Chelsea welcome Arsenal to Stamford Bridge in a blockbuster rearranged Premier League clash in the race for Champions League qualification.
Victory would see Chelsea remain third and move closer towards claiming Champions League qualification, whilst Arsenal could go fifth with a win.
Team News
Ross Barkley could return for Chelsea after he missed their last two matches through illness.
Mateo Kovacic (ankle) joins Callum Hudson-Odoi (Achilles) and Ben Chilwell (knee) on Chelsea’s injury list.
Arsenal could welcome Alexandre Lacazette back into contention after he missed Saturday’s loss at Southampton due to illness.
Takehiro Tomiyasu (calf) could also return but Kieran Tierney (knee) and Thomas Partey (thigh) remain absent.
Stat Attack
- Chelsea have lost two of their last five league meetings against Arsenal (W2, D1, L2).
- Arsenal have won just one of their last nine league visits to Stamford Bridge (W1, D2, L6).
- 14 red cards have been dished out in 59 league meetings between Chelsea and Arsenal, in which the Blues had six players sent off to Arsenal’s eight players.
- Thomas Tuchel’s Blues have dropped five points in four league matches at home in 2022 (W2, D1, L1).
- Arsenal are looking to avoid four consecutive league defeats for the first time since March 1995.
Prediction
After delivering two fierce attacking performances against Southampton and Real Madrid, Chelsea looked slightly fatigued in Sunday’s FA Cup win over Crystal Palace despite their dominance, which was particularly evident in their poorer quality in breaking Palace down but eventually had the clinical touch.
Arsenal meanwhile looked like they had rediscovered their strong attacking intensity at Southampton with excellent movement, yet they lacked the finishing touch and a momentary defensive error proved the difference.
I though am expecting Chelsea to produce a reaction with a much stronger performance especially if Ruben Loftus-Cheek starts and can have a similar impact like he did on Sunday, whereas Arsenal just need to find that goal to reignite their confidence.
With that in mind, I reckon that this could become a scrappy draw if both teams are at their best.
Prediction: Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal
Result: Chelsea 2-4 Arsenal
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