Chelsea vs. Arsenal result: Nketiah's double revitalises top-four Premier League dreams for Arteta's men

Graham Caygill

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Chelsea vs. Arsenal result: Nketiah's double revitalises top-four Premier League dreams for Arteta's men image

Eddie Nketiah's first Premier League goals in more than a year helped revitalise Arsenal's hopes of a top-four finish as they stunned Chelsea 4-2 at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.

The English forward was on target twice as he shone against the team who released him as a schoolboy. Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka, the latter with a penalty, accounted for the other goals to secure the points for Mikel Arteta's men.

The Gunners had lost their previous three league games but looked transformed against Chelsea, with their counter-attacking play troubling the FA Cup finalists throughout.

Chelsea twice fell behind in the first half, only to peg back the visitors through first Timo Werner and Cesar Azpilicueta - the Chelsea captain who finished the evening having frank exchange of views with a supporter who came to the front of the stand to confront him.

But Thomas Tuchel's men faded in the second half and had no response when Nketiah's second goal gave Arsenal the lead for a third time. Saka then sealed things in stoppage time with a penalty, his first spot-kick since missing decisively in England's Euro 2020 final shoot-out defeat to Italy.

The result moves Arsenal level with fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur on 57 points, but behind still on goal difference.

But with six games for both sides to play, and the pair to meet at White Hart Lane on May 12 it is all to play for still in the fight for the top four.

Eddie Nketiah steps up at right time for Arsenal

You had to go back to April 18, 2021, for the last time Nketiah had scored in the Premier League.

But with his side's form floundering ahead of the trip to Stamford Bridge, having lost all three games in April, the 22-year-old produced arguably his best performance in an Arsenal shirt.

Yes, he was helped by some woeful defending from the hosts, particularly for his opener in the 16th minute as he ran on to a wayward back pass from Andreas Christensen.

But he took his chances well and he was a busy presence all night. If Alexandre Lacazette had not been hit with COVID-19 in the past week it's doubtful he'd have had the chance to start at the point of Arteta's attack.

Nketiah stepped up and his interplay with Saka and Smith Rowe was very impressive. It certainly will give Arteta food for thought as Lacazette - a second-half substitute at Stamford Bridge - works his way back to full fitness.

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Tired Chelsea regret Romelu Lukaku substitution

Chelsea were probably the better side over the opening 45 minutes but they faded in the second half.

Some of that could be fatigue catching up with them finally. This was their fifth game in 14 days and, while Tuchel rotated with four changes from the side that beat Crystal Palace 2-0 in Sunday's FA Cup semi-final, they never seemed to get going after falling behind for the third time.

It was another frustrating night for Romelu Lukaku, who plugged away upfront for 60 minutes before being replaced by Kai Havertz.

But Lukaku had shown some positive signs, despite the lack of end product, linking well with Werner.

His physical presence bothered Arsenal and you could almost see the relief on Ben White, Gabriel and Rob Holding when he was taken off.

Chelsea struggled to pressure Arsenal in the final 30 minutes and their intensity seemed to leave with Lukaku.

Arsenal back in the top-four race with Tottenham, Chelsea still have work to do

It is amazing what 90 minutes can do to a side's fortunes. Arsenal looked doomed to miss out on the top four on Saturday after their 1-0 reversal at Southampton.

But now they can host Manchester United on Saturday with real optimism. They have six games left, like Tottenham who sit above them in fourth only on goal difference, and they know that if they prevail in those six matches they will be back in the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 2017 next season.

Chelsea also have their destiny still in their hands despite this defeat. Four wins from their remaining seven games will see them take a top-four spot regardless of what Arsenal and Tottenham do.

Chelsea vs. Arsenal final score

  1H 2H Final
Chelsea 2 0 2
Arsenal 2 2 4

Goals (Assist):

13th min - Arsenal -  Nketiah 

17th min - Chelsea - Werner (Loftus-Cheek)

27th min - Arsenal - Smith Rowe (Odegaard)

32nd min - Chelsea - Azpilicueta (Mount)

57th min - Arsenal - Nketiah 

90th min - Arsenal - Saka pen

Chelsea vs. Arsenal commentary and highlights

FINAL SCORE: Chelsea 2-4 Arsenal

All over. Arsenal win and are have revitalised their UEFA Champions League qualification hopes with a superb display.

Two goals from Nketiah and strikes from Smith Rowe and Saka, the latter from the penalty spot, have clinched the three points that put them level with fourth-placed Tottenham on 57 points, albeit below them on goal difference.

90 minutes: GOAL!!! Chelsea 2-4 Arsenal

Penalty for Arsenal and it wins the game for them. Bizarre incident as Azpilicueta body checks Saka and appears to make no attempt to play the ball as he pulls the England man back.

Saka takes responsibility on the kick himself and he converts it.

87 minutes: Ramsdale punches clear a Mount corner as Chelsea enjoy their first bit of sustained pressure for a while. To the home side's annoyance that is interrupted by Holding going down with what appears to be a bit of cramp.

84 minutes: That should have been it over. Cedric gets away on right and he has lots of space to find the unmarked Saka in the box, but he blazes his centre well wide of him and the chance is gone. Cedric is then caught by a late challenge by Mount who is booked as a result of the clash.

80 minutes: Ten minutes to go. Do Chelsea have anything left? They have been pretty flat since going behind for a third time. Indeed it is Arsenal who look the more likelier as Martinelli gets away on the right but his ball across goes behind Saka, who then loses his footing trying to chase it down.

Hakim Ziyech is Chelsea's third change, on for Alonso.

75 minutes: It is not often you say this with Chelsea under Tuchel but their manager may well have erred with his substitution of Lukaku. His physical presence was troubling Arsenal and their defenders seem a lot more comfortable with the Belgian now absent.

Meanwhile, Arteta makes his second substitution as Smith Rowe comes off for Cedric Soares.

70 minutes: We have 20 minutes to go. Arteta makes his first change as Martinelli comes on for Nketiah who leaves to an ovation from the Arsenal support. The youngster has bagged his first Premier League goals of the season at what could prove to be a key juncture.

65 minutes: Close call for Arsenal! James' cross is not dealt with and Alonso has his shot blocked with Ramsdale on the floor. Meanwhile, Sarr is the first played booked after bringing down Nketiah.

63 minutes: This is the longest Arsenal have held on to a lead so far. A long way still to go but at least they are doing better than their previous two efforts at being ahead tonight.

60 minutes: Tuchel reacts to going behind again by replacing Lukaku with Havertz. Lukaku had been showing some promising signs earlier in the game but again it has proven to be another frustrating night for the Belgian.

57 minutes: GOAL!!!! Chelsea 2-3 Arsenal

A second goal for Nketiah! Perseverance pays off for the youngster as he keeps on fighting for a loose ball in the box and is rewarded as he stabs it home past Mendy.

Arsenal ahead for a third time. Can they hold on this time? Even just for a few minutes?

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55 minutes: Arteta is animated figure on the touchline as gees his Arsenal players up. He knows they must get a positive result from this game of some kind. They are doing OK, it could be better, but it could be worse too but its critical they build on it after a dismal April so far.

52 minutes: Sentences not often typed this season but Lukaku and Werner are linking up nicely. Twice they combine and only wayward final balls let them down but definitely encouraging signs for Tuchel and Chelsea as they put pressure on Arsenal.

50 minutes: A rare bit of calm. Chelsea with the possession but not really doing anything with it and Arsenal content to sit back and see what their hosts have got and what has changed since the break with regards to tactics.

46 minutes: Werner smashes a shot into the side netting after Holding's poor pass gifts Chelsea possession. The second half starts as the first ends with immediate goalmouth action.

