DYC.

Called him stopping the penalty. I love Petr and his awkward facial expressions.

Didn't Mourinho (very) recently say he's competing with Matic and Mikel?

When was the last time a Chelsea fullback produced such attacking play? With his level of comfort on the ball, dribbling past players, linking up with the attacking players, the energy to constantly join attacks (without neglecting his defensive duties).. The only thing lacking was him whipping in those delicious crosses. Great performance.

There's not much more the guy can do to get more playing time. It will be interesting to see how much he'll actually play.

Excellent performance. Bar the penalty he gave away, he was perfection. Constantly disrupted their attacks, defended effectively both high up the pitch and in deeper positions. He was very calm in possession, drove forward with the ball on more than a couple of occasions, exhibited intelligent passing. He was just amazing. Absolutely love the guy.

I know I'm going to sound crazy to some/most - I'm gonna go with most - but Hazard should've done better. I'm serious. He should've annihilated them. But that final ball, that final move, the 'kill' as Mourinho calls it, was lacking. And you could tell by his reactions throughout the game, he knew he should've done more. Look at his reaction after he scored his first goal. He was probably thinking, ... another penalty. He finally got a goal at the end though, that made it a bit better. So, very strong performance overall, but it could've been a very, very memorable one.

A while back, I made a notion on how Oscar lost a big part of his mobility for a very long time. One of Oscar's strengths, so that's before the big dip in form, is how he is constantly on the move, moving all over the pitch, always providing his team mates with a passing option. And what makes this even better, is that he does it at a high pace. There are some others who do the same, but they do it at a walking pace. It seems to be back in his game this season and that's a great boost for the team. Look at his touches vs Palace, he was present all over. Now it's up to him to keep it up throughout the entire season.

That pass he played first time to Hazard, after the good play by Remy, in the second half was absolute class. I was already imagining Hazard putting it into the net, that Palace defender just had to ruin it. The weight and the accuracy in the pass, not to mention spotting it so quickly, was simply brilliant. Fab is back, there's no doubt about it. And with him playing like his old self, he's the best player in the team for me. And one of the very best around in the game.

Getting those 3 points was the most important thing. Great goals, especially that second goal was class. Mourinho was smiling a lot today. The missus must have opened the gates to Pantyville last night.

Yeah, it's definitely a possibilty when you think about it. There's talk about Cahill taking over from Terry but your captain should always be one of your best players imo. Something Gary isn't for me. Cesc's experience and ability makes him a good candidate. Besides, it would kill more than a few Gooners in the process. Win-win.

I wasn't being serious to be honest.. But even if I was serious, you should learn to read more carefully. I said within a few years.

Think we'll be calling him Captain Cesc within a few years. Wonder who'll be Arsenal's captain by that time.. Probably Diaby.

Agree with your point on Hazard. But your very harsh on Ronaldo. Ronaldo was Real's most important player in winning the CL. They never would've made it to the final without him. 17 goals and 4 assists in a single CL campaign. Do you realise how exceptional that is? Don't think a Chelsea player has even managed double figures in goals in Chelsea's CL history. He was poor in the final, that's true. But he wasn't 100% fit so that was no surprise. Drogba wasn't so crucial in winning the CL because he scored that header in the final. He was crucial because he was there when the team needed him most and scored 'big' goals throughout the campaign. And Ronaldo is not a big game match winner? He scored against Bayern, Dortmund, Atletico (not just the penalty in the final), Barcelona (he holds the record for scoring in the most consecutive matches against Barca). There was a time when you could question Ronaldo's record in big games but that hasn't been the case for years. As for Hazard, he is great just the way he is. But like he said himself, he needs to score more goals and provide more assists to take his game to the next level.

Some deserved praise for Nemanja: http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11662/9505824/premier-league-nemanja-matic-is-jose-mourinhos-monster-in-midfield-and-could-be-crucial-in-the-title-race

Fair enough. Essien was a better athlete, and his strength was something else, but Matic beats him technically and in terms of calmness on the ball.

Oh look, a big performance in a big game from the big Serb. What a surprise. I don't know how he does it but he thrives in matches like this. Love this man.

Made Koscielny and Mertesacker look like a couple of school boys for his goal. That was enough for me.

Matic is back! There's no player like him in football and when in form, he's a real force. Quality defending and so composed on the ball. Not to forget his aggression, power and strength in the air. Fantastic player.

Yup I am obviously a 'hater'. Silly post. Cesc was good but he didn't dominate. He can do much better and Matic was the more dominant performer in the middle. A great pass in the end doesn't change that.

Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant defensive performance. An 05-06 esque performance. That's what you call defending. None of that cowardly and boring parking the bus crap. That was some powerful, quick, aggressive, disciplined, tactically strong and pro active defending. The boys didn't give them the time of day. Great pressing and fantastic desire. The boys would at times sit deep but weren't afraid to push up as a unit. And after winning the ball back, the boys remained calm and composed and kept the ball well instead of just kicking or giving it away. Really enjoyed that. The only thing lacking was quality offensive play. Chels really should've carved em open more and hit them on the break. There was a lack of bodies up front so it was very difficult to create chances. And opportunities to counter-attack were simply not taken. So in the end, it took 2 moments of magic to score. Even though Chelsea controlled the game, it could've ended up in a draw on another day. These kind of performances in big games can win you the league as long as you keep beating the inferior sides. But will this mean we'll see similar results in the CL like in Mourinho's first stint? That team was a force but were disappointingly never strong enough to win it.. Anyway, very strong performance today. Props to Mourinho and the boys.

It was a composed and disciplined performance though not very impressive by Cesc until he played that pass. That's what top players do, provide you with that moment of magic. Happy Costa finished it.

Eden had on his dancing shoes today. The way he just skips past players, the way he slows down only to turn it up in a instance with opposition players eating his dust. It's just too bad Chelsea did so little to create chances because the way he was playing, he could've destroyed them. It's just every time he was looking for a quick 1-2 or to play someone through on goal or something, no one was there. So he ended up keeping it safe most of the time. But anyway, great performance. Showed great technique and awareness today.

Amazing performance. He was a step ahead every time Arsenal tried to play, made some crucial defensive plays and kept possession well most of the time. The attacking players didn't have many options up front so it's hard to fault them for not creating chances. But in Chelsea's set up today, he was absolutely brilliant. Watched him play with a smile on my face.

Really don't understand how Luis is still a bench player. Come on Mourinho, he's easily the best LB in the team. Anyway, expecting a win today. It will be interesting to see the game plan.

Thanks for posting this. I love hearing/reading Neville talk about football. The likes of Pirlo, Xavi etc. and players of that type have an influence on matches that can't be meassured by stats. But they are invaluable.