Chelsea vs Arsenal preview: Storylines, odds, prediction for match with top 4 implications

Who’d have thought a few months ago that it would be Chelsea and not Arsenal in the ascendancy going into this make-or-break clash? Successive defeats without scoring a goal have put Arsenal on the verge of a mini crisis ahead of their trip to Stamford Bridge on Sunday, following a patchy run of form that has left them seven points adrift of league-leaders Liverpool. Lose to Chelsea this weekend and it could be curtains for their title race already.

That hasn’t killed Mikel Arteta’s optimism for the game, however. The Spaniard was happy with what he saw from his team in Arsenal’s 1-0 loss at Inter Milan and feels if they replicate that at Chelsea they could well be victorious.

“We should have scored a couple at least but the way the team played, that was us at least,” he said. “Every decision in the box makes a difference. The way we played tonight, this team can go to Chelsea and win.”

Going to Chelsea and winning will be no easy feat. The Blues are above Arsenal in the table on goal difference with both teams sitting level on 18 points. If they can see off the Gunners on Sunday they have a real chance to displace their London rivals as the team chasing Liverpool and Man City in the title race.

Enzo Maresca’s side haven’t been the most consistent this season but they battled to a 1-1 draw at a rejuvenated Manchester United last week. Their only two defeats in the league all season have come against Liverpool and Manchester City. Chelsea have Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson in good form and they’ll be the danger-men Arsenal need to watch out for.

Meanwhile, danger is what Arsenal need to offer more of after firing a blank in back-to-back games. Those 1-0 losses to Newcastle and Inter only demonstrated how desperately the Gunners are crying out for a proper centre-forward who can offer a steady flow of goals. Chelsea look like they might have that in Jackson, who has six goals in the league.

But while Chelsea might come into this game with momentum — especially after demolishing European minnows Noah 8-0 in the Conference League this week — they won’t want to look at the head-to-head form guide.

The Blues were thumped 5-0 by the Gunners in the last fixture between these teams, which was Arsenal’s fourth win in their last five meetings against the Blues. Chelsea have only beaten the Gunners once since 2019, with their London rivals defeating them seven times in that time.

Arsenal will be hoping to have Martin Odegaard for this huge clash — but given that he only came on in stoppage time against Inter, it might be too soon for him to start following two months out with an ankle injury. Declan Rice is also attempting to push through to start despite breaking his toe against Newcastle. Kai Havertz is a doubt after suffering a clash of heads against Inter. Takehiro Tomiyasu, Riccardo Calafiori and Raheem Sterling remain out.

Chelsea’s main concern is with Palmer — who didn’t train for Chelsea this week after being taken out by Lisandro Martinez last week — but Maresca is hopeful he will be fit to play. Jadon Sancho is also a doubt after picking up a knock.

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Chelsea vs Arsenal odds

Venue: Stamford Bridge — London
Time: 4:30 p.m. GMT (11:30 a.m. ET), Sunday
Streaming: Fubo (US only, try for free)

Form guide (league only)

Chelsea: 5-3-2, 18 points (4th); D-W-L-D-W
Arsenal: 5-3-2, 18 points (5th); L-D-L-W-W

Match prediction

Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal

This game is intriguing because the two teams’ fortunes have been nearly identical. Both sides have five wins, three draws and two defeats. Chelsea have scored three more than Arsenal, who have conceded one less. This could be a season-defining match but we could also see a cagey affair with so much at stake. Arsenal are a wounded animal and will be keen to make amends so don’t count them out.