SECOND HALF KOs: The second 45 minutes is off and running. One change to tell you about. Thiago Silva is on for Chelsea in place of Christensen, whose primary contribution had been gifting Arsenal their opener with an awful back pass.

HALF TIME: Chelsea 2-2 Arsenal
What a 45 minutes of football that was. Both sides looking fragile in defence and being punished by opponents with strong forward lines.

Chelsea have had more of the game but Arsenal look dangerous on the break and it would be a shock if there are not more goals in the second half.

See you in 15 minutes for the second half.

44 minutes: Arsenal almost ahead again! Brilliant play from Smith Rowe as he burrows his way into the box and his shot flashes just wide.

40 minutes: Five minutes to the interval. No sign of this calming down with both sides pushing hard. Nketiah gets away on the left for Arsenal but his pass to Saka is intercepted and the chance is lost.

37 minutes: This is one of the games that neutrals love but managers and fans of the sides involved hate. Neither defence seems able to cope and is gifting their opponents so much space. 

Alonso is found by a long pass from Mount and blazes over from the left-side of the area as Chelsea try and get their noses ahead for the first time.

32 minutes: GOAL!!!! Chelsea 2-2 Arsenal

We are level again. Mount gets his ninth assist of the season as cross his tapped home by Cesar Azpilicueta. The goal is checked for a possible foul on Ben White but it is ruled OK and we've had four goals in 19 breathless minutes.

30 minutes: Can Arsenal build on the lead this time? Well they are immediately under the cosh from Chelsea again. Just before their second goal they had endured some chaotic defending as they struggled to clear their lines and they do not look solid defensively whatsoever. You would think, on the balance of what we have seen so far, they will need at least another goal, or two, to take the points here.

27 minutes: GOAL!!! Chelsea 1-2 Arsenal

Arsenal are back in front. Good run again on the right from Saka and his ball inside finds Martin Odegaard, who feeds Smith Rowe and for the second successive season he finds the net at Stamford Bridge as he slots home.

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22 minutes: Nketiah nearly has a second as he gets on the end of a Saka cross but he can't control his shot and it spins harmlessly wide. Arsenal are looking a threat on the flanks when they do get the ball forward.

20 minutes: And breathe! A manic last few minutes. Chelsea have been the better side and did not deserve to be behind and they hit back immediately after Christensen's blunder had gifted Arsenal the lead.

Now can they kick on and take control of proceedings?

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17 minutes: GOAL!!!! Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal

Well that did not last long. Chelsea are level four minutes later as Timo Werner's shot is deflected past Aaron Ramsdale by Xhaka. Disappointing for Arsenal as they had just got the lead and they were caught in possession deep in their own half.

13 minutes: GOAL!!! Chelsea 0-1 Arsenal

Dream start for Arsenal and it is a real gift. Eddie Nketiah runs on to an underhit back pass from Andreas Christensen and he keeps his cool to fire home.

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11 minutes: First real sight of goal for Lukaku as he gets away on the right but he drags his shot across the goal and well wide. 

10 minutes: To say Arsenal fans are enjoying Chelsea's predicament in not being able to sell tickets to home fans who are not season ticket holders would be an understatement. "There is nobody here" they sing in what seems to be a non-stop chant designed to mock their opponents. 

7 minutes: Nice move from Arsenal as no one tracks Gabriel's run after he is found by a floated pass by Granit Xhaka and Edouard Mendy does well to kick the shot away with his legs.

5 minutes: Chelsea with the early pressure and Marcos Alonso has a shot deflected wide from close range after Arsenal fail to deal with a corner convincingly, and from the following corner Gabriel has to be alert to head clear from underneath his own bar from Mount's flag-kick.

2 minutes: There are a few empty seats to be seen at Stamford Bridge, an unusual sight normally for a London derby. But this is due to Chelsea only being able to allow in season ticket holders, and Arsenal fans, due to the sanctions they are currently under.

