1. Arsenal’s progress continues with this monumental win
Arsenal started this calendar year strongly and while it was too late for them to win the Premier League, that run of form helped the Gunners claim a second successive FA Cup.
Probably the most impressive aspect to Arsenal’s development in 2015 is the key changes to their style of play, which allowed Arsene Wenger’s men to eliminate naïve defending from their game.
Consequently, the Gunners started winning more big games with a flexible approach. Wenger’s men carried that trend into pre-season as they recently defeated Everton 3-0 with a possession-based game-plan only to follow that up with a 6-0 thumping of Lyon in which they relied on quick transitional play.
This victory ended Arsenal’s 11-year dream of defeating a Jose Mourinho side and they needed only 44 per cent of the ball to achieve that. That ability to win games in different ways now makes Arsenal an unpredictable opponent and could be key for the Gunners as they aim to return to the summit of the English game.
2. Petr Cech showed a lot of class on his competitive debut
All eyes were inevitably on Cech as he faced his former teammates just weeks after leaving Chelsea. He had a fairly comfortable afternoon against a disappointing Chelsea side but the veteran goalkeeper performed admirably when called upon.
The shot-stopper showed that he was not bitter about his departure from the west London club by sportingly kicking the ball out of play after Cesc Fabregas was winded by a collision with Per Mertesacker.
Cech also resisted the temptation to lose his temper when Branislav Ivanovic resorted to extraordinary means just to block Cech’s view when Oscar took a free-kick.
3. Jose Mourinho will have a lot to ponder after Loic Remy and Radamel Falcao’s woes
Diego Costa was an instant hit at Chelsea with 20 league goals during his debut season but there has always been a concern over his fitness record. The Spanish striker continues to struggle with hamstring problems, which kept him out of this encounter.
Remy got the chance to lead the attack from the start but the French forward was caught offside five times in the first-half before being taken off. His replacement, Falcao, was also off the pace and did little to suggest that his forgettable loan spell at Manchester United was just a blip.
4. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain could play a crucial role in Arsenal’s season
Oxlade-Chamberlain has hardly fulfilled his potential over the last two seasons because he has missed a lot of games due to injury.
He has the industry to support central midfielders, carries a goal threat during counter-attacks plus has the aerial presence that afforded Wenger the luxury to drop Olivier Giroud from the starting XI knowing that Oxlade-Chamberlain would provide a good target for Cech’s long goal-kicks.
If Arsenal can keep such a dynamic player fit throughout the season then they have an even better chance of snatching the Premier League title from the Blues.
5. Eden Hazard will hope to quickly bounce back from another Community Shield disappointment
Hazard made his Chelsea debut in an Community Shield defeat to Manchester City in August 2012. The Belgian endured an afternoon to forget in that 3-2 defeat, tripping over the ball as he attempted a backheel, much to the delight of the City fans.
Many who saw Hazard for the first time in that game were convinced Chelsea had wasted money on the midfielder. That was of course before he adapted to the English game and became the best player in the Premier League.
Hazard was also anonymous in this clash. He lacked his usual penetration and even Mourinho’s attempts to switch him to to central positions during the game were in vain.
