The first heavyweight Premier League clash of 2018 takes place on Wednesday evening when Arsenal host Chelsea in a battle which should be full of quality and commitment given what is at stake for both sides.
Chelsea will move into second in the table with a win while Arsenal will move up one to fifth. If the Gunners fail to win they will be six points off fourth spot and will see the top four heading into the sunset so you feel this is an important match for them.
Arsenal
We’ve seen a fair amount of Arsenal on our screens in recent times. All three of their Christmas fixtures have been on Sky and in truth looked ordinary for long spells. That would be a little harsh on their win at Crystal Palace where Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez shone but for the most part against Liverpool they were overrun and West Brom matched them at the weekend.
Generally though Arsenal are good at home. Only two sides have left the Emirates Stadium with anything in the Premier League but in Manchester United and Liverpool they have been good sides. With Man City yet to visit there is a sense that whenever a top side go to Arsenal, the Gunners are found wanting a little. Arsenal conceded three to both United and Liverpool which is a concern.
Chelsea
It took a little while for Chelsea to find some real consistency this season, not necessarily in results but certainly in performances but things are beginning to fall into place now and they look like being Manchester City’s closest challengers for the title, if indeed they can be called that when they are so behind Guardiola’s charges.
Chelsea go into the match with just one defeat in their last 13 matches. In total they have picked up 32 of their last 39pts and have kept four successive clean sheets so they are playing decent stuff at the minute. With seven goals in their last two matches the goals are beginning to flow too so there are signs they are getting into the groove they reached last season.
Team News
Arsenal are being quite coy about the chances of Mesut Ozil featuring. Laurent Koscielny will be given every chance to play too but Aaron Ramsey, Olivier Giroud, Nacho Monreal and Sead Kolasinac are all missing.
Chelsea look to have a near clean bill of health with their only significant doubt being over David Luiz, who could be on his way to the Emirates permanently if reports are to be believed.
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Betting
Arsenal’s results against Manchester United and Liverpool are worrying. The performance against Liverpool is too in fairness because a five minute spell aside they were terrible that evening. The result against Manchester United was the complete opposite of the performance but even that is a concern.
Arsenal look to have missed Mesut Ozil on Sunday at West Brom and if he isn’t around to unlock this Chelsea backline I think the champions could have this their own way. While they don’t have anyone with the pace on the counter that United and Liverpool have they have other ways of causing Arsenal problems. Conte suffered a crossroads day in his Chelsea stint here last year and I expect him to be motivated to put that right. I like the visitors in this one especially with the extra rest.
Tips
PUSH – Back Chelsea (0AH) to beat Arsenal for a 4/10 stake at 1.85 with Betfred
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