KICK OFF: We are under way at Stamford Bridge.

10 minutes to KO: The teams are back in their respective dressing rooms and getting ready for the start. Just a reminder of what is at stake. Both sides have work to do still to get a top-four finish.

Chelsea on 62 points in third place have more breathing space but Arsenal in fifth place on 54 points really must get at least a draw, or ideally all three points.

Three points will get them back level with fourth-placed Tottenham. Barring a crazy goal glut they will not overtake Spurs due to the better goal difference of their rivals, but with the teams still to play each other, it would leave Arsenal's top-four destiny in their own hands still.

20 minutes to KO: It was fitting that Mount was one of Chelsea's heroes on Sunday, scoring the second goal in the 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace in the FA Cup semi-final.

The England star has been key to Chelsea's success this season. He leads their attacking statistics with 10 goals and eight assists and he has created 41 chances over the course of the season. Arsenal will need him to have a quiet night if they are to prevail you'd expect.

30 minutes to KO: The build-up on UK television is well under way with Sky Sports previewing the game. Arsenal great Paul Merson, who was part of the 1989 and 1991 sides that won the title, is among the pundits and he believes it is critical they get something out of tonight for their top-four ambitions.

"A point at least is what they need," Merson said. "If they do that then it is still in their own hands and that is all you can ask for."

40 minutes to KO: The teams will be out warming up shortly. Smith Rowe is back in the Arsenal line-up and he was the hero 11 months ago when he struck the only goal of the game in the Gunners' 1-0 success at Stamford Bridge.

It was Arsenal's first win at Chelsea in 10 years and they have enjoyed a good run of form of late there, with only one loss in their last four trips to their London rivals.

55 minutes to KO: Now we have Chelsea with Tuchel making four alterations from the team that reached the FA Cup final at Crystal Palace's expense on Sunday.

Malang Sarr, N'Golo Kante, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Lukaku are all in with Antonio Rudiger, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic and Kai Havertz the men to drop out of the line-up.

60 minutes to KO: We have the Arsenal team for tonight. Three changes from the side that lost at Southampton with Rob Holding, Mohamed Elneny and Emile Smith Rowe coming in for Cedric Soares, Sambi Lokonga and Gabriel Martinelli.

70 minutes to KO: Not long now until the teams are announced but Arsenal will be wearing black armbands tonight. That is in memory of Steve Rowley, who worked for the club between 1980 and 2017, with his most notable role being as chief scout for the club after Arsene Wenger arrived at the club in 1996.

Rowley died on Sunday at the age of 63 after a short illness and Arsenal are planning a further tribute for him at Saturday's home game with Manchester United.

75 minutes to KO: The sides met on the second weekend of the season back in August in the reverse fixture with Chelsea cantering to a 2-0 win thanks to first-half goals from Romelu Lukaku and Reece James.

Arsenal were in crisis then as that was two defeats in a row to start the campaign. Not a lot has changed then, with so much hanging on tonight's game for Mikel Arteta's side.

90 minutes to KO: It feels an eternity ago since Chelsea were last in Premier League action. Well it wasn't that long ago of course, but a lot has happened since the Blues trounced Southampton 6-0 on April 9.

Their UEFA Champions League reign ended despite a heroic 3-2 win at Real Madrid as they lost 5-4 on aggregate, before they reached their third FA Cup final on the trot on Sunday by beating Crystal Palace 2-0.

So, what is at stake for them in the league? Mathematically they can still win the title but for that to happen they need to win all eight remaining fixtures and have Liverpool and Manchester City both hit terrible form.

More realistically they will want to sew up a top-four spot as soon as possible with an eye on resting players ahead of the FA Cup Final with Liverpool on May 14.

Four wins would guarantee third spot and automatic qualification for the group stages for 2022/23 and Thomas Tuchel will want them to start that run tonight.

