In the director’s box, Arsene Wenger was fiddling – not with his zipper, but with an earpiece to communicate with his assistant Steve Bould on the bench. Little did it help, because at the end of a lacklustre 90 minutes, Wenger needed earmuffs as Arsenal were booed off following a 1-2 defeat to Watford on Tuesday that all but ended Arsenal’s flickering title hopes.

The Hornets had been ambitious and adventurous. They neither sat back nor defended deep. Etienne Capoue proved to be the game’s outstanding midfielder, summarised in Watford’s second goal constructed through all-around action and quick pace for Troy Deeney to tap in a rebound.

Arsenal were, again, showing their perplexing propensity and manic predisposition to self-inflict defeat. Within 13 minutes, Steve Bould’s eleven had been trailing by two goals. The loss was lamentable for Arsenal.

And so, yet again, it is Groundhog Day in north London. In a world of Brexits, alternative facts and demonetisation, Wenger has been a steadfast beacon, but, at times, his intransigence may sabotage his team. The Frenchman has not changed much ever since the Invincibles’s season and the arrival of Roman Abramovich. But football has.

The same old Arsenal, yet again

He has never hit the reset button, but clings on to an ideological straightjacket even if there is countervailing evidence. Every season, Arsenal embody the false promise of a renaissance; every season they falter when under pressure. The assessment is supposedly an easy one: Arsenal have no spine, no tough characters and are content with fourth place. The London club have thus stagnated.

Conte did overhaul his team, precisely in that 0-3 loss to Arsenal in September. Arsenal were playing “Wengerian” football and, with much swagger, demolished their London counterparts, courtesy of neatly crafted goals from Alexis Sanchez, Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil. But, in the long term, a bruised Chelsea, eighth in the league at the time, came out victors. Their Italian coach ditched Mourinho’s 4-2-3-1 in the 55th minute and switched his formation indefinitely to a three men backline. Chelsea have lost just once since.

Arsenal never consolidated that win, struggling to impose their will against both Manchester United and Tottenham. Before the turn of the year, they faltered again in crunch games away at Everton and Manchester City. Their season has been a frighteningly reproduction of previous editions, with nadirs in November, and, now, possibly February. Bayern Munich lurk around the corner to deliver the coup de grace, when Arsenal’s season may descend into the self-fulfilling prophecy of a fourth place finish and a deep run in the FA Cup.

The problem is as much as psychological as footballistic. This season Arsenal’s predicament has been in midfield. Without the cerebral vision of the injured Santi Cazorla, Arsenal become monochrome. The midfield set-up had been simple: Francis Coquelin as the destroyer and the Spaniard as the creator.

Arsene’s tinkering hasn’t borne fruit

The quick-thinking, creative midfielder represents all the virtues of Arsenal, but in his absence, Wenger, who has tinkered much, never found the right balance. The Arsenal coach fielded Coquelin sixteen times in 23 games, but his partner was often rotated. Granit Xhaka, Mohamed Elneny and Aron Ramsey have all shown their deficiencies.

Wenger’s midfield problem is aggravated by Ramsey’s calf injury against Chelsea. Will he play Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, or even Alexi Iowa, alongside Coquelin or revert to a 4-1-4-1 formation? Both options seem feeble against Chelsea’s majestic midfield duo of the indefatigable and record-tackler N’Golo Kante and the efficient Nemanja Matic, who shield Chelsea’s defence. They are everything Arsenal are not – organised, methodical and, above all, ruthless. They represent Chelsea at their best – pragmatic and victorious.

Conte’s two tenets: pragmatism and victory

The West London club are Arsenal’s nemesis. The Chelsea approach is the reverse of Wenger’s philosophy. Abramovich is an impatient owner, who thrives in an environment, where coaches go through a revolving door, players are lured with obscene salaries and prodigies stalled in far-flung corners of Europe.

The Russian owner may envy Arsenal’s style of play that is so aesthetic and grounded in footballing purity, but his club have delivered more prizes with their hard-edged game. Since Abramovich’s arrival, they have won three league titles, a Champions League, a Europa League, four FA Cups and three League Cups.

What do Arsenal have to show for in the corresponding time? A meagre haul of three FA Cups. Wenger’s purism has fallen short, according to the cold data. Indeed, Arsenal and the Frenchman have never handled the antagonistic archetype of a Chelsea player well, the wrecking ball of Didier Drogba that was so often tossed at soft-handed Arsenal rearguards, or, today, the sledgehammer in Diego Costa.

Apart from much schadenfreude, the circle will be complete for Chelsea with a victory. Back in September Arsenal were the catalyst for their formational change; today they can escort the Blues to a de facto Premier League title with one of their trademark self-defeatist performances.