Chelsea suffered a rather humiliating defeat at the hands of Brighton last weekend and things could get even worse when they welcome an in-form Arsenal team on Sunday afternoon.
The Gunners are the current league leaders and they have dropped points in only two games so far this season meaning Potter’s men will have their work cut out.
Currently, Chelsea are sixth on the table so they cannot afford to drop any more points from now until the World Cup begins. Their manager will want to go into the break being as close as possible to the top-four places so that they can bring in reinforcements in January and push for a Champions League spot.
The Blues are unbeaten in 11 home games but records won’t matter much against this Arsenal team. Also, Potter is dealing with a long injury list so it won’t be easy naming a strong and resilient XI on Sunday.
Chelsea’s injury list vs Arsenal:
Wesley Fofana, Reece James and Ben Chilwell are all ruled out from this weekend’s tie meaning the manager is likely to switch to a three-man defensive line.
Cucurella will be playing as the left wing-back and since James is unavailable, someone like Loftus-Cheek could be playing out wide on the right.
Ben Chilwell is set to be ruled out of the World Cup today, with the results of the scan on his hamstring injury. 🤕 pic.twitter.com/S7dCTARPD7
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) November 4, 2022
Mateo Kovacic is carrying a knock but he should be fit and available for selection by the time Arsenal come to town. N’Golo Kante remains sidelined with a long-term injury and he will only return next year.
Kepa Arrizabalaga is also ruled out with a foot injury but thankfully Edouard Mendy is back to full fitness.
Aubameyang provided an assist for Chelsea on Thursday night but there’s a big chance that he could be starting on the bench against his form team.
Graham Potter should start the match with a single front-man so he’s more likely to choose the pacey Raheem Sterling over Auba. Kai Havertz had a poor outing vs Zagreb but the manager is expected to keep his faith in him.
Chelsea predicted line up vs Arsenal:
Predicted Starting Line up(3-4-2-1): Mendy; Koulibaly, Silva, Azpilicueta; Cucurella, Kovacic, Jorginho, Loftus-Cheek; Mount, Havertz; Sterling.
Read: Arsenal’s predicted line up vs Chelsea.
Stats via Fotmob
