In one of the expected football results of the Premier League weekend, Champions League winners piled the misery on Mikel Arteta with a 2-0 victory at the Emirates. Romelu Lukaku scored on his second Chelsea debut after re-signing for the club for £97.5m. He scored in the 15th minute with a tap in from close range from a low cross by Reece James.
James doubled the lead for the visitors with a superb finish after the hosts were left down a man on the right. Arsenal were then denied by referee Paul Tierney and VAR after Saka was brought down by James in the penalty area.
Player ratings
Arsenal: Leno (7), Soares (5), Holding (5), Mari (4), Tierney (5), Lokonga (6), Xhaka (6), Pepe (5), Smith Rowe (6), Saka (6), Martinelli (4)
Subs: Aubameyang (6), Tavares (6), Balogun (NA)
Chelsea: Mendy (7), James (8), Azpilicueta (7), Christensen (7), Rudiger (7), Alonso (7), Jorginho (7), Kovacic (7), Mount (8), Havertz (8), Lukaku (9)
Subs: Kante (6), Ziyech (NA), Werner (NA)
Man of the match: Romelu Lukaku
Managers Reaction
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta: “I see a lot of positives with the crowd and the team today. The way they supported the team from the beginning and at the end, I didn’t see any bad reactions with any of the players. I saw a good reaction.”
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel: “It’s a perfect start. We didn’t concede and we have two victories. This being a London derby gives us lots of confidence – this is what you need as we are a different group. Some players have left, some have come in. This is what you need, experiences together and good victories. There were moments where we suffered together. This is how a group is built.”
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