After our shock defeat at Brighton on Sunday, which ended our WSL-record unbeaten run after 33 matches, Emma Hayes had told her disappointed players that actions speak louder than words in these situations – and she got exactly the reaction she had hoped for, after a closely contested opening half between two well-matched sides.

Just over two minutes of the second half had been played when Harder showed why she’s a big player for the big moments, taking a pass from Fran Kirby in her stride on the edge of the box to fire a low shot past Lydia Williams and into the far corner.

The same combination were at it again seven minutes later, as a lovely move resulted in Jonna Andersson playing in Kirby down the left, and her pull-back was smashed home by Harder for her 11th goal of her maiden campaign as a Blue.

That briefly took her level with both Kirby and Kerr at the top of the scorers’ chart, but Super Fran rounded off a wonderful night when she moved on to 12 for the season with a breakaway goal in the last minute. Our No14 had plenty of time to think about the finish, but she left Williams with no chance as she slid the ball past the keeper with her left foot.

The odds were already stacked heavily against Arsenal before kick-off, as this was a fixture they’d won just twice from 14 previous attempts, including a defeat earlier this season in the Continental League Cup. Our second-half showing made us more than worthy winners against the 2018/19 champions to extend our excellent recent run against them.

The victory takes us three points clear of Manchester United at the top of the WSL standings, with both sides having played 14 matches. There’s an international break on the horizon, but before then there’s a Manchester derby on Friday night and we return to action on Sunday with a trip to Bristol City.

After seeing the Blues’ record-breaking 33-match unbeaten run in the WSL come to an end last time out against Brighton, Hayes made six changes to her starting XI for the visit of our London rivals. Carly Telford, Hannah Blundell, Erin Cuthbert, Jessie Fleming, Guro Reiten and Bethany England were replaced by Ann-Katrin Berger, Maren Mjelde, Millie Bright, Ji So-Yun, Kirby and Harder.

Berger kept goal behind a back four bolstered by the return of Mjelde and Bright, alongside Magdalena Eriksson and Andersson. Sophie Ingle moved up from centre-half into midfield, alongside Melanie Leupolz, with Kirby, Ji and Harder offering support to lone forward Sam Kerr.

The Blues were quick out of the blocks, as Kerr won a corner inside the first 15 seconds and we forced Arsenal onto the backfoot in the early stages. The only chance of note, however, was a header for Harder which the Danish forward couldn’t direct between the posts.

Considering the frosty conditions that have hit the South-East this week, the groundstaff deserve a huge amount of credit for not only ensuring the game went ahead – on a night when two of the four WSL matches were postponed – but with a playing surface that was conducive to the slick passing game both sides look to employ.

It was Chelsea making the most of this in the first quarter of an hour, as we played around the Gunners midfield with relative ease and on several occasions we were just one precise pass away from breaching their rearguard.

Arsenal almost contributed to their own downfall when goalkeeper Lydia Williams was caught in possession by a swarm of blue shirts and though she managed to clear her lines, the loose ball dropped to Leupolz, who attempted to loft the ball into an empty net but just missed the target.

The visitors began to get into a bit more rhythm as the half wore on, and a mistake at the other end of the pitch allowed Vivianne Miedema to nip in and win back the ball in a dangerous position. She jinked this way and that before trying to slide the ball past Berger, who stuck out her left leg to deflect the shot away to safety.

The tackles started flying in, reminding everyone that there was local pride at stake as well as three vital points in the title race, and Leupolz was the first name in the book for a late challenge on Mead that left the Arsenal forward in a crumpled heap on the ground.

With half an hour gone, the Blues managed to put together our best move of the half, as Kirby exchanged passes with Leupolz on the edge of the box and drilled a low shot that looked destined for the far corner before Williams’ outstretched hand just about kept it out. While neither side had quite been at their flowing best, this was a stark warning for the Gunners defence of the threat posed by the Chelsea frontline.

To their credit, Arsenal came back into the game after that Kirby chance, and they enjoyed the better of the final stages of a half that had been evenly contested and played at an intense pace. When Lisa Evans fired over when well placed with virtually the final kick of the opening 45, it was clear both managers had plenty to be pleased with but, equally, there were improvements to be made.

Hayes didn’t have to wait long for her half-time words to take effect, as we came out with far more intent both in and out of possession – and it took just over two minutes for that to bear fruit on the scoreboard. A well-timed interception by Ji stopped the Arsenal defence from playing out, and Kirby was onto it quick as a flash to find Harder on the edge of the box. With space to turn and pick her spot, the former Wolfsburg forward made no mistake with a crisp strike that found the bottom corner.

Arsenal tried to respond through Miedema, whose dangerous run was halted by a well-timed intervention from Mjelde, but the clearer chances were being fashioned by the home side. One of them fell to Kerr, who was sent clear by Kirby’s pass from deep and she showed Wubben-Moy a clean pair of heels with a swift turn of pace, but her finish smashed against the bar and out of play.

It mattered not, however, as a second goal was forthcoming from our next attack. It was beautifully crafted, as we overloaded Arsenal’s right-hand side and carved them apart. Andersson was heavily involved, playing a perfectly weighted pass for Kirby, who in turn pulled the back for Harder to lash an unstoppable finish past Williams. Within 13 minutes of the restart we had taken complete control of the game.

With a two-goal lead to protect, there was obviously less of an emphasis on attack as we noticeably dropped deeper, but Berger’s goal largely remained unthreatened. The biggest threat to our advantage was seemingly going to be a reduction in numbers as Leupolz and Ji, who had both earlier been booked, strayed a little too close to the edge with a couple of clumsy challenges. Hayes wasted little time in replacing them both, bringing on Cuthbert and regular Arsenal tormentor England. Reiten soon followed them in place of Kerr.

We were keeping the Gunners at bay with relative ease before Kirby delivered the finishing touch on a wonderful evening, breaking away to slot a left-footed finish past Williams to take her WSL tally for the season to nine. Three-nil to Chelsea and 11 points out of a possible 15 from our meetings with the other members of this season’s top four. Not a bad night, it’s fair to say.

An interesting stat also emerged late in the game. We’ve lost only one of 18 WSL matches played on a Wednesday – and that was our opening game in the competition, way back in 2011, coincidentally against Arsenal. It’s fair to say the fortunes of both clubs have changed considerably since then, as we maintain our advantage in the race to retain our WSL title and the Gunners contemplate a 12-point deficit to the Blues.

Before the first international break of 2021, there is still one more fixture before plenty of our players head off with their respective national teams. Bristol City, who we’ll meet again next month in the Continental League Cup final, host us on Sunday in a rearranged game that was called off last month due to snow. Kick-off is at 3pm.

Chelsea (4-2-3-1) Berger; Mjelde, Bright, Eriksson (c), Andersson; Ingle, Leupolz (Cuthbert 62); Kirby, Ji (England 74), Harder; Kerr (Reiten 82)Unused subs Telford, Blundell, Carter, Fleming, Charles, SpenceScorers Harder 48, 58, Kirby 90Booked Leupolz 22, Ji 43

Arsenal (4-3-3) Williams; Maritz (Nobbs 76), Williamson, Wubben-Moy, McCabe; Van de Donk, Walti (c), Roord; Evans, Miedema, MeadUnused subs Stenson, Zinsberger, Patten, Maier, GutBooked Williamson 89

Referee Amy Fearn