**Date:** Wednesday 14th January 2026
**Venue**: Stamford Bridge
**Kick-off:** 20:00 BST
After yet another spell under Blue co where Chelsea look more like a series of “The Apprentice” than a football club, ending with Eghbali’s golden boy landing the big chair, wasn’t it a relief to see us actually win a game for a change?
Chelsea sent Charlton packing 5-1 in the FA Cup third round at the weekend to give Rosenior a dream start – or at least, a start that didn’t end in tears and memes. He gave the squad a proper shake-up, quite possibly thinking ahead to tonight, or perhaps still working out who’s actually a footballer and who just wandered in from the Stamford Bridge tour group. Still, you can’t moan about five goals, even if it wasn’t altogether comfortable until the subs came on.
But now Rosenior finds himself in the big leagues as Arsenal roll up for the EFL Cup semi-final first-leg. The Gunners just walloped Portsmouth 4-1 and have racked up eight wins out of their last nine, apparently determined to prove that consistency isn’t just something you find in gravy.
Arsenal haven’t left Stamford Bridge with anything less than a smile since 2018, and with Arteta leading his merry band of lookalikes, it’s like watching a conga line in red shirts. Rosenior, on the other hand, gets his first real taste of Chelsea vs. Arsenal – and as all true Blues know, this is where legends are made or at least, where memes are born.
Strap in, it could be a bumpy ride.
**MANAGER’S VIEWS**
Going into today’s game, Liam Rosenior, says _“We’ve been working tactically on Arsenal from the moment I came into the club. Watched all of their games, analysed every aspect of their game, including set plays, at which they’re very good. I don’t know who’s calling them Set Piece FC. I’m definitely not. They’re a team who are very good without the ball. They have a really clear idea in the way they want to play with the ball, On top of that, they’re very well organised with good delivery on set plays. That’s what you want to be if you want to be successful.”_
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, meanwhile, says _“Football gives you another chance. We have been really consistent again in this competition and now we have to knock another big team out to be in the final. That is the mission. Hopefully we have learned from last year because it was painful, especially in the manner that the games went, and the amount of chances we missed to go through. So this year we want to be better and more efficient. When you get to this stage in the competition, you get to the final, and you get it over the line and win it, it brings a different kind of energy. It brings belief and the sense that the objective is very, very close and that is a massive motivation for everybody.”_
**SQUAD NEWS**
For Chelsea, Romeo Lavia (thigh) and Levi Colwill (knee) are injured. Moises Caicedo is suspended for 1-match, unlike Mykhaylo Mudryk who is serving a long-term ban. Marc Cucurella is available again after his suspension but Malo Gusto and Cole Palmer are not expected to be fit, so Rosenior is likely to leave them out rather than have the medical staff on the bench for company.
For Arsenal, Piero Hincapie (thigh), Riccardo Calafiori (muscle), Max Dowman (ankle), and Cristhian Mosquera (ankle) are injured and William Saliba and Leandro Trossard are reported to be doubts. Kai Havertz is available.
**TEAMS**
CHELSEA (Possible line-up): Jorgensen; Acheampong, Chalobah, Fofana, Cucurella; James, Fernandez; Santos, Estevao, Neto; Delap
ARSENAL (Possible line-up): Kepa; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Gyokeres, Martinelli
**LAST MEETING**
Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal (30th November 2025)
**CURRENT FORM (ALL)**
CHELSEA: DLDDLW
ARSENAL: WWWWDW
**OTHER STUFF**
* Chelsea have won four of their last five semi-final ties in the EFL Cup
* Chelsea lost in the semi-final against Arsenal in 2017-18
* Chelsea have scored and conceded in seven straight games in all competitions
* Arsenal lost in the 2021-22 semi-final to Liverpool and in last season’s semi-final to Newcastle
* Arsenal have won 8 of their last 9 games in all competitions
* Arsenal are unbeaten in 8 games against Chelsea
**PREDICTION**
[Sportsmole](Preview: Chelsea vs Arsenal - prediction, team news, lineups - Sports Mole): Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal