21 Classic Arsenal vs. Chelsea Clashes

Arsenal vs. Chelsea, Arsene Wenger vs. Jose Mourinho, these are some of the greatest rivalries the English game has ever seen. Over the course of 106 years and some 180 matches, the Gunners and the Pensioners have etched out one of the most contested clashes in football.

Their meetings now provide some of the most eagerly awaited Premier League matches in the calender.

Ask Wenger or Mourinho or any Chelsea or Arsenal fan who their main rivals are and neither name is likely to drip off the tongue first. While the North London derby between Tottenham Hotspur and the Gunners is obviously king in London, the rivalry between Arsenal and Chelsea is actually longer running and has been played across more games.

Arsenal and Chelsea first met each other on Saturday, November 9, 1907 when the Blues won 2-1. They last met on October 29 of this year in the Capital One Cup when Chelsea, once again, came out on top. 

Including those two matches, the Pensioners and Gunners have met 180 times.

Arsenal's main rivalry against Spurs only began in the December of 1909, a full two years after the Gunners had met Chelsea. They have also only played each other 171 times in comparison.

In recent years, considering both teams' ambitions and aims and the fact that both are London's most successful teams, this is, perhaps, the biggest rivalry for each club.

Here, Bleacher Report takes a look through the great match history on show and offers up 21 classic games any discerning fan should know about.

1909: Woolwich Arsenal 3-2 Chelsea (September 25)

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The very first game between Arsenal and Chelsea took place in 1907, but it wasn't until the fifth match and two full years that the pair produced a semi-classic.

On September 25, 1909, Woolwich Arsenal and Chelsea produced a 3-2 cracker. The victory provided the Gunners' second win of the season and moved them away from the relegation spots. The loss severely dented Chelsea's title ambitions.

The match is memorable because Arthur Wileman made his debut for Chelsea after moving from Burton United in the summer while Joseph Walton made his last ever appearance after he was released from his contract.

On the Gunners' side of things, Harold Godfrey Lee scored twice in what turned out to be the most productive of his three seasons with Arsenal.

1919: Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea (December 6)

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December 6, 1919 is one of the most important days in Arsenal's history. 

On that fateful day, Woolwich Arsenal ceased to exist and Arsenal FC came into existence for the first time. The clash against Chelsea in 1919 is also the first time Arsenal played in front of more than 50,000 home fans.

Football was massive in 1919 as the outbreak of World War One in 1914 meant that Division One was suspended for four years. 

The game also has extra significance because Arsenal were promoted to Division 1 after successful lobbying by Henry Norris. Somehow the Gunners gained promotion, despite finishing sixth in Division 2 in 1914, and Chelsea stayed up, despite finishing in 19th, and Spurs, who finished 20th, were relegated. This all happened despite the league being extended by two teams!

The December clash was the first meeting of the two teams who benefitted most from this strange set of circumstances as per the Guardian.

1964: Arsenal 2-4 Chelsea (March 14)

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Before the coming of Jose Mourinho, Chelsea had only ever won one league title. That was in 1955 under the guidance of Arsenal playing legend Ted Drake. 

Drake had moved on by the time 1964 rolled around and under the guidance of Tommy Docherty, the Blues were, once again, in the title hunt. The same can be said of Billy Wright's Arsenal. The first English player to win more than 100 caps, Wright had taken over the Gunners in 1962.

Spurs were the dominant team in England at this time and Bill Nicholson's high flying team were lauded wherever they played. 

When Chelsea and Arsenal met on March 14, 1964, only one point separated the two teams as they chased down Spurs who were just seven points ahead of the Gunners. This all-important clash was going to separate the men from the boys in regards to the title race.

The Blues won 4-2 with thanks to four goals from club legend Bobby Tambling. The defeat all but ended Arsenal's slim hopes as they slipped to an eighth-placed finish as Chelsea eventually climbed to fourth.

1971: Arsenal 2-0 Chelsea (April 3)

Arsenal were all-conquering during the 1970-71 season when they won the double. 

However, on April 3 when they met Chelsea they were firmly entrenched in a four-horse race for the title with the Blues, Wolves and Leeds United. Don Revie's team were leading the table from the Gunners in second, but Bertie Mee's team had three games in hand.

When Chelsea arrived at Highbury, they were fully intent on halting Arsenal's good run. The Gunners, however, had other things in mind and utterly dominated the early proceedings before Ray Kennedy, making his outstanding debut season, scored twice to move Arsenal ever closer to the title.

On another note, check out the debate on tackling at the end of highlights. It is worth seeing to find out where today's rulings on tackling come from.

