Enlarge imageBy Mike Collett
LONDON (Reuters) - Captain William Gallas scored the winner against his old club as Arsenal beat Chelsea 1-0 on Sunday to return to the top of the Premier League.
Gallas scored in first-half injury time at the Emirates Stadium when he powered in unmarked to head home a Cesc Fabregas corner after Chelsea keeper Petr Cech failed to clear.
The result took Arsenal on to 40 points from 17 games, one ahead of Manchester United who briefly went top earlier in the afternoon after winning 1-0 at Liverpool.
Chelsea remain third on 34 points from 17 matches, followed by Manchester City (33 from 17) and Liverpool, who stay fifth with 30 points from 16 games.
Arsenal, who played the more composed football throughout a fiercely competitive derby, were denied two late goals.
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A Robin van Persie strike was disallowed for offside four minutes from time and an Emmanuel Adebayor effort was chalked off after he fouled Tal Ben Haim while he powered towards goal two minutes later.
Ben Haim had come on as a first-half substitute for Chelsea and England captain John Terry who hobbled off after being caught on the shin in a challenge by Emmanuel Eboue.
Eboue also failed to last the match and was carried off on a stretcher after a challenge by Joe Cole in the second half.
Arsenal, who lost their unbeaten league record at Middlesbrough last week, played the better football in a largely scrappy and ill-tempered opening 45 minutes.
Chelsea, unbeaten in their previous 16 matches in all competitions, produced little that troubled Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia apart from a rising shot from Andriy Shevchenko which the keeper failed to hold.
UPPER HAND
The match improved as a spectacle after halftime with Arsenal always having the upper hand. Fabregas, back in the side after missing the last four games, controlled much of Arsenal’s play and Eboue was a constant menace until he departed.
While Gallas had an afternoon to remember against his former club, Ashley Cole had one to forget against his. The ex-Arsenal defender was booed every time he touched the ball and was under almost continual pressure from Arsenal’s fast-raiding forwards.
His match ended in an unseemly tangle with Fabregas in which he appeared lucky not to be dismissed.
Shaun Wright-Phillips wasted Chelsea’s best chance to equalise in the second half but fired wide with an angled shot when it looked easier to score.
HALFTIME BREAKTHROUGH
United, who have now beaten Liverpool six times in their last seven league meetings, also made the breakthrough in their match against Liverpool just before halftime.
Tevez pounced after 43 minutes to divert a Wayne Rooney shot into the net from close range following a Ryan Giggs corner.
Liverpool’s best chance fell to Harry Kewell in the 28th minute. His shot was cleared off the line by Anderson with Fernando Torres heading the rebound over the bar.
Substitute Ryan Babel then went close to equalising with a fierce shot that flew narrowly wide, while Steven Gerrard landed a last-minute free kick on the top of the net.
Rooney wasted an excellent chance to score a second for United in the 78th minute by sidefooting wide Cristiano Ronaldo’s cross when unmarked in the box.
(Additional reporting by Jeremy Butler in Liverpool)
(Editing by Sonia Oxley)
