Chelsea have worked their way through three crucial weeks with a much-needed four wins. The nature of each performance has left more questions than answers for Enzo Maresca and his side but at the business end of the season it has been key to simply get over the line.
Now into the quarter-finals of the Conference League (as expected), Chelsea have the chance to strengthen their position domestically. With Manchester City and Brighton playing over the weekend and Newcastle United in Carabao Cup action, there is an opportunity to move clear of the chasing pack in the race for the top five.
Chelsea can now start to look beyond just fourth place knowing that fifth is almost certain to secure them Champions League football. The gap to Newcastle in sixth is currently only two points but could be five before the end of the weekend - albeit with Maresca having played one more game.
The fixture list is not kind to Chelsea either, so picking up wins now will be paramount. Beating Arsenal on Sunday would put Maresca's men only three points off second. Nottingham Forest travel to Ipswich Town, where they will be expecting to keep up the pace.
Chelsea's record at Arsenal is poor. Their recent history against Mikel Arteta overall is horrible. Sunday would be a great place for Maresca to set that straight. Although the Gunners have been the closest challengers to Liverpool, their injury-hit period has seen any title fight fall off massively.
Arsenal are not the team of the past two years and have a lack of genuine weapons right now. With Bukayo Saka injured and Martin Odegaard far from his top form, Arteta will be forced to play without a genuine striker and a lot of the attacking burden has fallen on the shoulders of 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri.
He is fully rested, like most of the Arsenal XI likely to start on Sunday. Chelsea will also be fresh but did have to call on some first-team players to get the job done against FC Copenhagen.
Maresca will once again revert to his strongest possible side and that means Robert Sanchez is in goal. He has been flipped back to being the No.1 choice despite Filip Jorgensen doing very little wrong. His mistake against Aston Villa is one blemish whereas Sanchez has made many.
The uncertainty in goal hasn't helped a shaky defence but at the Emirates Stadium Maresca can do something for the first time. With Reece James available after being ruled out last week with illness, he is set to come back into the side. If that is at right-back rather in midfield then he will partner Wesley Fofana.
The pair are two of Chelsea's best defenders and add significant quality both on and off the ball. Alongside Levi Colwill, Fofana will continue to rekindle the most solid backline possible. Marc Cucurella is the only natural left-back in the squad and pops up all over.
If Maresca does select this backline then it will be the first time this season all four have started together. Cucurella was called on alongside Cole Palmer at half-time against Copenhagen but has been operating at his highest level for a while now.
The bigger question is how Maresca goes about creating his desired overloads with James and Cucurella inverting. That will rely on the positioning of Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez. They both started on Thursday night due to a lack of backup. The pair were taken off at the 80th and 45th minute respectively.
Romeo Lavia is ready to go again but has not played in over two months. Maresca could throw him straight in and has done so already this season with Lavia and James on different occasions. The Belgian would add a new dynamic and balance in the centre of the park.
Chelsea players Wesley Fofana and Romeo Lavia
Chelsea have struggled without Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana (Image: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)
Given he has so rarely been selectable, having Lavia for the final 10 games would be like a new signing joining, should he stay fit. The knock-on is what happens up front.
Pedro Neto is set to play from his centre-forward role. If Arsenal offer him space to run into then it could be a good avenue for Chelsea to go down. It is who supports him that will matter the most.
Palmer will play. He has been out of sorts and confidence for most of 2025 but never has there been a better stage to prove himself again. Depending on the shape of the team, which could see James hold the width at full-back if Lavia does start, then Palmer would be able to drift inside. Neto regularly runs the channels as well which opens up space centrally.
Then there is the left side. Jadon Sancho and Christopher Nkunku are struggling in front of goal. Neither has impacted play enough to warrant their place in the side. Maresca's midweek XI suggests that Nkunku will simply slot back in on the left - possibly moving into his pocket in the half-space if Cucurella is deployed high and wide again - with Sancho on the right and Palmer through the middle.
Having Lavia and James able to play in midfield means that Fernandez can push up as a No.10, leaving Palmer the room to roam. This also creates freedom with Nkunku. However, Tyrique George is more than deserving of a spot.
He is perhaps the most in-form of Chelsea's wingers and could be the young, unleashed game-changer in a match between two teams lacking creativity. George's 90 minutes on Thursday and his wider role as a second or third choice in the league makes this unlikely but if Maresca did want to throw a spanner in the works, this is one of his many options.
With a few players back from injury - James, Fofana, and Lavia - all of a sudden there is manoeuvrability in the squad and slight added depth. By the time Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson return after the international break Chelsea will look stronger than they have for months. Getting themselves into a good position in the table before that is their first task.
Changed Chelsea XI vs Arsenal: Sanchez; James, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez, Lavia; Palmer, Neto, George.
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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