1971: Chelsea 1-2 Arsenal (October 16)

Having won the double the season before, Arsenal went to Stamford Bridge intent at putting to rest their miserable record there. The Gunners had not won in 10 previous attempts.

Chelsea were all out for revenge having had their title dreams ended at Highbury the previous April.

It was Ray Kennedy who turned out to be the hero yet again as he scored twice, even though he wasn't credited with the second goal! 

1979: Arsenal 5-2 Chelsea (April 16)

The Arsenal and Chelsea clash of April 1979 had all the makings of a classic. The Blues were in dire straits at the bottom of the table and were looking relegation straight in the face while Arsenal were getting ready for the FA Cup final.

Tottenham Hotspur legend Danny Blanchflower had taken over the reigns at Chelsea in December 1978. The job at Stamford Bridge turned out to be his only foray into club management. Blanchflower only managed to win three of his 15 games in charge at Chelsea and was relieved of his duties the following September.

Chelsea needed to win badly, but they came up against an Arsenal team who were flying high and full of confidence after a superb run in the FA Cup. 

Frank Stapleton scored twice alongside David O'Leary, Alan Sunderland and David Price as the Gunners all but relegated Chelsea to Division 2.

1990: Arsenal 4-1 Chelsea (September 15)

There wasn't much of a rivalry between Chelsea and Arsenal in the 1980s due to the Blues' dalliance with Division Two.

When the pair met in September 1990, Arsenal were meandering away in Division One without anyone taking notice. Remember, George Graham's team had just won the title in 1989, but had finished a massive 17 points behind Liverpool in 1990, so no one was really taking them seriously as title contenders.

On September 15, the world took notice. The game was scoreless after 50 minutes of a tightly contested affair when, from out of nowhere, a relatively unknown player by the name of Anders Limpar took the game by the scruff of the neck.

The Swede scored once and set up two as Arsenal destroyed the Blues in the second half.

It was the first real step towards Arsenal regaining their title.

1991: Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal (February 2)

The Chelsea of 1991 were a very different beast to the one we see today. During the early 1990's the Blues were a mid-table team at best and were little more than a speed bump for the bigger teams to overcome.

When they welcomed Arsenal to Stamford Bridge, the Gunners were leading the league and cruising to another title as Chelsea sat in the no mans land of ninth.

The Blues weathered an early storm before growing in confidence as their homegrown talent got on top of their aristocratic opponents. They duly went on to record a win that did not stop the Gunners winning the title, but which was their only defeat of an imperious season.

1991: Arsenal 3-2 Chelsea (October 5)

Normal service resumed in October 1991 when the pairing played out a thoroughly entertaining five-goal thriller that ended 3-2 to Arsenal.

Lee Dixon, from the penalty spot, Kevin Campbell and Ian Wright scored to overcome Graeme Le Saux's and Kevin Wilson's Chelsea resistance.

This was the final year of Division One's existence. In 1992 the Premier League came into being and from there the league's and Chelsea's fortunes were to dramatically change.

1996: Arsenal 3-3 Chelsea (September 4)

Chelsea's rise as a power of the Premier League was well underway by the time 1996 rolled around. The match on September 4 was one of Arsenal's last managerless games having sacked Bruce Rioch during the summer.

Arsene Wenger took up the post just 26 days after this result and things would never be the same for Arsenal fans again.

Chelsea travelled to Highbury and dominated the opening 45 minutes as the Gunners were literally blown away. Frank Leboeuf opened the scoring after just six minutes and Gianluca Vialli doubled the scoreline on the half hour mark as Chelsea threatened to run rampant. 

Paul Merson managed to reduce the deficit against the run of play on the stroke of half time. Arsenal came out and turned the game on its head in the second half and took the lead through Ian Wright after Martin Keown had equalized. Chelsea were to have the last laugh, though. John Spencer broke Arsenal's offside trap with a neat chip and Dennis Wise finished at the near post past a poor John Lukic to share the points.

1997: Chelsea 2-3 Arsenal (September 21)

Chelsea and Arsenal were neck and neck after six games of the 1996-97 season when they met at Stamford Bridge. Both teams had justifiable Premier League ambitions and this game was the first real heavyweight clash of the season.

Chelsea had fired in 17 goals and lost just once while Arsenal were unbeaten having won three and drawn three when the two clubs met.

The game turned out to be a fiery affair with no less than five yellow cards and one red card, for Frank Leboeuf.

The scoring began in the 40th minute when Gus Poyet rolled Michael Duberry's headed effort over the line to score his first goal for Chelsea. The lead was short lived as Dennis Bergkamp scored on the stroke of half-time after some good work by Ian Wright.

