Under the night sky of West London!
Stamford Bridge erupted into a wave of noise!
Chelsea fans raised their arms in frustration.
The scenes unfolding tonight left them not only angry, but utterly incredulous!
"Terry, pick up that damned captain's armband! You're the captain of the Blues!"
Chelsea fans were stunned.
From everything happening on the pitch, it was obvious—Chelsea's dressing room problems this season were far worse than anyone had imagined!
Here at Stamford Bridge, they had conceded a goal right from the start.
And right after the goal, their own manager had bellowed at them in fury.
The long-standing rift between the coach and Chelsea's veteran stars had almost caused an open meltdown on the spot.
Terry and Lampard were teetering right on the edge of losing control.
They wandered the pitch looking heavy-hearted.
Drogba stood silently near the centre circle's arc.
In front of the Arsenal supporters' section, the Gunners huddled together in celebration—a stark contrast to the suffocating atmosphere around Stamford Bridge.
On the touchline, Villas-Boas's face was like stone.
From the stands above him, a storm of boos rained down.
After the celebrations, Kai led the Arsenal players back into their own half.
And as the shouts of Chelsea fans rang in his ears, Terry silently bent down and picked the armband up off the ground.
Though his resentment toward his own manager ran deep, here at Stamford Bridge, in front of the club's loyal supporters, Chelsea's captain still had his pride and responsibilities to bear.
But it was clear:
From the moment Kai orchestrated Arsenal's opening goal, Chelsea's entire mood had shifted.
Drogba, Lampard, Mikel, Ivanović—
even captain Terry himself—
every one of them wore a shadowed, grim expression, their minds heavy.
The Arsenal fans in the stands wasted no time in taking over the atmosphere, turning the oppressive Stamford Bridge into their own home ground.
BEEP!
The referee's whistle blew again.
The match resumed!
From the centre circle—
Drogba kicked off.
Chelsea's formation showed almost no push forward.
Each Blue looked distracted, weighed down.
The veteran core played listlessly.
Even new signings like Mata quickly lost their spark.
Amid the noisy Stamford Bridge crowd, Chelsea began aimlessly passing the ball around in their own half.
From time to time, Lampard would attempt a long forward pass—
but perhaps because of the off-field turmoil, his performance tonight was far from his best.
From the stands, Chelsea fans' eyes were filled with disappointment.
At this rate, the game would turn into a one-sided affair again!
This season's Arsenal? Their strength needed no further proof.
They had demolished Spurs in the North London Derby,
crushed Manchester United at home,
and overpowered Liverpool at Anfield!
Under Kai's leadership, Arsenal's attacking firepower was beyond imagination—
in a class of their own in the Premier League!
The Chelsea faithful were anxious and angry.
Facing such a relentless Arsenal, their team—playing at home—couldn't muster even a spark of fighting spirit!
They looked like lambs to the slaughter.
"Villas-Boas is going to go down as Chelsea's eternal sinner!"
The West London media on-site were grinding their teeth.
This was Stamford Bridge—
the Blues' fortress!
They had never seen Chelsea so dejected on their own turf!
"To face this Arsenal led by Kai—forget low morale—even if we went all out, our odds of winning wouldn't be high!"
"And now? Not even twenty minutes in, and we're already waving the white flag?"
The touchline buzzed with noise.
The iron-blooded Chelsea of old was nowhere to be seen tonight.
Yes, the off-field issues were a major factor—
but the ferocious, suffocating pressure from Kai's Arsenal was also breaking Chelsea's confidence before it could recover.
Seven minutes after the opener,
the Gunners struck again!
Without Essien as their shield, Chelsea's midfield depth had dropped sharply.
Kai's sweeping control in the centre was effortless.
Lampard finally found Drogba with a long ball toward the edge of the box.
As always, the two linked up:
Drogba acted as the target man, heading the ball back—
then suddenly turned and charged forward!
Under the floodlights, Lampard's run to receive the ball was completely cut off—Kai got there first, locking him down entirely.
Gasps erupted from the stands.
Kai, leaning his body against Lampard, made Chelsea's midfield core completely immobile!
In that instant, even Lampard was stunned.
What kind of physicality is this?
It felt as though a wall was standing in front of him.
Mikel quickly came over to cover, but Kai's range of movement exceeded Chelsea's imagination.
As far back as last season's FA Cup knockout stage—back when he was still a Crystal Palace midfielder—Kai had already given Chelsea's midfield generals a painful lesson!
Shielding Lampard off with his body, he cushioned the ball with his thigh.
Facing Mikel's defensive recovery, he gave the ball a neat inside tap with the instep—
—followed it up with an elegant, effortless sombrero flick.
He slipped past Mikel with ease!
The Arsenal supporters in the away end erupted in cheers!
Kai charged forward at high speed—
—in the blink of an eye, he had carried the ball over the halfway line!
Arsenal's entire formation reacted in unison, every player's movement purposeful and well-organized.
By contrast, Chelsea's retreat into defensive shape looked painfully labored.
In the stands, Chelsea fans clenched their fists nervously, cold sweat beading on their foreheads.
This Arsenal counterattack exuded immense pressure—
—and the main source of that pressure was, without question, the Arsenal No. 10 dribbling the ball!
Everyone watched his every step, but no one could guess his next move.
Pass? Dribble? Or shoot?
On the touchline, Villas-Boas frowned deeply.
On the pitch—
Kai's vision was like that of a god, seeing every gap.
Chelsea's defensive line was riddled with openings!
He delivered a trademark, razor-sharp through ball—
—splitting Chelsea's flank defense wide open once again!
Ivanović's positioning tonight had been dreadful.
As a full-back, he hesitated both in pushing forward and tracking back.
The ball was easily worked into the vacant space down the wing.
Gervinho sprinted with the ball—
—took it all the way to the byline, then cut it back.
A quick glance at the middle—
—and he rolled it back for the overlapping Gibbs.
Without hesitation, Gibbs smashed a powerful cross toward the middle!
Facing Chelsea midfielder Ramires' pressure, Kai charged toward the ball—
—his legs suddenly crossing over—
—and he let the ball slip right through between them!
With a sharp turn, Ramires' balance was gone in an instant!
Kai left the midfield enforcer in his wake effortlessly, then flicked the ball forward with the outside of his boot—
—driving it toward Chelsea's penalty area!
The Arsenal supporters roared.
Inside the Blues' box, Terry and David Luiz stood guard.
Neither dared to commit too early.
"Close him down! Don't let him shoot!"
Petr Čech suddenly bellowed from in front of goal.
In that split second, only Chelsea's keeper realized just how dangerous this was!
But it was already too late!
Just as Terry stepped forward to press, Kai had already swung his leg!
Gasps echoed around Stamford Bridge.
From just off the top of the arc, Kai lashed at the ball with his left foot—
—a thunderous strike rocketing toward goal!
It was a cannon blast of a shot, rising into the night sky above Stamford Bridge!
"He's done it again!"
"Another long-range rocket, no questions asked!!"
The Chelsea supporters in the stands clutched their heads in despair.
~~----------------------
Patreon Advance Chapters:
[email protected] / Dreamer20