Arsenal will travel to Stamford Bridge aiming to avoid a fourth consecutive loss that would further damage their hopes of finishing in the top four and securing Champions League qualification.
The Gunners have potentially jeopardised fourth position after losing to mid-table teams Crystal Palace, Brighton and Southampton in consecutive matches.
Those games were widely regarded as must-wins considering Arsenal’s upcoming fixtures which sees them face Chelsea, followed by meetings with top four rivals Manchester United and Tottenham.
Following a run of six wins in seven games before the last international break, there was even some talk that Mikel Arteta’s side may leapfrog Thoms Tuchel’s side into third. However, issues in front of goal and injuries to Kieran Tierney and Thomas Partey have seen the Gunners slide the opposite way.
More from Football
On Tuesday, Arteta revealed in his press conference that Alexandre Lacazette is a doubt for the London derby. Lacazette missed the Southampton loss due to illness and has admitted that he has held talks with former club Lyon over a possible return this summer once his contract has expired.
“I am in discussions with a lot of clubs,” Lacazette admitted. “I want to play in Europe, it’s been a long time since I played in the Champions League, I’m missing it.”
Arteta responded by advising Lacazette to focus on Arsenal’s top four push until the end of the campaign and on his availability against Chelsea he added: “With Laca we are assessing him today to see if he is available with the team.”
Takehiro Tomiyasu is also doubtful to play against Chelsea due to a calf problem which has limited him to one Premier League game this year against Manchester City on 1 January.
During Chelsea’s FA Cup semi-final 2-0 win against Crystal Palace Mateo Kovacic picked up a ligament injury and will not be available alongside Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ben Chilwell who is stepping up his recovery from an ACL injury.
Thomas Tuchel opted to play Reece James as a right-sided centre-back during Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final win over Crystal Palace and hinted he could play there more frequently in the coming weeks.
“I think the back three is less demanding physically in comparison to the wing-back position,” Tuchel said. “Given he comes back from a long injury, a muscle injury, with the risk of a re-injury over so many weeks, it is a bit of an advantage to have him in a back three because it is less demanding physically.”
He added: “He can play both positions brilliantly. We only have him once so we need to decide but that’s the reason at the moment. I love him in both positions. I’m not sure (what his best position is).”
After crashing out of the Champions League following a 5-4 aggregate loss to Real Madrid, Chelsea can shift their full attention to the league until their FA Cup final against Liverpool on Saturday 14 May.
Arsenal predicted line-up (4-2-3-1): Ramsdale: Cedric, White, Gabriel, Tavares; Xhaka, Lokonga, Martinelli, Odegaard, Saka; Nketiah.
Chelsea predicted line-up (3-4-3): Mendy; Christensen, Silva, Rudiger; James, Jorginho, Kante, Alonso; Mount, Havertz, Werner.
from Football | News and analysis from the Premier League and beyond | iNews https://ift.tt/eAiYRfg
Post a Comment