a surge of belief and energy among Arsenal’s players before they face Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.”

‘Playing like kings’

So much for The Choke. So much for the idea that you can set your clocks by the moment Arsenal bottle it,” Oliver Holt reported for the Daily Mail. “So much for the idea that Mikel Arteta’s side is somehow preternaturally inclined to lose its nerve in the white heat of a title race and hand the trophy to Manchester City.

“Arsenal are not choking. If anything, it is the opposite. They are resurgent. They have dealt with the blip of their home defeat to Aston Villa and elimination from the Champions League at the hands of Bayern Munich and now they are playing like kings again.”