Chelsea preview
20 years is a long time in this
era of "instants" ….instant messaging, instant coffee, instant noodles, instant gratification and of course the big one, INSTANT SUCCESS. Don’t we all
love it! Arsene Wenger celebrates his 20th anniversary as Arsenal FC, coach,making him the longest serving coach for the club and in the EPL currently. 2 whole decades of management has had its effect, shaping both Man and
the Club in ways that have been good and at times not so good. There is no
denying it, Arsene has been a revolutionary in helping build the Brand called
Arsenal FC, from its style of play to popularity across the club and of course
Trophy wins especially the 49 game unbeaten run. Recent years though......i
leave you to complete the rest as you please. Amy Lawrence of the uk guardian
has an article here that sums it up nicely if you want to read more on 20 years of Wenger's reign.
No one can argue
against the streak the team is on, 3wins one draw from the last four premier
league games or four wins in the last
five regardless of the strength of the opposition you can only play what’s in
front of you, that’s the counter argument and the Team has done just that. Nottingham forest was swatted away with such
ease that Arsenal never really moved out of 3rd gear such was the
gunner’s dominance. Xhaka’s goal again was the pick of the four but credit to
Lucas Perez who announced his coming into the TEAM with a brace. Particularly
eye catching was his 2nd that added credence to his repertoire as a
hustling forward who can fight his way to a goal. A date with Reading FC in the
4th round is something to look forward to but we know the picks of
the bunch will be Pool Vs Spurs and especially ….the Manchester derby.
This weekend
brings forth the London Derby which is the first of our many tests as we
welcome Diego costa and friends from Chelsea, I can’t really say I am
expectant while trying not to sound pessimistic. One win in the last 10 meetings against
Chelsea, 7 of which Chelsea has managed to keep a clean sheet tells you the
much you need to know. Last season when Chelsea was all at sea, they still
managed to get a win over us home and away, the same way Arsenal couldn’t beat
a Man Utd coached by David Moyes (Yes …pun intended). Having said that, I still
believe Chelsea on current form is very beatable. Arsenal seem to be gathering some
momentum with 4 wins on the trot, while Chelsea seem to have stuttered a bit of
late, allowing us to catch up with them on points. I expect the usual tension between
both sides and fans alike with Diego Costa trying to make a nuisance of himself
as always. Koscielny and Mustafi will have to very alert to his riling antics
that usually get opposition defenders wound up. They are both more experienced
at top clubs and country, it’s expected they will let this show. Antonio Conte
though meeting Wenger for the first time would set up his team to bounce back
from their recent stutter coupled with our not so smooth home form. His style
of play will take a while to settle with the boiz and he may not have the right
personnel yet, still i expect a tough game for the Gunners. Nacho Monreal &
Bellerin will have to up their ante against Hazard and Willian, these will be
key battles. In the middle of the park i think Arsenal has the slight edge,
Fabregas isnt playing thus short of confidence and Matic seems to have lost his edge, although
Oscar is being given free reign there which he seem to be enjoying. I would
start Xhaka/Elneny or Coq, lets leave out Santi for the tired legs in the
second half. Up front they have mobility and aggression in Batshuiyi and Costa
(sighhhhhh), when they are on form, if our players keep their heads Costa can
be frustrated out till he gets yanked or booked. For the gunners this is a must
win match, as it is games like this that help define your season by putting
down a marker as True title contenders (if we are) and to break that
psychological block against Chelsea since the coming of the “Special once”. The
other sentimental reason would be for Arsene Wenger……..an Arsenal win would be
a perfect Anniversary gift to mark this milestone. We all remember how the last
milestone of 1000th game in charge went against Chelsea in 2014, so let’s
hope this would be much better. My line up would be built on midfield solidity
and Pace in the attack with Chelsea’s back line being shaky without John Terry’s
Organisation and David luiz’s propensity for playing into trouble. My line up below courtesy of
Lineupbuilderdotcom.
Subs: Ospina, Iwobi, Gibbs, Giroud (Mystery Toe willing), Oxlade, Santi, Coquelin
Cheers to Le'Proff on his anniversary and here's hoping for a Win today. Enjoy the game wherever you are and dont forget to like critque and share the post......Ciao
