Whatever you think of Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho, there’s no denying the fighting spirit exuded by his club over the course of a tumultuous Premier League season. Even after a clumsy tackle from Khalid Boulahrouz reduced the Blues to 10-men and a 1-0 deficit from the ensuing penalty kick, you never got the sense that Chelsea would lie down. Indeed, Mourinho’s men brought the game to Arsenal in the second half; Michael Essien (who else) brought them back to parity with a brave header in the 70th minute, and the 10-men always looked the more likely to find a winner after that. You can’t help but think the Blues would have taken three points had Saloman Kalou’s stoppage effort fallen to Didier Drogba, who cruelly missed the match through injury.

“Everyone thinks it was over but in the last 10 minutes everyone thinks Chelsea are going to win the game,” Mourinho told reporters after the match. “It is the way Chelsea have played all the time, the spirit was the same all season.” And because of the injury problems that consistently plagued his side, he added, “maybe I’m prouder today than when we were champions.” While the Portuguese heaped praise on those who played yesterday, he fired a dig at those players who were conspicuous by their lack of commitment. “This is the perfect game for [future Chelsea players] to see, to understand the principles of why some people succeed in this group and some don’t,” he said, most likely referring to the expensive Andriy Shevchenko, Michael Ballack, and perhaps, the always-injured Arjen Robben, who were all absent through injury.