Chelsea Preview: Get It Out Of Your Heads

Only once have Arsenal tasted defeat in a home match on this date, sixty three years ago Liverpool emerged victorious by the odd goal in three. Whilst a similar result today will bring forth a slew of complaints, not many will moan if this campaign delivers the title as that 1947/48 season did. Pressure is on Arsenal this evening, not just from the wins by the Mancunians yesterday but also by the words of their captain following the defeat at Old Trafford a fortnight ago.

It seems that the battlefield for this game is being played out in the minds of the Arsenal squad. Chelsea want to ‘crush’ ‘weakened’ Arsenal; Fabregas wants the winning mentality restored if he is over his ‘mental barrier to his injury’; Wenger believes it would be a ‘psychological’ boost to win whilst Eboue claimed that Arsenal are not ‘scared’ of the visitors.

The words are symbolic of the way that the two clubs view this fixture; Chelsea have recent history on their side and are confident of winning. Arsenal have a tide of history against them, whenever titles are talked about the poor form in big three clashes is inevitably mentioned. Tonight is another opportunity to change that.

For quite possibly the first time in living memory, Wenger has almost a complete first team squad to pick from. Realistically, only Vermaelen is missing; on current form it is unlikely that Almunia would displace Fabianski, the Pole having done little wrong in his outings since the Spaniard’s injury woes.

Woijciech Szczesny may have performed admirably at Old Trafford but I cannot see him retaining his place on a permanent basis. For this match, it might have crossed Wenger’s mind that the younger of the two Poles is better on crosses and does not have the ‘baggage’ of previous Chelsea defeats but it would be a slap in the face for Fabianski not to start. Unless his hip injury has played up, of course.

One thing that Arsenal will know is how Chelsea will play tonight. They will sit deep, let Arsenal play in front of their massed ranks of midfield and defence whilst looking to hit on the counter. In the corresponding fixture last season, Arsenal were frustrated by two fortuitous moments for the visitors but also by the absence of a cutting edge themselves. Many crosses were played into the centre with no-one to be on the end of them. For this reason, it would be hard to see a starting line-up without Chamakh or Bendtner leading the line.

Wenger has a quandry though. How to fit his array of attacking talent around them. With an additional week’s rest and training only, Fabregas, van Persie and Diaby are all back in contention. The former pair are further down the road of match fitness than the latter. Having gently eased them into the first team, relatively successfully, Wenger will surely do the same with Diaby.

The Frenchman, like Denilson, divides opinions. He is either useless or an undervalued member of the squad. Previous campaigns have seen him struggle on the left, as fitness and inexperience were worked on. Moving centrally has seen him realise his potential but it has been dogged by inconsistency. Rarely has he put a run of performances together where he has maintained a strong contribution.

Against Chelsea though, his physique counts in his favour; tonight’s visitors will try to impose themselves on Arsenal reputedly less physical midfielders. Whichever trio/quartet/quintet Wenger fields, they will need to ensure that their passing game and defensive positioning ensures that the attacking flair can exploit any gaps which may be created.

My concern over tonight is psychological. Arsenal went to Old Trafford against one of the weakest Manchester United sides for more than a decade but they were inhibited; they failed to impose themselves and get their passing game into gear. Can that be resolved in training? It has to be otherwise we will bear witness to another defeat in these contests. Forget Chelsea’s recent poor run of results; that will not go on forever and they will become more consistent once more.

The underperformance a fortnight ago may bring about a reprieve for some. Whilst Diaby has a strong case for inclusion, I cannot see him usurping Jack Wilshere from the side. The youngster is building an understanding with Song and to bring back Fabregas with Diaby may leave a midfield that whilst knowing each other, is essentially a group of strangers this season.

It might be too unsettling and stop Arsenal winning that battle. It leaves Wenger with one place to fill; either Rosicky or Arshavin could play the wider role but to not include Samir Nasri at this moment in time would be folly of the highest order, and inconceivable.

With that in mind, I would have a line-up for kick-off:

Fabianski; Sagna, Koscielny, Squillaci, Clichy; Fabregas, Song, Wilshere, Nasri; van Persie, Chamakh

As much as I would like Djourou to play, I suspect Wenger will believe that Squillaci’s experience might be key to shackling Drogba. The Ivorian’s record against Arsenal is one of the things that must be dealt with by the defenders physically and mentally.

The time to show strength of character is tonight. The past two months have seen Premier League wobbles; they have been accommodated by the inconsistency of others but that cannot be relied upon forever. The start of a long undefeated run needs to happen now, not even sooner rather than later, for any consistency shown will eke away at others.

Taking chances when they are presented has to happen; who knows what would have happened at Stamford Bridge had Koscielny not missed, a glaring opportunity that got away and one that is still impossible to fathom how he missed.

Enjoy the match wherever you are watching it. ’til Tomorrow.