Saturday 4th February 2017 Kickoff: 1230hrs Chelsea v Arsenal Football – England – Premier League The game of the weekend in the Premier League takes place at Stamford Bridge in the Saturday lunchtime kickoff. League leaders Chelsea face one of their London rivals, Arsenal, looking to extend their lead at the top of the table over the sides below them. The Blues enjoy a nine point gap between themselves and the two North London clubs, and even though we are just at the beginning of February, an extension of that margin could all bet wrap up the title for Antonio Conte’s team.
Chelsea would have been very happy with their performance and result against Liverpool at Anfield during the week where they recorded a 1-1 draw. That’s a decent point at any time but as their nearest challengers – Arsenal and Tottenham – also dropped points (in games where they would be expected to win) it turned out to be a really positive midweek for Conte and his players. It could have been even better, of course, had Diego Costa been able to put away a second half penalty but in the grand scheme of things it is likely to be seen as a point gained rather than two dropped. The big games keep on coming for Chelsea, though, and whilst Arsenal come into this one having suffered very disappointing result, the nature of this fixture will ensure that it’s another test for the blues. As they are at home they’ll be confident of getting a result with their form at Stamford Bridge being exceptional of late. Since losing at home to Liverpool in the middle of September Chelsea have won nine straight league games in front of their own supporters, scoring 24 goals, conceding three and keeping seven clean sheets. It’s fair to stay the Bridge is becoming something of a fortress once again.
It does not take long to go between the sublime and the ridiculous if you follow Arsenal and we seen that once again this past week. A 5-0 demolition of Southampton away from home in the cup looked to set them up perfectly for the next two league games which could see them make serous inroads on Chelsea’s lead. Ahead of their visit to the league leaders, Arsene Wenger’s men were faced with a home game against a struggling Watford side who had not won a league game since the 12th of December. The same old failings blighted the Gunners who were two goals down in the first 15 minutes. Despite a much better showing in the second half it was a deficit that Arsenal failed to overturn and resulted in them losing their third league game in eight. Whilst Wenger has had to cope with a number of injuries to key players, matches such as Tuesday’s are simply must win if they are to have any chance of winning the title, making the first half performance something of a disgrace. Not only that but it means they were also unable to take advantage of Chelsea dropping points which is a rare occurrence this season.
Conte has found a system and a personnel to fit that system and has rarely moved away from that. Switching to three at the back was triggered by their heavy loss at the Emirates in the reverse of this fixture back in September and although it looked at the time that Chelsea had a huge amount of work to do it has been the making of them. David Luiz is much more assured with the protection of having a centre half either side of him and having what is essentially five attacking players when in possession means they pose a serious threat to the opposition, particularly on the break where they have so much pace. More important than any of that is the mentality that has been restored to the whole team – they expect to win games once again, something that was missing all of last season.
Wenger claimed after the Watford game that his players were not ready mentally which is a pretty amazing thing to say considering it’s his very job to get them ready. One thing is for sure, the same set of players had better be ready for the challenge that awaits on Saturday or they could be in for an extremely painful afternoon. Arsenal’s away form in the league has been anything but consistent of late with two wins and two losses from their last five games. Although they scored five last week at St Mary’s it was against a weakened Southampton team and any confidence gained from that is likely to have been removed after the Watford game. The Gunners have to find a way to match up with Chelsea physically to allow their attacking players to influence the game but it’s easier said than done.
Chelsea v Arsenal Betting Tips
It’s not surprising in the least to see that Arsenal have been unable to sustain the level of performance that seen them romp to a 3-0 win when these two clubs last met. Conte recognized Chelsea’s failings that day and they have not looked back since unlike Arsenal who seem incapable of finding the answers to problems that have plagued them for years.
If the visitors have any real designs on winning this title then it goes without saying that Saturday is a must win for them. Should they get the victory then a margin of six points with 14 games to play is certainly not beyond them but there has to be real doubts as to whether or not this Arsenal team is capable of picking themselves up after their shambolic result in midweek. Although Chelsea never won against Liverpool they finished the game stronger which is a measure of their determination and desire that they are not happy to settle for a point at the home of one of their rivals, and it’s that attitude that I think will see them secure three points on Saturday and take a big step to winning the title.
Chelsea 20/21 @ Matchbook
