Jose Mourinho feels that the title race is ‘unbelievable’ with only two points difference between the top five teams. Chelsea drew Arsenal 0-0 at the Emirates which puts the Blues fourth on the table and the Gunners slip to second on goal difference.
“The title race is interesting. The consistent team of the lot will make it to the top”, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger added.
The goalless draw at the Emirates Stadium means that Liverpool would be leading the table at Christmas with City closely at third.
Chelsea and Everton occupy the 4th and 5th position in the table respectively.
“Yes, we don’t go to Christmas as leaders in the table, but we are almost there. Tottenham and Manchester United ought to be at the top four. We are definitely alive in the race. Moreover, we have bettered our last season’s performance at the same time in the season by almost 11 points,” Mourinho said.
Ramires’ almost well-timed header missed the goal by inches and that seemed to set the mood for the first half which never interested neutral fans.
Frank Lampard came close to breaking the deadlock when he hit the woodwork in the first half of the game.
Arsenal could not do much against a defensive Chelsea who were keen to counter attack at any given instant. Oliver Giroud wasted two glorious opportunities which would have sealed the match for Arsenal.
The win would have taken Arsenal at the top of the table and getting a decent 2-point lead over Liverpool.
Wenger was sure that his side should have been awarded a penalty in the first half when Theo Walcott went down on a rough Willian’s challenge.
“It was definitely a penalty. We played with immense concentration in the second half and I feel we deserved a goal. They were for a counter-attacking chance. We did get chances, but we didn’t make full use of them,” he said.
“It was a tactical match. Both Arsenal and Chelsea wanted to win the game but a draw seems to be a fair result. I am looking at the future of the club, not just this season. Creative players are required for any time as they would use the ball and kill the opponents. Sometimes, we need to rethink our tactics and play with a different philosophy,” Mourinho said.