Chelsea assistant boss Ray Wilkins was pleased to take all three points from a dangerous Arsenal side and praised Didier Drogba for yet another outstanding performance (Chelsea 8/13 Premier League Outright).
The Blues had won their first five top-flight games before losing 1-0 to Manchester City last weekend, but they bounced back in style to beat Arsenal 2-0 at Stamford Bridge and pull four points clear at the top of the Premier League table.
Drogba scored the first goal just before the break before Alex’s powerful free-kick rounded things off in the 85th minute to continue Chelsea’s recent dominance over the Gunners.
The west Londoners took six points from Arsene Wenger’s men last term and their ability to beat their rivals near the top of the table went a long way to securing the Premier league title last season.
Arsenal have enjoyed a mixed start to the season but Wilkins feels they are a team to be respected in the battle for the 2010-11 title.
“Arsenal are one of the teams who scare me because they have the ability to take the ball and keep it,” he said. “I’m glad to get this out of the way and claim the three points.”
Drogba’s latest goal was his 13th in 13 matches against Wenger’s men, but Wilkins feels that his goal-scoring ability is just one part of the African’s all-round contribution to the team effort (Drogba 7/4 to be Premier League Top Scorer).
“Didier is a fantastic player, a world-class striker,” he added. “If you give him an opportunity he will score. Also he is the best forward I have ever seen for coming back and defending.”
A few pundits questioned Chelsea’s early-season position in the table as their first five victories were all against teams expected to finish in the bottom half of the table, and Wilkins admitted that the Blues’ players are taking nothing for granted after the wake-up call at Eastlands.
“We failed in our first test at Manchester City and the lads were distraught at that,” he added. “We put that right against Marseille and today we’ve put in a fantastic performance.
“Last year, I think we were 11 points clear and Manchester United clawed all that back. There’s a lot of football to play. We must remain consistent and keep winning games.”
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