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No new striker, no worries - Havertz and Odegaard torment Chelsea
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- No new striker, no worries - Havertz and Odegaard torment Chelsea
No new striker, no worries - Havertz and Odegaard torment Chelsea
Arsenal shelled out close to £200m on new signings during the summer transfer window but fell short of landing the elite forward they craved.
Former Manchester City goalscorer Julian Alvarez was on their radar but remains at Atletico Madrid, while the Gunners were also interested in Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers, Paris St-Germain's Bradley Barcola and Vinicius Jr.
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While Rogers opted for London rivals Chelsea, Barcola moved to Liverpool and Vinicius Jr has stayed at Real Madrid.
Yet reigning champions Arsenal have started this season as strongly as they finished 2025-26, when they celebrated their first Premier League title for 22 years.
After wins over Coventry City and Aston Villa, they came from behind to beat big-spending Chelsea 2-1 in a thrilling derby on Sunday - thanks to goals from two familiar faces.
Kai Havertz, an Arsenal player since 2023, and Martin Odegaard, who joined in 2021, scored as they passed their first big test of the campaign against opponents who have spent close to £350m since the end of last season.
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A maximum nine points from three games, one goal conceded and big players stepping up.
"I can't see anyone stopping Arsenal," former Premier League winner Chris Sutton told BBC Sport.
'Our mentality is to keep fighting'
It is surely too early in the season to get carried away, and there are likely to be bigger tests ahead for Mikel Arteta's side.
But Arsenal have set down an early marker as they chase back-to-back Premier League crowns.
Along with Manchester City, they are one of only two clubs with a maximum nine points from three games.
After sweeping aside Coventry on the opening day of the season, they produced a mature performance to come away with all three points at Villa.
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Against Chelsea, they had to find a different way to win after £117m signing Rogers fired Chelsea into a second-minute lead.
"Our mentality is to keep fighting. We have shown that many times," said captain Odegaard, who scored the 50th-minute winner after Havertz had equalised before half-time.
"We never want to concede early, but the reaction is top. We got our reward in the end and the response was brilliant.
"We showed our quality with and without the ball and the result reflects that."
Odegaard has scored three goals in four appearances in all competitions this season, after netting only once in 36 last term.
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"It was a big game, massive game, tough opponent, and we got there in the end, so brilliant," he said.
Former Manchester United and England player Ashley Young said Odegaard's form will be key for Arsenal this season.
"He's just a joy to watch," Young told BBC Sport.
"He's exciting when he gets on the ball, he's allowing other players to get on the ball.
"The connection down the right side between him, Bukayo Saka and Havertz - it's just good to see when you've got players that know each other and build relationships in that way.
"Riccardo Calafiori has been brilliant from last season. He seems to me like he's the one that's got a free role in the team.
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"It was his run, and he played it precisely, for the winning goal. He goes quickly, takes people out of the way. It's just clever. Arsenal deserved all three points."
Havertz said Odegaard was back to his "very best".
"He's an unbelievable player - we have seen that over the last years," said the Germany forward.
"He's going to help us a lot this season."
'Arsenal are a powerhouse'
Sutton said Arsenal are still ahead of the rest, despite their rivals spending hundreds of millions of pounds during the transfer window.
"They're such a powerhouse," said the former Blackburn and England striker.
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"Chelsea are a good team, but Arsenal always find a way to win. Can you stop Arsenal? I don't think they [other Premier League teams] can."
Arsenal have won their opening three games of a top-flight campaign while conceding fewer than two goals (1) for the third time - after 1924-25, when they finished 20th, and 2003-04, when they went the season unbeaten.
They have also won eight league games in a row stretching back to last season.
Having seen off big-spending Chelsea, their next league match is at Sunderland on Saturday.
Before that Arsenal launch their Champions League campaign at Napoli on Wednesday.
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Havertz said Arsenal will head to Italy with confidence high with after seeing off his former club Chelsea.
"Chelsea have an amazing squad, but so do we," said Havertz, who scored the winning goal for the Blues against Manchester City in the 2021 Champions League final.
"We knew it was going to be tough. They scored early, so it's not easy for us, but we believed in ourselves and changed the game around."
