The Chelsea view on Arsenal: Why Kensington lords it over Islington

The Cup Final brings together two teams whose ancient rivalries have more to them than meets the eye

CROSSING THE DIVIDE: Olivier Giroud battles for possession with Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard during a league game in 2013. Cole’s controversial move to Chelsea from Arsenal heightened tensions between the London rivals. Picture: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

For a club which has been trying lately to make friends, the final top echelon game in the English domestic season has delivered a particularly spicy challenge for Chelsea FC. Just as it did last year, 2,500 miles away from London in Baku, against the same opponents.

The dissonance between Chelsea and Arsenal is complicated and often difficult to understand. It is muddied, also, by the fact that the Blues choose not just one, but two, of their greatest rivalries from postcodes in North London just four miles apart. The N17 domain of Tottenham’s white walkers and the N5 lair of “The” Arsenal are two sides of the same dark coin to Stamford Bridge.