Arsenal v Chelsea, Premier League
Sunday, September 6th, KO 16:30, Sky Sports Main Event
It’s three wins from three games with three clean sheets so far this season for Arsenal, who have an added layer of confidence following last season’s title win.
Xabi Alonso’s start as Chelsea‘s new manager has begun with a bang, with three wins from three games, scoring nine goals and conceding five. They are already being dubbed as this season’s entertainers, which will count for little unless they win a trophy, or at least qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Arsenal will be keen to take the wind out of their sails, and the Arsenal v Chelsea head-to-head stats will make good reading for Gunners’ fans.
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Arsenal v Chelsea Head-to-Head
Since Chelsea beat Arsenal 1-0 at the Emirates in 2015-16, they have registered just two wins in this fixture. Arsenal have won on seven occasions, including the last four. Just one of the ten games has finished all square (2-2 in 2017-18).
In the last ten league meetings between Arsenal and Chelsea at the Emirates, the following stats apply:
- Arsenal have scored in nine of the ten
- Chelsea have scored in six of the ten
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in seven of the ten
- There have been over 1.5 goals scored in nine of the ten
- No game has ended 0-0
- Both teams have scored in five of them
- Arsenal have kept four clean sheets and Chelsea just one
- Chelsea have conceded two or more goals in seven of the ten
Remarkably, these teams have met 28 times (home and away) in the last ten seasons, with Arsenal winning 15 times and Chelsea 5. Four of the eight drawn matches came in the 2017-18 season.
In summary, in the last ten seasons in this league fixture, with Arsenal at home, Arsenal’s record is: Won 7, lost 2, drawn one, GF22, GA9.
Furthermore, Chelsea haven’t beaten Arsenal (home or away, all competitions) in their last eleven meetings.
A further stat is that Arsenal have now won eight of their last nine matches overall, their only defeat during this run coming in last season’s Champions League final, which ended as a draw after 90 minutes. As such, they have won nine and drawn two of their last eleven games and, given that they look stronger and more confident this year, Chelsea will be facing a formidable city rival on Sunday.
Arsenal v Chelsea Goalscorers
Former Chelsea favourite Kai Havertz has a good recent record against the Blues, having scored three goals in his last five appearances against them, only one of which he started.
The German striker is 4/1 to score first on Sunday and 11/8 to notch anytime.
Arsenal Injury News
William Saliba (back) is out until November at the earliest.
Jurrien Timber remains sidelined for, as Mikel Arteta put it during the week, “another week or so but is progressing well”.
Cristhian Mosquera has a “small issue” and is doubtful for the match.
Bruno Guimarães didn’t train on Thursday and news is awaited on his availability.
Chelsea Injury News
Although he has yet to be officially ruled out, Moises Caicedo looks unlikely to play and he will be a big loss for Chelsea, as is the sale of Enzo Fernandez, who is technically gifted, competitive, a fine reader of games, and can chip in with important goals.
Marco Palestra (unspecified) and Jordan Henderson (wrist) are rated as only “hopeful” to be available.
Predicted Lineups
Arsenal Predicted XI: Raya, White, Konsa, Gabriel, Calafiori, Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Saka, Odegaard, Tzolis, Havertz
Chelsea Predicted XI: Martinez, Fofana, Lacroix, Colwill, Neto, James, Lavia, Hato, Palmer, Rogers, Joao Pedro
Arsenal v Chelsea Verdict
Arsenal have looked strong all over the pitch this season and have an (annoying) ability to make slight fouls seem almost criminal in intent. Romeo Lavia will have to be careful with this, as will Malo Gusto at corners, as his exaggerated blocking tactics against Brighton last Sunday may draw him unwanted attention.
Chelsea look strong going forward, as you might expect from a side containing such players as Palmer, Rogers, Pedro and Neto, but they have looked very open on the left side of their defence and midfield, which Arsenal will look to exploit. Things looked tighter when Pep Chavarria came on and he looks a promising recruit.
Will Chelsea boss Alonso stick with three central defenders on Sunday or switch to a 4-5-1 formation, or even match Arsenal with a 4-3-3?
Whatever formation he plays, Arsenal come across as the most likely winners of this match, with both teams to score looking good too.
Verdict: Arsenal (8/11)
Chelsea’s London Calling
Between September 6th and November 7th, Arsenal will play 13 games, which will include an away trip to Napoli on Wednesday (Sept 9th) for their opening Champions League fixture of the campaign.
During the same period, Chelsea will play nine matches and will not have to travel outside of London until Saturday, October 17th, when they are set to visit Everton.
The Blues really have no excuses for not being competitive in all competitions this season.
