The Dutch coach Co Adriaanse coined the term “scoreboard journalism” to lambast the concept of building a narrative around a match from nothing more than the tally of goals scored and conceded.
Looking at the top-line numbers it would be easy to write Sunday’s London derby off as a day of distinct highs and lows for Arsenal and Chelsea. While the Gunners climbed five points clear at the Premier League summit with a 2–1 win inspired by their record-equaling set-piece dominance, the Blues dropped to sixth after matching the nadir for red card collection.
