Predictions for Chelsea and Arsenal’s first installment of a trilogy

Chelsea and Arsenal square off on Wednesday night in the first of three consecutive games between the sides. Here are our predictions.

Barrett Rouen: 2-1 Chelsea. Arsenal are in a bad way at the moment and Chelsea should win a close one with Hazard back in the lineup again.  Arsenal will be a dangerous and wounded animal, though, so the Blues will have to be diligent.

Kevin Peacock: Chelsea tend to get decent results against the ‘big’ teams. Arsenal have injury issues and Antonio Conte was able to rest players at the weekend. Eden Hazard has been without a goal since the beginning of December and loves playing Arsenal. Expect a match winning performance. The Blues win 3-1, with goals from Morata and Hazard (2).

Travis Tyler: 3-0 Blues. Ozil and Sanchez will both be shockingly dropped as Wenger denies they are going anywhere. They’ll sit tight and make it through the first half unscathed before Conte out-thinks the Frenchman and the goals flow.

Daniel McClue: 2-1 Arsenal. Wenger seems to be one of the only managers in the league to have Conte’s number. The Italian, again, struggles with the Frenchman’s lack of tactics as Chelsea start off the year with a sulk.

Charlie Dawson: 3-1 Blues. Hazard to run the show and Bats to come on and score the third (hopefully). Having said that, it will more likely be Morata with a nice right sided finish.

Scott Brant: 4-2 Blues. Chelsea are rested and in better form. Arsenal have been struggling through results. Expect Hazard and Morata to link up all match causing havoc along Arsenal’s backline. Brace for Morata. Hazard will net a penalty. Alonso with a stunner of a free kick. That’s right, I can’t pick a correct score to save my life, but I’ll try to predict how four goals will be scored and by whom.

Ollie Miller: 1-1. Chelsea will dominate the game. An early headed goal from Gary Cahill puts the Blues up. Arsenal grab an immediate equaliser and then defend their draw. Chelsea hit the woodwork at least once trying to force the win.

Nate Hofmann: 2-1 to the good guys. Just like last year, Chelsea avenges their poor performance in the reverse fixture earlier this season with a dominant display featuring Hazard repeatedly ripping the soul from Hector Bellerin’s chest. A late Arsenal goal will cause some sweaty palms, but an even later Granit Xhaka red card (it’s a contractual obligation for him) will take the sting out of the Gunners’ attempted comeback.

Next: Conte latest comments hint at transfer activity

What are your predictions? Let us know below!

Here’s how we stand. 5 points for a correct score or just 2 for the right result.