The second half started as the first ended with both teams going at it hammer and tong. Arsenal took the lead after a defensive mix up allowed Bergkamp to bag his second. The lead, however, was short lived as Gianfranco Zola capitalised on a David Seaman howler to shin the ball over the line.

However, the game turned six minutes later when Leboeuf clattered into Bergkamp to receive his second yellow card and was given his marching orders. With Chelsea down to 10 men for the final 20 minutes, Arsenal poured everyone forward.

The winner eventually came from the unlikeliest of sources when Nigel Winterburn scored one of the great Premier League goals in the dying seconds to win the game for Arsenal.

1998: Arsenal 0-5 Chelsea (November 11) League Cup

Chelsea returned to Highbury in 1998 with revenge in mind having lost 3-2 at Stamford Bridge in 1997.

The Blues inflicted Arsenal's heaviest-ever home defeat in a stunning 5-0 win.

The amazing thing about this game is that the Gunners could have been 3-0 up before Gus Poyet was taken down for a penalty by Gilles Grimandi.

Frank Leboeuf duly tucked the spot kick away with 10 minutes remaining in the first half. Arsenal then had more chances to get back into the game before they paid the price for wayward finishing when Gianluca Vialli and Bjarne Goldbaek played a 40-yard one-two as the Italian doubled the scoring.

The goal killed the game for Arsenal whose heads visibly wilted. Goldbaek released Tore Andre Flo down the right and the Norwegian teed up Poyet for the third.

To their credit Arsenal continued to probe, but they had no answer to Vialli who scored another before Poyet added the finishing blow in the last minute.

1999: Chelsea 2-3 Arsenal (October 23)

Arsenal and Chelsea continued to enjoy their tit for tat battle well into 1999.

It was there that Arsenal travelled to Stamford Bridge where Chelsea had yet to concede a goal all season.

Both sides traded blows and created plenty of chances but there was only one man this game was to belong to.

Nwankwo Kanu was a surprise selection ahead of Dennis Bergkamp for one of the biggest games of the season.

Tore Andre Flo and Dan Petrescu put Chelsea two up and the Blues looked like they were coasting to victory. Thierry Henry was introduced in the 62nd minute for Freddie Ljungberg as Arsene Wenger set about trying to get something from the game.

Kanu's first two were predatory strikes, but his third was simply out of this world and well worth enjoying over and over again.

2002: Chelsea 0-2 Arsenal (May 4) FA Cup Final

The Gunners and Pensioners met in the FA Cup final in 2002.

The game is hardly a classic, in FA Cup terms or in the greater scale of things. It is, however, one of the most important matches the two clubs have ever contested.

Ray Parlour opened the scoring with a stunning effort before Freddie Ljungberg bettered that with a Norman Whiteside-esque strike after a surging run.

It was the least Arsenal deserved after a superb season that saw them win the double.

2004: Arsenal 1-2 Chelsea (April 6) Champions League Quarterfinal

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Arsenal and Chelsea played out a classic of epic proportions in April 2004 when the two sides met in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

Having drawn 1-1 at Stamford Bridge, the Invincibles more than fancied their chances of beating Claudio Ranieri's team.

The Blues won with thanks to two goals from Frank Lampard and Wayne Bridge. Jose Reyes gave Arsenal the lead on the stroke of halftime in an end to end match.

Both sides exchanged chances before Reyes opened the scoring from close range. Jens Lehmann then made a huge mistake and parried an Eidur Gudjohnson shot straight out to Lampard who buried it easily. 

With just three minutes to go, the omnipresent Gudjohnson played a neat one-two with Bridge on the edge of Arsenal's box and he finished it with ease.

The win took Chelsea into the Champions League semifinals where they eventually lost to Valencia.

It was also the first time in 17 attempts that they had beaten Arsenal. The last win was that famous 5-0 thumping in 1998.

2004: Arsenal 2-2 Chelsea (December 12)

In December 2004, the pairing renewed their battle, but this time Chelsea had Jose Mourinho in their corner.

The Gunners were coming off the back of an unbeaten season and were, once again, favorites to win the title. Mourinho had other ideas and planned to win Chelsea their first title since 1955.

The game finished 2-2 with Thierry Henry scoring twice as John Terry and the highly effective and underrated Eidur Gudjohnson replied.

The Blues were the happier of the two sides as they capitalized on Arsenal's weakness at set pieces, despite Henry scoring from a cheeky freekick that incensed the Chelsea team.

Mourinho's team grew in strength after this result and powered to the title as the Gunners wilted in the face of Chelsea's indominatable spirit.

