Derby 2-6 Arsenal: Cesc Fabregas still dreaming of title

Call it bravado or blind optimism, but Cesc Fabregas last night insisted Arsenal can still win the title after this demolition Derby.

The Gunners will be champions if they take maximum points from their final two games and Manchester United and Chelsea each get just a point.

"Nothing is impossible," said Fabregas. "We have to win our last two games and hope the others slip. We're not the favourites, but you never know."

Emmanuel Adebayor, who came on at the interval, bagged his second hat-trick of the season against the team set to go down as the worst in Premier League history.

That took the Arsenal striker's goals haul this term to 30 and Fabregas added: "He is the difference every time he plays and he can do everything. We're very fortunate to have him."

Arsene Wenger, whose thoughts are focused on next season rather than this, said: "I didn't think he would get 30 goals - I thought he would get 15.

"I brought him on at halftime and it was easier for him to score because of the way we had played in the first half.

"I enjoyed our performance and we've shown this team has a great future. We've 77 points and have only lost three league games this season.

"For me we've grown over the season and are stronger now than we were at the start.

I feel we're playing like we did at the start of the season and we have the same confidence.

"Unfortunately we went through a difficult period in March and paid for it. I believe if we had won at Old Trafford, we would be champions.

"We were 1-0 up and had two or three chances to score, but we didn't take them and we all know what happened."

In truth, Arsenal could have reached double figures in front of another 33,000 sellout crowd at Pride Park. That is how bad Derby were. If County do not take a point off Blackburn on Saturday they will eclipse the Sunderland team of 2005-06 as the worst in Premier League history.

After starting brightly, Derby reached for the wellthumbed self-destruct button on 25 minutes when Darren Moore lost possession to Nicklas Bendtner after a hospital pass from Robbie Savage and the Dane played a one-two with Robin van Persie before scoring.

Derby levelled on 31 minutes when Jay McEveley scrambled the ball past Lukasz Fabianski, who was making his league debut for the Gunners.

Normal service was resumed eight minutes later when Kolo Toure picked out van Persie as Derby's flatfooted defence tried to play offside and the Dutch striker controlled the ball on his chest before firing home.

Just before the hour Arsenal bagged their third when Theo Walcott created the opening for Adebayor.

Robert Earnshaw claimed a second goal for the Rams soon after coming on as a sub.

But 60 seconds later Walcott fired home .

Adebayor scored again on 80 minutes and completed his hat-trick in stoppage time.

Derby: Carroll 5, Todd 4, Stubbs 3, Moore 3, McEveley 6, Mears 5, Savage 3, Ghaly 4 (Feilhaber 60, 4), Lewis 5, Sterjovski 6 (Earnshaw 69, 5), Villa 6.

Arsenal: Fabianski 5, Toure 7, Song 5, Gallas 6, Clichy 6, Eboue 6, Denilson 6 (Gilberto 64,5), Fabregas 6, Walcott 8, Van Persie 6 (Adebayor 46, 9) Bendtner 7.

COMPUTER

DERBY COUNTY

ARSENAL

DERBY OUT FOR THE COUNTY

BALL POSSESSION

36.9%

63.1%

FACE TO FACE

5 Corners 6

1 Offside 5

70.4% Pass completion 86.8%

26 Tackles 23

8 Fouls 8

0 Cards 0

SHOTS

2 off target 9

4 on target 10

VILLAIN OF THE MATCH

Robbie Savage (DERBY)

3 Has a Premier League badge on his arm, but is a Championship player

MAN OF THE MATCH

Emmanuel Adebayor (ARSENAL)

Came on and helped himself to three goals, thanks to dire defending

Anorak Derby County have gone a Premier League record 30 games without a win

REMAINING GAMES

DERBY

May 3: Blackburn (a)

May 11: Reading (h)

ARSENAL

May 3: Everton (h)

May 11: Sunderland (a)