Chelsea vs Arsenal
English Premier League 2016/17
Date and Time: 4th February, 12:30 pm BST
Venue: Stamford Bridge, London
“We were not mentally prepared, not mentally ready to deal with the duels,” said Arsene Wenger after Arsenal were beaten 2-1 by Watford at the Emirates on Tuesday night. Chelsea dropped points. Liverpool dropped points. Spurs dropped points. The stage was set for Arsenal to close the gap at the top. Instead, they just blew it away.
They are up against Chelsea in the London derby on Saturday where another defeat could end all hopes of a potential title challenge. Beating Chelsea on their own turf won’t be an easy task especially considering the Blues have won six of their last seven home matches against them in all competitions.
Chelsea are nine points clear at the top and they know very well that if they can successfully see off the challenge from Arsenal, they will be in a great position to win the Premier League title. Antonio Conte’s side are favourites to win this match, but before placing your bet, don’t forget to use the online betting calculator to know the precise returns of the stake.
CHELSEA TEAM NEWS & PREVIEW
The last time Chelsea faced a London club in the Premier League, they lost 2-0 against Spurs. However, they have not lost at home since their 2-1 defeat to Liverpool in September. They are undefeated in their last five games, but will be hoping to get back to winning ways after their 1-1 draw with Liverpool in midweek.
Chelsea appear to have no new injury concerns at the moment and Conte has a fully fit squad to choose from for the derby this weekend.
Predicted Chelsea Starting Lineup (3-4-3): Courtois; Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill; Moses, Kante, Matic, Alonso; Hazard, Costa, Pedro
ARSENALTEAM NEWS & PREVIEW
Wenger must make a big decision on Saturday – he must drop the in-form striker, Olivier Giroud. The French striker has been in good form but with him in the side Arsenal are lacking shape and fluency. Wenger must use Alexis Sanchez as a #9 for this big game.
The job gets difficult especially with Aaron Ramsey getting injured in the last match. Granit Xhaka is suspended, while Mohamed Elneny is still away on AFCON duty.
Predicted Arsenal Starting Lineup (4-2-3-1): Cech; Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Coquelin, Chamberlain; Walcott, Ozil, Alexis; Giroud
CHELSEA VS ARSENAL KEY STATS
Chelsea have won their last 8 home matches in the Premier League.
Arsenal have lost just once in their last eight games in all competitions.
Chelsea have won 6 of their last 7 home matches against Arsenal in all competitions.
CHELSEA VS ARSENAL PREDICTION
Arsenal have a tendency to buckle under pressure. This is a pressure situation for them. And if they crumble again, they can bid sayonara to their title challenge. For Chelsea, it is about consolidating their position at the top.
Prediction: Chelsea 3-1 Arsenal
