Arsenal will look to bounce back from their shock FA Cup exit at the hands of Nottingham Forest when they take on Chelsea in the first leg of their League Cup semifinal at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night. The clash, an all Premiership one, will effectively decide who faces Man City in the final, with Pep Guardiola’s in form side expected to be too strong for plucky underdogs Bristol City in the other semifinal.
This is the second meeting between the two sides this month following last week’s thrilling 2-2 draw at the Emirates. Both sides’ title hopes are as good as over- Chelsea, in third place, are 16 points behind Man City, while Arsenal, in sixth, are a whopping 23 points behind Pep Guardiola’s side. The Cup represents both managers’ best chance of silverware and a chance to claim potential bragging rights over Guardiola in the final at Wembley.
The Gunners were dumped out of the FA Cup by Forest over the weekend, with Eric Lichaj starring for the Championship outfit at the City Ground. It was also another poor result with their blue alternate kit- bar a win against BATE, games played in that strip have seen the Gunners lose against Liverpool, Watford, Cologne and now Forest, and draw with Southampton.
Wenger is expected to field his strongest XI for this Cup tie, but has some injury concerns, especially at the back. Nacho Monreal is out while Laurent Koscielny and Sead Kolasinac are both doubts. There are also question marks over the availability of Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud, with the duo also nursing niggles.
Arsenal have been poor travellers this season- they’ve won only three out of 11 league games on the road so far, which explains Chelsea being strong favourites (8/11) and the Gunners being quoted at 19/5 at BetVictor. Don’t forget to check out this BetVictor bonus code if you fancy a punt on Arsene Wenger’s side at those odds.
Chelsea were lacklustre in their 0-0 draw against Norwich City over the weekend, but unlike the Gunners, Antonio Conte’s side are still in the competition, with a replay against the Canaries at Stamford Bridge set to decide who progresses to the fourth round to face Newcastle. Star playmaker Eden Hazard’s ankle was not risked at Carrow Road, but he is expected to be back in action against the Gunners.
Arsenal edged West Ham in their League Cup quarterfinal while Chelsea needed a late winner from Spanish striker Alvaro Morata to see off Bournemouth’s challenge at the Bridge.
Martin Atkinson has been appointed the ref for this one- he was also the man in the middle for Arsenal’s epic 3-3 draw against Liverpool a few weeks ago. Chelsea’s only game with him this season saw them lose 1-0 to Man City at the Bridge. The match will also see VAR technology used in both legs following its competitive debut in the Brighton v Palace fixture on Monday.
Chelsea v Arsenal (KO on 10 January, 2018 at 20.00 UK, League Cup Semifinal First Leg at Stamford Bridge, London)