‘Relief’ of Premier League title has given Arsenal confidence, says David Raya | Arsenal

David Raya says Arsenal are playing with greater confidence after the “relief” of winning the Premier League. The champions continued their perfect start to the defence of their crown with the 2-1 home win over Chelsea on Sunday, making it nine points out of nine.

It was a powerhouse performance coloured by a freedom of expression, which stood in contrast to the nerviness of the final months of last season when the team laboured under a weight of pressure and expectation before they beat Manchester City to the title. That was Arsenal’s first triumph since 2004 and followed three consecutive runners-up finishes.

The shackles were off against Chelsea, just as they have been for much of the season, beginning with the 3-0 win over City in the Community Shield. Kai Havertz and Martin Ødegaard scored the goals against Chelsea and provided most of the creative flourishes. But it was the ferocity of the collective intensity, the sheer physicality, that took the breath. Raya pulled off a stunning late save to deny the Chelsea substitute Estêvão. Arsenal did not deserve to drop points. It was an ominous statement of intent from them.

“Winning the league after that many years and after those years that you are so close … it gives you that relief and it gives you that extra confidence,” Raya said. “Coming from the three games this season, especially the Community Shield, winning against City, the way we played against them – that gives you extra motivation and extra confidence to play the way we want to play …

“Hopefully we can keep playing this way because we know how good we are. We know we can beat anybody in this league. Let’s just focus on the moment and be in the present.”

The most eye-catching aspect of the display was how Arsenal reacted to going behind after 77 seconds to a Morgan Rogers volley. They attacked in waves and created a remarkable number of openings before Havertz equalised in the 25th minute. The belief could also be felt in the stands where there was no panic, only bellowed encouragement.

“There’s things to improve on that goal [by Rogers],” Raya said. “We had to defend a little bit better, especially right at the start of the game. It was disappointing to concede that goal. But the main thing is the reaction that we had after it and the way we played. The way we dominated, the way we attacked, we defended.

“We know how good Chelsea are, especially in transitions, and the way the play is dragged back to defend. So it was a really important win.”