Arsenal won a set-piece battle against 10-man Chelsea as Julian Timber scored a crucial 2-1 win for the Premier League leaders over their London rivals.
Mikel Arteta’s side scored twice from corners on Sunday and conceded from the same route, underscoring the growing importance of set-pieces in the Premier League.
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William Saliba’s first goal since December 2024 gave Arsenal the lead in the first half at the Emirates Stadium.
Chelsea equalized just before the break with Piero Hincapie’s own goal from Reece James’ deadly corner kick.
But Timber’s second-half header earned Arsenal all three points and Chelsea winger Pedro Neto was sent off for a second caution.
The Gunners’ second successive league win has re-established a five-point gap over second-placed Manchester City, who have a game in hand, and closed the gap with a 1-0 win over Leeds on Saturday.
Arsenal, who endured harsh criticism of their mentality during the recent turmoil that breathed new life into the title race, got back on track at the right time with a much closer victory following last weekend’s 4-1 defeat at Tottenham.
Arsenal travel to Brighton on Wednesday with nine games remaining as they seek to win their first English title since 2004.
The Gunners have just one match left against the teams currently in the top six of England’s top flight, the League Cup final, the Champions League last 16 and the FA Cup fifth round. A trip to Manchester City on April 18th could be decisive.
Chelsea’s three-game winless streak is a blow to their chances of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
It was the third defeat to Arsenal in Liam Rosenior’s short reign as manager, and they fell to sixth place.
Roberto Sanchez almost gave Arsenal an early goal, but a last-minute clearance averted the crisis as Chelsea’s goalkeeper stumbled under pressure from Victor Goqueres.
When Sanchez gave the ball away with another nervous clearance, Rosenior held his head in frustration.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta took advantage of Chelsea’s weaknesses at the back and took the lead in the 21st minute with one of set-piece manager Nicolas Jobar’s trademark routines.
Gabriel Magalhães towered over Reece James and João Pedro, curling Bukayo Saka’s corner into the six-yard box and Saliba’s goal-bound header deflected off Chelsea’s Mamadou Sarr.
Chelsea have conceded eight goals from set-pieces in Rosenior’s first 13 games, four of which came against Arsenal.
However, the Blues got their revenge just before half-time.
Arsenal were booked for James’ corner kick which hit Declan Rice in the shoulder, forcing David Raya to make a fine save.
But they didn’t learn their lesson, and from the resulting corner kick, Hincapie headed James’ inswinger into his own net.
Arsenal remained vulnerable from James’ corner and Joao Pedro should have done better than head straight at Raya before nodding wide to Chelsea’s other captain’s teasing set-piece.
These mistakes were a huge blow for Chelsea, as Arsenal once again showed their set-piece prowess in the 66th minute.
Chelsea’s strong appeal for a foul on Sanchez failed to overturn the goal, allowing Timber to score a perfectly timed header from Rice’s corner kick.
It was the Gunners’ 16th league goal of the season from a corner kick, and jubilant fans celebrated by chanting “Another set-piece, ole, ole!”
Neto, who had been threatened with protests after Timber’s goal, unwisely took his frustrations out on Gabriel Martinelli, cutting down the Arsenal winger and earning his summons in the 70th minute.
Arsenal needed a superb save from Raya in stoppage time to deny Alejandro Garnacho before they could celebrate victory.
Timber said Arsenal should “enjoy” the thrilling title race.
“We have to enjoy it. It’s an honor to stand here with my teammates who are fighting for this title. This is a beautiful place,” he said.
“We have nine games left and we have to take it one game at a time. Hopefully there’s something beautiful at the end of it.”
Meanwhile, James admitted that Chelsea have received too many red cards for indiscipline.
“We’ve talked about it. It’s come up a number of times, and each time it’s a different person. We have to look at it internally,” the Chelsea captain said.
“Of course, that’s a problem. We play in the toughest league in the world. It’s tough for (players) to go 11-on-11. It’s even tougher when it’s 10-on-11, no matter who you play.”
Earlier on Sunday, Manchester United moved into third place in the Premier League with a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.
Benjamin Sesco’s seventh goal in eight games sealed victory at Old Trafford, with United ahead of Aston Villa on goal difference.
“It feels like a big result,” said United captain Bruno Fernandes, who scored from the penalty spot.
At the other end of the table, Tottenham are mired in the battle to avoid relegation, with their winless run extending to 10 games after a 2-1 defeat at Fulham.
Nottingham Forest also failed to pull further away from the drop zone after losing 2-1 to Brighton.
