As the season edges closer to its finishing line, we have the chance to go three points clear at the top of the Premier League following the visit of Chelsea on Tuesday night.
A win at Emirates Stadium would take us up to 77 points ahead of Liverpool’s Merseyside derby at Goodison Park on Wednesday and Manchester City’s trip to Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday, and would be just what we need going into Sunday's north London derby against Tottenham Hotspur.
As for Chelsea, Mauricio Pochettino’s could still capture what seemed an unlikely return to European football as they are within reach of sixth-placed Newcastle United, whom they could move level on points with should they claim victory at our expense.
Wembley Blues
The Blues set an unwanted record of losing six consecutive Wembley finals against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup showpiece in February, and on Saturday they tasted defeat again at the national stadium with a 1-0 loss to Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-finals.
Nevertheless, Pocchetino's team are on a run of eight games without defeat in the division, scoring at least twice in each of their last six. Having been higher than 10th for the majority of the season, the recent upturn in form means Chelsea still harbour hopes of claiming a spot in the Europa League, or more likely the Conference League next season.
In an inconsistent team, Cole Palmer has been the most reliable option and in his debut campaign at the Bridge the attacker has scored 25 goals in 42 games in all competitions, including goals against us in the Community Shield and the reverse fixture. However he is a doubt for the trip to north London as he has been struggling with illness.
What the managers say
Arteta: “They have made huge improvements. I think they deserve to be in a much higher position in the league, when you look at what they’ve done and what they’ve produced in games – they’ve reached a final, they’ve reached a semi-final, they could have been through. I think what Mauricio is doing is really impressive, so I’m sure that he’s going to get them there.
"I think the journey of [us and Chelsea] are very, very different. Nothing to compare in my opinion. It’s a huge admiration for Mauricio because I’ve known him since 23 years ago and I really wish him all the best. He’s an incredible manager, he’s a huge leader and he will inspire the club to get what they want to get, that’s for sure." - read every word from Mikel’s pre-match press conference
Pochettino: "With or without Cole we always believe we can win. The most important thing is the team and the collective. He is an important part of the team and is doing fantastic for us, but we are Chelsea and we have plenty of players that can perform and do the job.
"It is a good challenge in case Palmer is not available. It’s a good challenge for the teammates. If I am a teammate of Cole Palmer in his position or a similar position, I am going to be motivated to go there tomorrow and show this is Chelsea Football Club, not Cole Palmer Football Club.”
Team news
Our only injury concern remains Jurrien Timber, however he stepped up his return to first-team action by playing 45 minutes of our under-21s 2-2 draw against Blackburn Rovers on Monday night.
As well as Palmer, defenders Ben Chilwell and Malo Gusto are undergoing medical assessment after picking up issues during the FA Cup semi-final and are doubtful for this game.
Christopher Nkunku has returned to training but is building up fitness, but Robert Sanchez could be available again after his own bout of illness. Longer-term absentees Levi Colwill (toe), Wesley Fofana (knee), Reece James, Lesley Ugochukwu (both hamstring) and Romeo Lavia (thigh) look set to be out for the rest of the season.
Talking tactics
Adrian Clarke, writing in the official matchday programme: Pochettino dabbled with a back three early this season, but has settled on a consistent 4-2-3-1 formation. As with all his teams, Chelsea press with aggression, and on the ball they are encouraged to take control. Averaging more than 59 per cent of possession, the Blues make plenty of short passes through the lines, intending to isolate their forwards with opposition defenders.
They certainly view attack as the best form of defence. Failing to keep a clean sheet against any top-half side shows they are yet to find a robust tactical formula, but their positive style means they always pose danger at the other end of the pitch, and have scored in 11 of 12 matches against the top eight.
Through balls are another strength. They rank highest in the division in this department thanks mainly to the vision of Enzo Fernandez and Palmer. Chelsea are also a clinical outfit - when you discount blocks, the west Londoners have a conversion rate of 19 per cent, only bettered by Newcastle United, Aston Villa and ourselves.
Pochettino has confessed that his players are still finding their way “as a team”. Tracking runners has been an issue in recent weeks, with a string of concessions featuring opponents running off Chelsea markers. Their defensive resilience inside the box has also been questioned, while they lack Premier League experience at both ends of the pitch in goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic and striker Nicolas Jackson.
Facts and stats
We have lost just one of our last eight Premier League games against Chelsea (W5 D2), while our current four-game unbeaten run is our longest against the Blues in the league since a 19-game streak between 1995 and 2005.
Pochettino has never won a Premier League away game against us, drawing four and losing three of his seven league visits to the Emirates Stadium with Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur.
We last lost consecutive league games at Emirates Stadium in April 2022, and last did so without scoring in November 2020.
Chelsea have won five of their last eight Premier League London derby matches (D2 L1), having won just one of their previous 10 (D3 L6).
Since the start of last season, Bukayo Saka has been involved in more London derby goals in the Premier League than any other player (17 – 8 goals, 9 assists).
Palmer has scored 20 league goals this season, with 10 coming in his last five appearances. Only three Chelsea players have ever scored more in a single Premier League campaign – Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba.
We lost our first evening kick-off (7pm or later) against Chelsea in the Premier League in March 1993 (0-1), but are since unbeaten in 11 such games against the Blues (W4 D7), winning the last three in a row.
Match officials
Simon Hooper will officiate Tuesday’s game, which will be his 22nd Premier League match this season. He is only one of two officials to have reached 100 bookings in that time, but has only pointed to the penalty spot twice, both of which came in last month's match between Manchester United and Everton.
His last involvement in an Arsenal game was for our 2-1 win away to Nottingham Forest in January, one of four wins we have claimed in the six matches he has been appointed to. Meanwhile Chelsea have lost both times he has overseen them this term - a 2-0 home loss to Brentford and a 4-1 reverse at Newcastle when he sent off Reece James.
Referee: Simon Hooper
Assistants: Adrian Holmes and Simon Long
Fourth official: Graham Scott
VAR: Peter Bankes
Assistant VAR: Simon Bennett
Recent visits from Chelsea
Chelsea lost this exact fixture 3-1 last season with Martin Odegaard grabbing a brace and Gabriel Jesus also on target just under 12 months ago. However, the Blues have not lost consecutive Premier League away games against us since a run of three between December 2001 and October 2003.
Their last success on our patch came back in August 2021 when Romelu Lukauku and James netted, but the season before saw us claim another 3-1 Boxing Day success thanks to goals from Alexandre Lacazette, Granit Xhaka and Bukayo Saka.
Reminisce about six classic home wins against the Blues, including starring performances from Anders Limpar, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Sylvain Wiltord and Alex Song.
Live coverage
You can tune into Breakdown Live on Arsenal.com and the official app for the best build-up from an hour before the game.
Nick Bright and Adrian Clarke will fill you in on everything you need to know about Chelsea and how the game might pan out. They will also be joined by Gladiators' Matt 'Legend' Morsia, as well as DJ Sammy Virji, Fred and Temi from the 90s Baby podcast and social media star ThatsWatson will share his pre-match thoughts.
Our supporter clubs from Mumbai and Bulgaria will also be in attendance, and then at kick-off, Dan Roebuck and David Hillier will provide live commentary to keep you right up to date with proceedings.
Find out which broadcasters are showing the game wherever you are in the world
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