Arsenal 3 - 1 Chelsea: There's Only One Team in London

Nothing better than Theo Walcott celebrating behind a beaten Petr Cech. Pic via Daily Mail.

Arsenal 3: Song 44, Fabregas 51, Walcott 53

Chelsea 1: Ivanovic 57

You heard about it over and over and over again, that Arsenal could not rise to the occasion and win the big games. They hadn't beaten United or Chelsea in over two years. There was a psychological issue to overcome here, and if they couldn't jump over that hurdle, then this would probably not be Arsenal's year. On Monday, Arsenal finally passed the test.

Arsenal made a surprising and very welcome five changes to the side that lost at Old Trafford a fortnight ago. Lukasz Fabianski passed fit and returned to his place between the sticks as compatriot Wojciech Szczesny dropped back to the bench. Johan Djourou entered the starting line-up (finally!) as out-of-form Sebastien Squillaci dropped. Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie were both finally fit to start at the same time as Tomas Rosicky and Marouane Chamakh dropped, the latter needing a little rest. The biggest change was the return of Theo Walcott to the starting XI, as the lately ineffective Andrei Arshavin was banished the substitutes' bench.

In refreshing news, Arsenal had a strong start to the match, showing there were no signs of the nervousness the Gunners showed at Old Trafford. Cesc Fabregas spoke about the team being scared to lose in Manchester two weeks ago; Arsenal showed right off the bat that this was not the case against Chelsea. It was clear that Fabregas was back to full fitness and that the wingers, Samir Nasri on the left and Theo Walcott on the right, would cause Chelsea's back four problems. There were times when Walcott was running circles around Ashley Cole, and there is really nothing better than that for a Gooner.

That being said, Arsenal's attempts to pick the lock were met with some resistance at the start and through the first half hour, there wasn't much to speak of either way in terms of chances. Perhaps the first sign that Arsenal's luck against the Blues had turned was when Didier Drogba fired a shot wide on his first occasion in space. Drogba and Chelsea always seem to take advantage of every chance Arsenal gifts to them and this time, that didn't happen. That was Chelsea's only chance in the first half.

Rogue striker? Pic via Guardian.

Arsenal finally got in the door just before half time. Just after a brilliant chip shot from Samir Nasri was brilliant saved by Petr Cech's fingertips, Alex Song scored the opener. Song and Wilshere played a lovely one-two on the outside of the area to Fabregas, who went down in the box. Mark Clattenburg played advantage (it's hard to say if a penalty would have been given, I actually doubt it) and Alex Song took a left footed shot across the face of the goal and into the low corner.

Now, we've seen Arsenal capitulate from this position before, but their start to the second half was fantastic, in fact, they stole the ball back from Chelsea after just one pass to kick off the half. Arsenal had a second in the 51st, as a Michael Essien back pass succeeded in finding Theo Walcott. Walcott's pass across goal was tipped by a diving Cech, but only as far as Fabregas, who pounded the ball into the gaping net. Then, a third goal, as Walcott dispossessed Flourent Malouda, found Fabrgeas, who slotted a brilliant return for Walcott who found the net himself this time. Arsenal had three goals in ten minutes spanning both halves.

Remember, though, that this is Arsenal, and they never make it easy. Which is why it wasn't exactly shocking to me that Chelsea pinged a goal back four minutes later. Chelsea has a habit of burning Arsenal on set pieces and on this occasion, a perfectly placed free kick from Didier Drogba found the head of Branislav Ivanovic, who headed one home. The blame for this lies largely on Laurent Koscielny, whom Ivanovic leapt over, though Lukasz Fabianski, caught in a moment of indecisiveness, moved himself into a position where he had no chance to make a save.

We've seen Arsenal collapse in positions like this, but that was not the case on this night. Samir Nasri had a chance to add a fourth for Arsenal but his chip could not beat the arm of the out-rushing Cech. Abou Diaby returned for the first time since October and he had a chance to score, but took way too much time, tried switching to a favored foot, and let Frank Lampard get back to block. Chelsea looked threatening at times, but wasted all of their opportunities, and truly are now, a team in shambles.

From a player-by-player perspective, Fabianski had very little to do, Johan Djourou was fantastic at center half, Alex Song did well in both directions, and quite honestly, Arsenal's entire midfield and forwards dominated this match. There is no doubt about it. This was more than just three points for Arsenal. The belief is back. The confidence is back. This was probably their biggest win in at least two years.

Hipster Gooner Man of the Match: Theo Walcott