September 29, 2012
Chelsea beat Arsenal 2-1 on Saturday afternoon to open up a four-point lead - for a few hours at least - at the top of the Premier League table.
PA PhotosJuan Mata celebrates after his free-kick found its way past the Arsenal defence
Juan Mata's free-kick just eight minutes into the second half proved the difference for Roberto Di Matteo's side, as the Spaniard's flighted, inswinging delivery from 35 yards out caught out Gunners goalkeeper Vito Mannone - brushing Laurent Koscielny's outstretched leg before slipping inside the far post.
Prior to that Fernando Torres had opened the scoring for the Blues, turning in another Mata dead ball from a similar position as his marker Koscielny found himself muscled out of position, before Gervinho turned home from inside the box just before half-time to briefly restore parity.
Both sides then had numerous opportunities to score in the second half, with Santi Cazorla and substitute Olivier Giroud both guilty of wasting decent chances to gain a share of the spoils for the home side.
