Chelsea FC face Arsenal in a crunch Premier League tie. Here is how our staff see the game panning out
Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea FC will look to ride a wave of confidence on the back of Wednesday’s 4-0 win over Maccabi Tel-Aviv. However, having whipped round the staff here at The Pride Of London, they’re not very optimistic. Here are the staff picks as we look into the crystal ball for the fourth time this season.
Andrew Martin: 2-1 Chelsea. It’s high time the Blues woke up from their summer nap and beat a top side (or anyone really). Eden Hazard snaps out of his funk and gets one into the net while Oscar gets the other.
Ayushman Basu: Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal. Chelsea to ride on their new found confidence and will put in a good home performance against the Gunners who seem to be bereft of any momentum.
Khaled Abdallah: 2-1 Chelsea. We have a psychological edge over Arsenal even after the loss in the Community Shield which is still just a glorified friendly. They just don’t show up against us, even their big stars. They’re also in a bit of turmoil just like us with that embarrassing loss against Zagreb in the Champions League.
Gaurav Sardesai: 1-0 Chelsea. Can’t see us being too attacking; Jose will go back to the side he started with on the weekend. Mikel tends to do well vs Arsenal so I can see him and Matic starting in midfield with Cesc as the #10. Terry and Cahill back in defence and I can see Ivanovic starting too, despite Baba’s good performance vs Maccabi. We’ll sit back and only attack on the counter, similar to how we played in the Community Shield. Only thing different will be that we’ll press them higher than we did in the last match.
Mark Treadwell: 2-2. Early confidence from the midweek win over Maccabi Tel-Aviv sees Chelsea start positively, taking a 2 goal lead into half time. Arsenal’s pace tells in the second half, getting at Chelsea’s slow and out of form defence. Walcott continues to be the scourge of the Blues, scoring both goals for the Gunners. I hope I’m wrong.
Joshua Sutter: 1-1. As much as I want to go with a Chelsea victory, I just can’t get on board with a Chelsea win in the EPL until I see a win with my own eyes. The victory in the Champions League was great and surely has to be a confidence booster for the football club. There is no doubting that Chelsea fans needed to see a Cesc to Diego goal combination. However, despite the blowout, defensive problems still exist for Chelsea. I have to give each team a goal because so far they are two of the most unpredictable teams in the league.
Andre Carlisle: 0-0. Doubt a midweek romp over Maccabi Tel Aviv injected enough confidence for the reward of winning to outweigh the risk of losing. With Pedro & Willian out and Oscar still nursing, holding Arsenal scoreless will be the “win” Mourinho wants more.
Brendan McDonnell: 2-0 Chelsea. I see a similar style to our win at Liverpool late in the 2013-2014 campaign. We’re likely playing somewhat short-staffed and Mourinho loves to play games with Wenger. He’s going to let them pass and pass and pass until Chelsea can strike on the counter.
Daniel Childs: Chelsea 1-0. Will be a very tight game that could likely end in a draw. Both teams will play cautiously and won’t take too many risks. Chelsea need to be solid defensively and clinical up front. Feel Jose should pull the trigger with Loftus-Cheek as he can really give us something extra in midfield. Would especially love to see Fabregas have a good game. Haven’t heard Cesc’s song sung yet and a win tomorrow would rejuvenate the fan base.
Connor Tomko: 1-0 Chelsea. Chelsea haven’t shown that much of an attacking edge so far in the league, so they’ll need to grind out a result. The return of Oscar is priceless and he’ll help deter the Arsenal attack. Side note: I really really really really hope RLC gets the start tomorrow.
Marco Vonderheide: 2-1 Chelsea. As long as Mourinho decides to keep Ivanovic on the bench for this one, I see a Chelsea victory. Hopefully Loftus-Cheek gets another opportunity to play, but I doubt Mourinho goes with him in such an important match. I think this is finally going to be the match where we see Cesc truly back at his best and the timing of Oscar’s return couldn’t be better. Zouma will most likely get the start along side Terry with Cahill dropping out of the lineup.
I’m heading with a 2-0 win. Jose will not want Arsene Wenger to get another win over him and this could be the result to start Chelsea’s Premier League season.
Here is how we currently stand. There are five points for a correct score, two for a correct result.
| Name | Games Played | Correct Score | Correct Result | Total Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ajitesh Rasgotra | 8 | 1 | 3 | 11 |
| Eric McCoy | 2 | 2 | 0 | 10 |
| Khaled Abdallah | 7 | 0 | 4 | 8 |
| Andre Carlisle | 5 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Ayushman Basu | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| David Rouben | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Connor Tomko | 4 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Andrew Martin | 4 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Brendan McDonnell | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Ollie Browning | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Marco Vonderheide | 5 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Daniel Childs | 3 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Devesh Rasgotra | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Anoop Ramakrishnan | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Joseph Williams | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Gaurav Sardesai | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Mark Treadwell | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Neel Madhavan | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Joshua Sutter | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Taylor Anderson | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Ejoh Celestine | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lee Fraser | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyler Strauss | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Next: Chelsea FC Take On Arsenal: 5 Previous Meetings