Arsenal face off against Premier League giants Chelsea at the Emirates on Sunday, as they look to extend their lead on top of the points table once again, after a couple of draws in the past two weeks. Arsene Wenger’s side will be keen to secure a win at home, as they face off against the Blues who are 14th at the moment and will want a solid performance from his side in this game. The French manager knows that his side has been in good form this season in the league, yet would be disappointed with the couple of draws that they have played in their last two games. The north London side have not lost a game in their last five matches in all competitions and will want to secure all three points againts Guus Hiddink’s side as well. It should be a tough battle in the London derby, as both sides will want to win this important game.
Predicted lineup:
Goalkeeper:
Petr Cech has been superb for the Gunners and will start once again, against his former club. The Blues made the veteran keeper a legend during his time at Stamford Bridge and he has continued to perform at the top level since leaving them as well. It will be a tough task at hand to play against his former side and Cech will have to perform really well in the game to keep a clean sheet.
Defence:
The back-line has looked much better since the arrival of Cech in the summer transfer window and Wenger should employ a similar four man defence consisting of Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal as the right and left backs respectively. The duo of Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny should start at the center of defence once again, who have done a splendid job as well so far this season. The defence will be against the likes of Hazard, Costa and some of their other team-mates and it should be a good battle of pace and trickery.
Midfield:
The pairing of Mathieu Flamini and Aaron Ramsey has been deployed in the holding midfield role in recent weeks and have done a good job in the absence of stars like Francis Coquelin and Santi Cazorla. In front of them will the man of the season for Arsenal, Mesut Ozil, who has created many of his side’s attacks till now. The star will be returning from an injury and hopefully can deliver a strong performance in the game. On the left will once again start Theo Walcott, with Joel Campbell on the right.
Attack:
Olivier Giroud will once again start as the lone striker up front, as he will be up against a tight Chelsea defensive line who will be out to prove a point. Wenger will want some early goals from his attacker, though whether or not that happens in the match, remains to be seen on Sunday.