2007: Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal (February 25) League Cup Final

Chelsea and Arsenal played out a highly entertaining match that threatened to get out of hand at times. The highly fractious affair featured seven yellow cards, three red cards and a melee that even included the managers.

In between the near rioting, a game of football actually broke out. 

Theo Walcott scored his first ever Arsenal goal to put Arsene Wenger's team in the lead. The lead was short lived though as Didier Drogba, the highest all-time scorer in this tie with 13 goals, equalized.

John Terry was then taken to hospital, unconscious and with a swallowed tongue.

Drogba then added the second with a sublime header to win the Blues their hard earned trophy.

2008: Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal (March 23)

Chelsea continued to enjoy their dominance over Arsenal as we entered 2008.

Much of that can be accredited to the immense Didier Drogba. The Ivorian centre-forward was so often the bane to Arsene Wenger's plans and he scored a total of 13 goals against the Gunners.

In March 2008, Chelsea played the Gunners without Jose Mourinho for the first time at Stamford Bridge. The Portuguese was unbeaten in eight matches against Arsenal. He resigned in September 2007 and the Blues felt the bitter tang of an Arsenal defeat when the teams met in December.

When the two sides met they were in second and third and were hunting Manchester United down.

Bacary Sagna opened the scoring with a rare effort before Drogba took control and fired home a brace which left Arsenal's title ambitions hanging by a shred.

The first came when he latched onto a blocked shot from Frank Lampard to fire home. The second was a little less refined and bounced into the net, but it was no less celebrated.

2009: Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal (April 18) FA Cup Semi-Final

Arsenal and Chelsea matches seemed to be coming thick and fast in the early part new century. Both sides were perennial title challengers and were now meeting in Champions League, League Cup and FA Cup competition with regularity.

The pairing met in the FA Cup semi-finals in 2009 and it was, that man, Didier Drogba who would settle the game.

Theo Walcott opened the scoring for Arsenal after 18 minutes when he volleyed home from 10 yards. The equalizer only seemed a matter of time as Lukasz Fabianski was making a huge number of errors as Chelsea pressurized his goal.

In the end it was Florent Malouda who put the teams level, but the young Polish 'keeper really should have done better with the Chelsea-man's near post effort. Chelsea, sensing blood, went in search of the second and Fabianski was again the chief culprit as he needlessly ran out to meet Drogba as he chased down Frank Lampard's through ball.

Having sold himself short, all Drogba had to do was guide the ball into Fabianski's open net.

The game further enhanced the gulf that had grown between the two clubs over the previous four years.

2009: Arsenal 1-4 Chelsea (May 10)

Chelsea went to the Emirates Stadium in the May of 2009 and absolutely battered a very poor Arsenal team.

Liverpool and Manchester United were battling it out at the top of the Premier League as Chelsea and Arsenal sat in third and fourth respectively. The Blues still had an outside chance of winning the league, but it was highly unlikely.

Chelsea's 2-1 win over Arsenal in the FA Cup in mid-April had a huge psychological effect on both teams and from that point on the Gunners only won three games from the following nine.

When the Blues visited the Emirates, five days after Arsenal had been well beaten by Manchester United in the Champions League semi-finals, their season was all but over.

Arsenal played like they had a hangover and Chelsea took full advantage as Alex, Nicolas Anelka, Florent Malouda and a Kolo Toure own goal gave them an easy 4-1 win.

2011: Chelsea 3 Arsenal 5 (October 29)

Having endured a miserable time of late against Chelsea, the Gunners weren't given much of a hope when they traveled to Stamford Bridge two days before Halloween in 2011. However, they managed to produce a match that will go down in history as one of the best Premier League games of all time.

The Gunners had not enjoyed the best start to the season and were languishing in seventh having lost four games from their opening nine.

Their cause was not helped by Frank Lampard's 14th minute header. Robin van Persie equalized in the 36th minute after some clever work by Aaron Ramsey and Gervinho. 

John Terry put the Blues back in the lead when he took advantage of another error by Per Mertesacker to head home Lampard's corner.

Chelsea must have known that the writing was on the wall when Andre Santos equalized for Arsenal before Theo Walcott put the Gunners ahead. 

Juan Mata pulled the game back level but then the Robin van Persie show began.

With just five minutes to go the Dutchman, on an incredible goal-scoring hot streak, fired home twice. He ran unchallenged from the halfway line after a disastrous slip by John Terry and then buried a left-footed effort into the net that was too hot to handle for Petr Cech.

It was a phenomenal end to a phenomenal match and will be remembered for all the right reasons.

As good as the rivalry between Arsenal and Chelsea is, this game will take some beating.