Chelsea are at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon to play the reigning Premier League champions Arsenal, with both London rivals still perfect after two matchweeks. Xabi Alonso has won all three of his competitive games since taking over at Stamford Bridge. Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta’s side have kicked off their title defence with two clean sheets.
The Blues sit level on six points with the Gunners after beating Fulham 3-2 at Craven Cottage before edging Brighton and Hove Albion 4-3 last weekend. He is still trying to find the exhilarating yet dangerous balance defined by the seven goals scored and five conceded in those two games. Arsenal, meanwhile, have been remarkably impervious, thrashing Coventry City 3-0 at home before scraping a 1-0 win at Aston Villa on Monday evening.
The recent history of this fixture makes for uncomfortable reading for the travelling contingent. Arsenal have not lost to Chelsea in their last 10 Premier League games. The champions won 2-1 at the Emirates back in March and also knocked Chelsea out of the Carabao Cup semi-finals. The matchweek three kick-off is set for 16:30 BST with Chris Kavanagh in charge of proceedings in north London.
An unforgiving treatment room has hampered Alonso’s preparations. Moises Caicedo is a major doubt after aggravating a previous complaint just 14 minutes into his substitute cameo against Brighton, while Jordan Henderson is out, and Marco Palestra is a doubt. Arteta will be without William Saliba for the long term, with Cristhian Mosquera and Jurrien Timber both to be assessed late following the trip to Villa Park.
Midfield Vacuum Raises Questions For Chelsea Clash Against Arsenal
The biggest subplot of Chelsea’s week came on deadline day with Enzo Fernandez completing a £125m move to Manchester City. The Argentina international, who joined from Benfica for £107m in February 2023, put pen to paper on a five-year deal at the Etihad Stadium in a move that matched the joint-British record fee paid by Liverpool for Alexander Isak.
Chelsea therefore made a small profit on a player whose relationship with the Stamford Bridge support had become irreparably soured. The expected successor never arrived. Chelsea had a provisional deal for Monaco’s Lamine Camara, but the Ligue 1 club pulled out in the final stages of the window. That collapse leaves Alonso glaringly short in central areas, not least with Caicedo’s fitness unresolved, and Romeo Lavia still racking up minutes after a lengthy injury history.
Lavia opened his Chelsea account against Brighton and will presumably anchor the pivot, but Alonso may be forced to redeploy Reece James or Malo Gusto alongside him. Chelsea spent around £350m in the summer, including a club record £117m for Morgan Rogers and £7.5m for custodian Emiliano Martinez. However, the area that needs strengthening is still their biggest weakness against Arsenal’s Declan Rice, Bruno Guimaraes, and Martin Odegaard.