Former Blues favourite Graeme Le Saux has given his two cents regarding the difference in quality between Chelsea and Arsenal by saying the West London side have got more talent because they paid more for high-calibre players than their North London counterpart.
Le Saux, who currently works as a pundit for NBC Sports, said that the Blues are continually getting the better of Arsenal in recent years due to the willingness of the Stamford Bridge outfit to splash the cash on premium talent as opposed to their city rivals, who have been mostly conservative with their signings over the last couple of seasons.
“The quality throughout Chelsea is a bit higher. They’ve paid a bit more and they’ve got a bit more quality,” said Le Saux after Chelsea’s 3-2 win over the Gunners at Stamford Bridge in a topsy-turvy yet ultimately entertaining London derby.
During the summer, the Blues made big-money signings in order to back the new regime of Maurizio Sarri and proceeded to break the £50m barrier twice in this period – a feat they have done two times in the past. The club paid the exact £50m for Italy international Jorginho while also bringing in Spanish international Kepa as the world’s most expensive goalkeeper for £71.6m. On the other hand, Arsenal have spent upwards of the £50m ceiling only once in their history, with the £57.38m signing of Gabon international striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund in January.
The 49-year-old Le Saux, who won the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, now the Europa League, with the Blues in 1998, believes this explains why Chelsea continue to dominate against their London neighbours as well as compete for top honours in the English top-flight.
A 36-capped former England international, Le Saux split his 256 appearances for the Blues in two spells. He predominantly played as a winger in 1989-1993 before returning as a leftback in his second spell with the club at 1997-2003.
