As they travel across London for a tantalizing Premier League rivalry with Chelsea, ARSENAL will once again put their claim to the title to the test. On their way to the top of the standings, the Gunners have already defeated powerhouses Liverpool and Tottenham, but both of those triumphs were at the Emirates.
It will be interesting to see how they perform at Stamford Bridge given that they have only played one game on the road against a member of the conventional “top six,” which resulted in a 3-1 loss to Manchester United. Graham Potter lost his debut game in charge of Chelsea last weekend when his former team Brighton humiliated him 4-1 at the Amex Stadium.
The past few rounds of Premier League fixtures among the league’s highest tier can be called many things, and “promising for Graham Potter” is not one of them. This weekend’s opposing Gunners come off a lovely 5-0 triumph over upstart Tricky Trees and still leads the English Premier League table by 2 points. The blues come off a humiliating 1-4 loss and have not taken 3 points since mid-October vs Villa.
Form Guide: Chelsea
Graham Potter wanted his side to regain confidence in midweek against Dinamo Zagreb, naming a strong side that produced a 2-1 victory. Chelsea has sailed through to the last 16 as group winners, but they lost Ben Chilwell to injury in the process.
The Blues are now weakened heading into a huge game on Sunday. They meet Premier League leaders Arsenal, knowing another slip would be a major blow to their top-four hopes. Chelsea will provide them with a stern test though and have yet to taste defeat at home all season, with five wins and three draws. Potter’s side sits 10 points behind the Gunners in sixth place but a victory here could fire them back into the mix at the top of the table.
Potter is still getting to grips with the squad at his disposal. It took a while for his coaching methods to bear fruit at Brighton, and although he has continued to promote fluid tactical systems in his new job, there are signs that the players do not understand everything they are being asked to do just yet.
Form Guide: Arsenal
The Gunners have already beaten big guns Liverpool and Tottenham on their march to the top of the table but both of those victories came at the Emirates.
They’ve only faced one game on the road against one of the traditional ‘top six’ and that ended in a 3-1 defeat to Manchester United so it will be fascinating to see how they get on at Stamford Bridge.
Arsenal was also in action on Thursday night, finishing off their Europa League campaign against Zurich, but Mikel Arteta’s men have coped well with the demands of juggling continental and domestic games.
Chelsea will provide them with a stern test though and have yet to taste defeat at home all season, with five wins and three draws. Potter’s side sits 10 points behind the Gunners in sixth place but a victory here could fire them back into the mix at the top of the table.
They average 1.83 goals per away trip and have scored in every league game so far, so back them to hurt a Chelsea defense that has been weakened through injury.
How the game could go
Even if Arsenal can find the back of the net early doors at Stamford Bridge – as they have done throughout the season – failure to put the game to bed would open the door for the Blues to dent the Gunners’ early title aspirations.
Potter is yet to suffer defeat at Stamford Bridge, but Arsenal has fond memories of their recent trips to West London and was able to rest several key first-team stars in midweek, so we expect the Gunners to take advantage of the Blues’ depleted defense.
Chelsea has a fine record going forward having scored in all their home games this term. They meet an Arsenal side who have conceded in 17 of their last 22 league games, with the Blues scoring in 10 of their 11 games under Graham Potter. With the hosts’ last four games seeing both teams score, that’s my main selection for Sunday.
Chelsea was left depleted by Brighton, but we think they’ll nick a draw against the high-flying Gunners.
Betting Predictions
Draw
Even though Chelsea spends a lot more money on new players than Arsenal, somehow the Gunners are the ones that have a better h2h record in recent years. This season alone, Arsenal has been good enough to hold on to the top position. Chelsea struggled, then changed the coach, but the team is still some way off from where they want to be. At this point, both teams will look to capture a positive result, they are evenly matched in terms of their squad. Bet9ja have 3.40, 1xbet have 3.40 and Paripesa have 3.40 odds.
BTTS (YES)
We saw six goals when Arsenal last came to Stamford Bridge and this one could be a thriller too. There aren’t many occasions where these teams don’t score goals when playing against each other. Both score goals on regular basis, and they are facing some tough situations when players are not available which was the case for Chelsea last week when they were trashed by Brighton. Arsenal will feel like they have a chance here, and we should expect some goals. Bet9ja have 1.62 odds, Paripesa have 1.65, and 1xbet have 1.65 odds.
Anytime Goalscorer (Chelsea)
Aubameyang
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will be fired up for this one as the Chelsea star looks to prove a point to Arteta after being discarded by the Arsenal boss last season. The striker has had a lukewarm season this term with four goals for Chelsea this season and bagging a couple of assists for the Blues. A lot is at stake for the forward in this fixture for the player. Bet9ja have 3.30 odds for him to score while Paripesa have 2.80.
Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling is a member of the side who can create chances for Chelsea. The forward has a lot of experience from his time at Manchester City in previous seasons and now he faces Arsenal with a new side. Sterling was on the scoresheet last time out in the UCL dragging his side to a very important win. Today he can reproduce the results to see his side come out on top. Bet9ja have 3.70 odds for him to score while Paripesa have 3.40.
Anytime Goalscorer (Arsenal)
Bukoya Saka
Arsenal has a playmaker in Bukayo Saka, who pesters opposing defenses. The forward from England has totaled 8,284 professional minutes while scoring 21 goals. The forward has impressed this season with this free-flowing Arteta side and he can surely produce goals for his side. Bet9ja have 4.55 odds for him to score while Paripesa have 4.50.
Martinelli Brazilian forward Martinelli has had a lot of plaudits this season for his performances. We can say he is looking like the talent he was signed for in the years past. He has racked up a few amounts of goals this season in all competitions and he can provide his side with goals today. Bet9ja have 4.20 odds for him to score while Paripesa have 3.50.
Football Lover. All-round junkie of the beautiful game. Could be found watching football most of the time. If not he’s writing about them or making some punditry you don’t agree with. A certain bias for Arsenal and Santos FC.
