It was the latest display of Arsenal’s power and aggression, their remorselessness. And when it was over, this Carabao Cup semi-final felt firmly within their grip. But for a late goal from the Chelsea substitute, Alejandro Garnacho, his second of an eventful cameo, it would surely have been over.
Even so, it was difficult on this evidence to predict anything other than Arsenal progressing into the final; moving closer to a rare piece of silverware under Mikel Arteta – one to pave the way for others this season?
Arsenal brought the physical fight. There were times when they seemed to bully Chelsea, when they made Liam Rosenior fret on his first home game as the Chelsea manager. They scored the opener from a reassuringly familiar source, Ben White converting from a Declan Rice corner – Arsenal’s 24th goal from a set-piece this season.
Robert Sánchez offered minimal resistance in the Chelsea goal; he was all at sea under the delivery and he would be at fault for Arsenal’s second, which was turned in by Viktor Gyökeres early in the second half. Sánchez’s handling error on a low cross from White was grotesque, of a piece with an erratic individual performance.
Chelsea battled, especially Garnacho, even if his first goal was the prompt for Arsenal to score again. It was Martín Zubimendi who provided the moment of the night, a flash of silk amid the steel, his ice-cold finish after Gyökeres’s lay-off leading Arteta to rub his eyes in astonishment.
