WATCH: Kai Havertz's cheeky goal against Chelsea gets ruled out by VAR

At halftime at Stamford Bridge, the London derby ended without a goal.Arsenal had slightly more possession (52%) than Chelsea, however both teams had a shot on goal. Kai Havertz gave Arsenal the lead in the thirty-second minute, however his goal was called off for offside. 

At Stamford Bridge, Arsenal appeared to have drawn first blood when Kai Havertz gave them a 1-0 lead by putting a Rice freekick towards the bottom left corner. After a VAR review, Havertz's goal was disallowed because replays revealed the German had been offside during the buildup.

To stay in the running for the Premier League title in 2024–25, Chelsea and Arsenal must win their London derby. Martin Odegaard returns to Arsenal after an injury. Manchester City is five points clear of both teams, while table-toppers Liverpool are ten points ahead. 

A victory is essential to keep both teams in the running for first place because their records are identical. After three league games versus Manchester United, Newcastle United, and Liverpool, Chelsea has four points. However, Arsenal hasn't won in the English Premier League after October 5, which was over a month ago.

“I consider them better than the rest” : Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca

Enzo Maresca, the manager of Chelsea, stated that he anticipated a difficult challenge against Mikel Arteta's squad, who have only managed one point in their last three Premier League games. No point today for Mikel Arteta’s team would see them 9 points off the top of the table after 11 matches.

The former Leicester City manager said, “For me they are the closest one with (Manchester) City. Both, I consider them better than the rest. And the reason why I said many times is because one club is working with the same manager nine years, and the other one is working with the same manager five years. And this is a big, big, big, huge advantage compared to the rest.”