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Mikel Merino was the hero as the Spaniard's first-half header was enough for Arsenal to beat Chelsea 1-0 at the Emirates.
Arsenal's 1-0 win over Chelsea will be forgotten rather quickly, but Mikel Arteta's side did enough to claim a crucial win at the Emirates that now sees the Gunners' top four chances get a major boost.
Now 11 points clear of Chelsea, who occupy fourth spot, Arsenal must now feel good about its chances of claiming a Champions League spot for next season.
In a game where the Gunners again got off to a fast start and unlike against Manchester United where a breakthrough didn't come, in the 20th minute, Arsenal got its reward.
Martin Odegaard's corner kick was flicked on by Mikel Merino, who has now scored twice in three games in all competitions, to give the Gunners a deserved lead.
While Arsenal again wasted a host of solid chances, which kept Chelsea in the game, the defense held together by William Saliba and Gabriel gave the Blues next to nothing going forward.
Merino the hero for the Gunners
But it was Merino's day as he is making a habit of not only just scoring goals, but scoring "good" goals, something that isn't lost on his manager.
"Yeah and the value of it, it's a big match and at the end you win the game because of that goal," Mikel Arteta said via arsenal.com. "He had another big chance that almost put him back on the net, so very happy with his contribution."
Arteta called it an 'emergency' situation that Merino has been thrust into and against Chelsea, the Spaniard did what he needed to do, both on and off the ball to be a viable option upfront as a great target man.
It hasn't always been like this, but with the season coming to a close, any win the Gunners get is like gold as they chase Champions League qualification.
Yes, he really shouldn't be in this position to begin with, but Merino has shown that he isn't just scoring so-so goals, they are of quality.
A couple of headers and a well-taken shot against Leicester show that he can produce the goods, it's just about the delivery to him.
And against Chelsea, the delivery from Odegaard was superb, and a goal followed, along with a crucial three points.