Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal: 5 conclusions to draw from the match | Premier League 2019-20

Chelsea and Arsenal featured in a truly exciting London Derby on Sunday. As the game started, Arsenal dominated Chelsea completely. Pierre-Emerick Aubemeyang scored a beautiful header in the first fifteen minutes as Arsenal took the lead. They continued to move the ball around efficiently as Chelsea struggled to adapt to the pace of the game.

In the second half, Chelsea were a completely different side as they initiated attack after attack and starved Arsenal for possession. With vital substitutions, Lampard was able to change the nature of the game as his side pulled off a remarkable Premier League comeback.

Here, we take a look at 5 conclusions to draw from the game.

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#5 Chelsea bounce back with character

Frank Lampard's Chelsea seem to be back on track

Chelsea have been very inconsistent in the past few weeks. They have faced some embarrassing defeats at the hands of clubs like Everton, Bournemouth, and Southampton. The common trend in all these defeats has been that Chelsea has been unable to make a comeback after conceding a goal.

Against Arsenal, Chelsea conceded another early goal as they were undone by a clever header by Pierre-Emerick Aubemeyang. After conceding the goal, the Blues failed to complete simple passes and their play was just disarrayed in general. Frank Lampard made a tactical change in the first half and changed to a back four. As the half progressed, Chelsea grew into the game but couldn't take control of the game. However, as the second half started, there was a different energy in the Blues.

This victory might turn out to be the turning point of Chelsea's season as, before this game, Chelsea hadn't won a game in which they were trailing at the beginning. It reassures the confidence in the squad and the Blues might just be back.

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#4 Arteta has found Ozil

Ozil might just be back

When Mikel Arteta was appointed by Arsenal, one of the biggest questions was that if he would be able to look into Mesut Ozil's performances, especially after the glove incident when Freddie Ljungberg was in charge. The main issue was that no manager was able to extract results from an underperforming player, who is full of talent and experience.

It would be an understatement to say that Mesut Ozil is gifted. On his day, the German international is practically impossible to stop. However, he has perhaps been one of the most underwhelming players in the Premier League as he has failed to put in convincing shifts on the pitch.

In both the games since Arteta's arrival, Ozil has been fantastic as he has been creating chances regularly and contributing to the attack. Against Chelsea, he was very influential in the first half as he was quick with his movement and was putting in some beautiful passes. Chelsea defenders struggled to get hold of him and ended up fouling him more often than not. For 35-45 minutes, Ozil was at his vintage best, being the fulcrum of every attack that Arsenal created.

While his performance in the second half was average at best, it is important to note that Arteta has been able to release the Ozil that the world knows. If Arteta can work on Ozil's fitness and his willingness to work hard off the ball, Ozil might just take the world by storm again.

#3 Jorginho makes the difference for Chelsea

Jorginho scored the equalizer in the 83rd Minute

Now, Jorginho hasn't really been able to impact Chelsea's performances in the past few weeks. His performances have been lackluster and he has often failed to fill the leadership role handed to him by Frank Lampard.

Against Arsenal, N'Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic started in midfield. However, as Chelsea were struggling to adapt to the game, Lampard introduced Jorginho as the third midfielder, substituting Emerson in the process. This change meant that Chelsea shifted to a back four with Fikayo Tomori functioning as the right-back and Cesar Azpilicueta moving to the left-back position.

As soon as Jorginho moved into the position in front of the backline, he could be seen organizing his team and telling them where to put the ball. He was quick in moving the ball ahead and made sure that Chelsea retained possession.

Jorginho pulled the strings in midfield with ease and controlled the game from the base of midfield. Moreover, he ended up scoring the equalizer in the second half that triggered Chelsea's unbelievable comeback. It is important to mention that Jorginho could have been sent off in the second half, but that is debatable considering Guendouzi's theatrical fall to the ground.

While many had written Jorginho off, Chelsea's vice-captain gave a trademark performance last night. As Chelsea look to improve their form at Stamford Bridge, Lampard must consider Jorginho as a starter as he seems ready to lead the team from the front.

#2 Arsenal need to learn game management

Arsenal has to be fitter to adapt to Arteta's style of football

Arsenal were dominant in the first half and was in control of the game. They were stretching Chelsea's defense and were moving the ball around quickly. Arteta made sure that his side maintained a high line and tried to maintain the possession.

However, they were a shadow of themselves in the second half as they were completely on the back foot. The Gunners were sitting very deep and playing on the counter-attack, thereby losing control of the match completely. This poor attitude meant that Chelsea continued to push the equalizer and finally found their first goal in the 83rd minute.

Chelsea kept the pressure on the Gunners after the equalizer. Finally, the ball fell to Tammy Abraham who ran with it before releasing Willian into space. The Brazillian pushed the ball to the edge of the box, before passing it back to Abraham who finished it with ease. Here, the Gunners failed to run sprint back to cover the space. They simply ran out of the energy.

Arteta's footballing philosophy is based on a high-pressing style. He wants his team to move quickly with high intensity. The Gunners managed to maintain the tempo in the first half, ut faded away quickly in the second half. Arsenal, in general, needs to be fitter as they adapt to the quick style of Arteta and it will take months to develop the fitness to play in this manner.

#1 Lampard continues to trust in youth

Callum Hudson-Odoi was vital in Chelsea's victory yesterday

Frank Lampard has truly emphasized the importance of youth at the Chelsea Football Club. Throughout the season, Lampard has shown great faith in young players like Mason Mount, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Fikayo Tomori.

Against Arsenal, Chelsea lined up in the same 3-4-2-1 that started against Spurs. As the game went on, Lampard changed the formation to a back four with Tomori as the right-back, as discussed before. Now, despite his best efforts, there was a lack of incisiveness in Tomori's wing-play due to his habit of playing centrally.

Around the hour mark, Lampard made a surprising decision by substituting Tomori for Tariq Lamptey, giving the 19-year-old his first-team debut. This was a brave decision as Lampard decided to trust an academy graduate when Chelsea was losing and chasing the game. However, Lamptey's introduction meant that Chelsea's right-wing was rejuvenated as he was eager to work hard and run up and down the wing continuously.

In his final substitution, Lampard substituted Mateo Kovacic for Callum Hudson-Odoi. With Chrisitan Pulisic waiting on the bench, this was surprising again as Hudson-Odoi had performed very poorly against Southampton.

Despite the strange pattern, Lampard's substitutions were spot on and both his young players made a direct impact on the result of the game. Lamptey was essential as he maneuvered the wing with a very attacking mindset and Hudson-Odoi made some beautiful runs and was essential as Chelsea pushed for the winner.