Chelsea vs Arsenal preview
Chelsea will host London rivals Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on Saturday knowing they cannot afford to lose any more ground on pacesetters Manchester City.
The Blues start the weekend just above the relegation zone, having dropped 11 points from just five games. Chelsea’s defence, which was the best in the league last season, is currently the worst and have conceded a dozen goals in the league.
Their problems extend to other parts of the team, with the midfielders struggling to impose themselves as they did last season while the forwards like Eden Hazard and Diego Costa are yet to replicate the impact they had in the league last term.
Such a dip in form across the board has been attributed by some to Chelsea’s decision to return to pre-season a week later than most Premier League teams because they seem to be playing catch-up in terms of physical fitness.
Mourinho’s men at least played with a lot of energy and quality in midweek when they thumped Maccabi Tel Aviv 4-0. The circumstances were obviously accommodating in their Champions League group opener as the Blues claimed a confidence-boosting victory over the Israeli champions.
Arsenal have had a better start to their Premier League campaign but they are also under pressure because of their problems up top. The Gunners have the sixth worst goal return in the league, despite creating more chances than most teams, which reinforces the argument that Arsene Wenger should have signed a world-class striker during close-season.
Olivier Giroud has been Arsenal’s main centre forward in recent seasons, but the Frenchman hit a new low in his current trough as he missed a couple of presentable chances before being sent-off in the 2-1 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday. Giroud is yet to score against Chelsea, but he will hope for better fortunes on Saturday.
The Gunners have also struggled to impose themselves against the champions in the recent past, losing five of their last six visits to Chelsea, but Wenger’s men will be targeting a different result this time.
Their world-class keeper Petr Cech is returning to Stamford Bridge for the first time since his switch to the north London club.
Chelsea team news
- Pedro Rodriguez (knee) and Willian (hamstring) will join Thibaut Courtois (knee) on the sidelines after picking up injuries this week.
- Radamel Falcao could miss out as well because of a knee injury.
Arsenal team news
- Per Mertesacker is expected to start after recovering from a car crash this week.
- Jack Wilshere had a setback in his recovery and the England international will undergo surgery on a hairline fracture in his left leg.
- Danny Welbeck and Tomas Rosicky are also long-term absentees because of knee injuries.
- Aaron Ramsey and Hector Bellerin were rested for the trip to Zagreb, but should return.
Chelsea vs Arsenal prediction
Mourinho is likely to make changes to the side that defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv, so Branislav Ivanovic could return at right-back with Cesar Azpilicueta switching back to left-back.
Oscar was impressive on his return to the starting XI, so Mourinho could retain the Brazilian playmaker as the central attacking midfielder in a 4-2-3-1 formation for the champions.
That may see Cesc Fabregas working from the base of midfield alongside Nemanja Matic, with the Spaniard frequently breaking forward to dictate play. Diego Costa will probably return to spearhead Chelsea’s attacks, with Eden Hazard and possibly Ramires as the wide attacking midfielders.
This away game should suit Theo Walcott better than Giroud, so the English striker could lead Arsenal’s attack. If he starts, Walcott will try to use his pace to get in behind John Terry and on the end of balls played down the sides when Chelsea hold a high defensive line.
In midfield, Santi Cazorla and Francis Coquelin are set to be the central midfielders, double-pivoting in front of the Gunners’ defence while Mesut Ozil works as a transitional player in a more advanced central midfield position. Aaron Ramsey could return to the side as a right attacking midfielder, with Alexis Sanchez drifting in from the left flank.
Both sides are under pressure to perform, but Chelsea will probably express themselves better after the midweek result. This could be a narrow home win for the Blues.
Score prediction
Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal
