Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho keeps Chelsea in the title race

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho  keeps Chelsea in the title race

In his regular BBC Sport column, Robbie Savage looks at Chelsea's 0-0 draw against Arsenal and assesses how both teams are shaping up in the title race.
 

I was at the Emirates Stadium on Monday night for BBC Radio 5 live and, beforehand, I thought the stormy conditions would suit Arsenal.

It had been pouring with rain all day but the pitch was immaculate and great for crisp passing. As a player, you cannot ask for anything more than that and I thought it would be perfect to zip the ball about on.
That did not happen, and the Gunners ended up playing poorly.
Arsene Wenger's side looked tired and short of ideas but credit has to go to Blues boss Jose Mourinho for getting his tactics spot on. Chelsea crowded the midfield, had a solid defence and looked dangerous on the counter-attack.

Mourinho came for a point, and he left with one. In terms of examining how he got it, it was a brilliant game to watch, but for the neutral it did not offer much in the way of entertainment.

Mourinho gets it right, again

Chelsea lined up with what could have been Mourinho's trademark 4-3-3 but it immediately became clear it was a 4-5-1.
Fernando Torres was often completely isolated up front for the Blues and in the first half-hour there was sometimes a 40-yard gap between him and his midfielders whenever the ball was played up to him.
But the Chelsea defence was squeezing up and staying close to their midfield because they knew Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud was not fast enough to hurt a high defensive line.

That meant Arsenal's creative players like Aaron Ramsey or Mesut Ozil had no space to play in between the lines, and they did not use Theo Walcott's pace effectively.
Walcott got frustrated out wide and constantly came inside, meaning the middle of the pitch was even more crowded. That just played into Mourinho's hands.
The Gunners fans were singing "boring, boring Chelsea" at them but, playing on the counter-attack, the away team hit the bar and actually looked more likely to nick it.
It reminded me of when Chelsea went to Old Trafford and drew 0-0 with Manchester United earlier in the season and, this time, Mourinho got the job done again.
What surprised me was that Arsene Wenger did not make any changes to try to change the way the game was going.
In a match where Chelsea keeper Petr Cech did not have a save to make until the 85th minute, we found out on 5 live that it was the first time Wenger had not made a substitution this season - he had previously made at least two in every game.
I don't know why he did not make a change but what makes that harder to explain is that his players were looking tired despite having a nine day break since their last game.
It was a laboured performance from the home side. Tactically, Wenger is a fantastic manager in his own right but he has now failed to get the better of Mourinho in 10 meetings as managers, and he has lost five of those.

Jose Mourinho v Arsene Wenger 2004 to 2013
Competition	Mourinho wins	Draws	Wenger wins	Goals for Mourinho	Goals for Wenger
Premier League	2	5	0	7	4
League Cup	2	0	0	4	1
Community Shield	1	0	0	2	1
Total	5	5	0	13	6

Chelsea yet to find first gear

Chelsea have not really clicked this season but they are in the top four and two points off the top of the table.
They are not where they are by playing fantastic football but you have to say they are very well placed because that group of players will undoubtedly have a spell this season where they click as a group.
And at the Emirates Stadium on Monday, when I compared the teams and looked at both benches, I would have to say they looked more like potential champions than Arsenal did.