100 minutes to KO: Arsenal must wish that they could press rewind and start April again. When they left the field on March 19 after winning 1-0 at Aston Villa it looked like they were well on track for a top-four finish and a return to the UEFA Champions League for the 2022/23 season.

But injuries to Thomas Partey and Kieran Tierney appear to have damaged Arsenal's momentum and they were trounced 3-0 at Crystal Palace on the return to the international break before losing 2-1 at home to Brighton and then 1-0 at Southampton on Saturday.

From being in a strong position suddenly they must win tonight simply to get back on level terms with fourth-placed Tottenham with both sides having six games to go. Sounds easy, right? Got a feeling Chelsea might have something to say about that scenario.

Two hours to KO: Not long now until the action at Stamford Bridge gets under way. Arsenal are desperate to end a run of three defeats in a row that has severely dented their hopes of finishing in the top four.

Three points would get them back level with fourth-placed Tottenham with six games to go each, but that is of course easier said than done against a Chelsea side who will be full of confidence after reaching their third successive FA Cup final on Sunday when they defeated Crystal Palace 2-0.

We will have team news in around an hour's time, which will give insight into how respective bosses Thomas Tuchel and Mikel Arteta plan to tackle this.

MORE: Liverpool and Manchester City run-in predictions: Projecting all the fixtures in Premier League title race

How to watch Chelsea vs. Arsenal

  UK USA Canada Australia
Date April 24th April 24th April 24th April 25th
Time 7.45 p.m. BST 2.45 p.m. ET 2.45 p.m. ET 5.45 a.m. AEST
TV channel Sky Sports Main Event Universo DAZN Optus Sport
Streaming NOW TV fuboTV/NBCSports.com DAZN Optus Sport

In the US, televised Premier League games are also available on fuboTV, which also offers a free trial to new subscribers.

In Canada, every Premier League game streams live on DAZN. 

Chelsea vs. Arsenal predicted lineups

Romelu Lukaku will be back in contention for the Blues, having come off the bench in the FA Cup semi-final after his return from an Achilles injury. Callum Hudson-Odoi will miss out as he continues his recovery from a similar knock, while Mateo Kovacic is sidelined with an ankle problem sustained against Palace.

Ross Barkley will hope to be available, but Ben Chilwell remains out with a cruciate ligament injury.

Chelsea predicted lineup (3-4-1-2): Mendy (GK) — Azpilicueta, Silva, Rudiger — James, Kante, Jorginho, Alonso — Mount — Havertz, Werner.

As for the visitors, Alexandre Lacazette is hoping to return after missing their clash away to Southampton due to private reasons. Right-back Takehiro Tomiyasu could be fit again following a muscular injury and will be assessed late.

Kieran Tierney and Thomas Partey are out, with both expected to miss the run-in.

Arsenal predicted lineup (4-2-3-1): Ramsdale (GK) — Tomiyasu, White, Gabriel, Tavares — Xhaka, Lokonga — Smith Rowe, Odegaard, Saka — Lacazette.

MORE: Zack Steffen's FA Cup mistake for Manchester City gifts Liverpool a goal in Wembley semifinal

Chelsea vs. Arsenal betting odds

Chelsea will go into this one as slight favourites, having produced some improved attacking displays in recent times. Timo Werner looks to be hitting a hot streak and may prove to be the difference-maker if chances come his way.

Arsenal will also be looking to find their feet in front of goal once again, with the potential return of Lacazette perhaps crucial to any chance of the Gunners getting a result. On examination, this could be a high-scoring affair, with Chelsea keen to sew up Champions League qualification as soon as possible and Arsenal desperate to stay in the race.

  UK
(Sky Bet)		 USA
(DraftKings)		 Canada
(Sports Interaction)
[Home] Win 17/20 -105 1.87
Draw 5/2 +255 3.38
[Away] Win 10/3 +295 3.73
Over 2.5 Goals 1/1 +100 1.95
Both Teams to Score 4/5 -130 1.78

Graham Caygill