Soccer Tactical Zone: Arsenal Vs Chelsea EPL 2015/2016.

Wenger's Team Selection And Substitution Was Flawed:

From the first minute in a match against a physical side like Chelsea with fast paced players (Willian and Oscar) , Wenger did not have any need for Per Mertesacker. The German is a leader and brings organisation to the defence
but at the same time, he struggles to cope with sides who have pace and space to attack and Chelsea is built on such attributes . Wenger played a high line all evening and the German defender was the worst person to delegate such responsibility to . Mertesacker has no pace and his recovery rate is one of the worst in the EPL, one wonders what he was doing in the team as a starter. Costa did really catch him off guard and he barely struggled to recover.  Agreed Gabriel got sent off the last time against Chelsea but he is a professional and must have learnt from the ugly act. Also substituting your number 9 when you are one man down was a tactical blunder from Wenger. Giroud is a striker who not only scores goals but guarantees you physical presence, aerial power and good hold up play . Arsenal ended up with the likes of Campbell, Ramsey, Ozil and Walcott who are too similar and identical in play. Giroud should have been left to play for a longer period.

Chelsea is Back On Song:

 While the likes of Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas struggled during the time of Jose Mourinho such isn't the case as of present  . Costa had scored a mere five goals in  18 games this season under Mourinho but in five games under Guus Hiddink he has netted five goals. The key difference is that he has calmed down a bit on and off the ball unlike under the previous manager and the dividends is there to see to see for all. He is also always in the penalty box as he often wandered off  in search of the ball during the last days of Mourinho. Also Fabregas is experiencing a turn around as he won a man of the match in today's game , dictating the game and playing like he used to. It is therefore no coincidence that Chelsea is nine points adrift 5th spot and and 14 points adrift 4th and if they continue with the way the play then the will surely progress further though 4th place has a big question mark around it.

History Is Repeated:

Guus Hiddink only lost once during his first time at the club in 2009 and that was against Tottenham. This season he has drawn the likes of Watford, Manchester United, Everton and won at Crystal Palace and Arsenal. He is also the only  Chelsea manager to have a 100% record over Wenger at the Emirates as he has played him twice and won twice. Arsenal now have had seven red cards against Chelsea which is more than the have had against any EPL team. Arsenal have not beaten Chelsea since October 2011 in Stamford Bridge (5-3 and Robin Van Persie hattrick). Arsenal have not scored in 9 hours 42 minutes against Chelsea which accounts for nine matches .