Chelsea vs. Arsenal: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info and Preview
Arsenal visit the scene of their most humiliating defeat from last season when the Gunners take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The current Premier League leaders demolished Arsenal 6-0 back in mid-March.
A scary thought for Arsenal is that this Chelsea side is stronger than last season's vintage. The summer additions of striker Diego Costa and ex-Gunners hero Cesc Fabregas have given the Blues deadly efficiency in attack.
To make matters worse for Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, his team is currently ravaged by injuries. Wenger will have to stitch together a midfield and defence for arguably the toughest fixture on the Gunners' calendar.
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Before a more in-depth preview, here's all of the relevant schedule and viewing information:
Date: Sunday, October 5.
Time: 2:05 p.m. (BST) / 9:05 a.m. (ET)
TV: Sky Sports 1 / NBCSN and Telemundo
Live Stream: Sky Go. NBC Sports Live Extra.
Preview
Naturally, Fabregas has dominated most of the pre-match talk from Wenger and Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho. The latter has been at pains to stress how much the former Arsenal favourite is loving life at Chelsea, per Tom Peck of The Independent:
"He loves Chelsea already. He’s so happy: the way he plays, the way he’s a member of the squad, the way he lives in this little blue village. It’s like he’s been here for a long time.
If you ask him now if he regrets the move, I’m sure he’d say no. If you ask him if he’d choose a different option, he’d say no. And if you ask him where he thinks he’ll be in five years’ time, he’d say he sees himself for the next five years at Chelsea. He is Chelsea.
"
Wenger, meanwhile, has been left to explain why he passed on the option to bring Fabregas back to north London this summer, per Goal.com:
"When he left [for Barcelona] we bought [Mesut] Ozil. We were not in need of offensive players. We have [Santi] Cazorla, we have [Jack] Wilshere, we have [Aaron] Ramsey, we have [Alex] Oxlade-Chamberlain who were all offensive players.
It makes sense if you just look at the balance of the team. I think that's a decision that is easy to understand.
"
In a practical sense Wenger is right. Even without Fabregas, the Gunners are perhaps the most unbalanced squad in the premier League. That's thanks to the abundance of centralised, attacking midfield schemers.
However, there's no doubt Fabregas is a special talent, one many would contend is superior to the players Wenger listed. The Spaniard is certainly outperforming Arsenal's quintet of playmakers in league action so far this season, as statistics from WhoScored.com prove:
| Players | Goals | Assists | Key Passes Per Game |
| Cesc Fabregas | 0 | 6 | 3.3 |
| Mesut Ozil | 1 | 1 | 2.2 |
| Santi Cazorla | 0 | 1 | 1.8 |
| Jack Wilshere | 1 | 1 | 0.8 |
| Aaron Ramsey | 2 | 1 | 2.2 |
| Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain | 1 | 0 | 0.7 |
Limiting Fabregas's influence won't be easy for an Arsenal team that lacks enough defensive-minded destroyers in midfield. Nominal anchor man Mikel Arteta is currently injured, along with workhorse Ramsey.
Wenger will need players such as Mathieu Flamini and possibly Abou Diaby to try and corral Fabregas before he provides opportunities for Costa and company.
Of course, Fabregas' greater creative proficiency is largely due to the continuity in Chelsea's attack. Costa has been a regular feature as has creative winger Eden Hazard.
By contrast, Arsenal have morphed through several different combinations upfront. Alexis Sanchez, Olivier Giroud, Yaya Sanogo and Danny Welbeck have all played through the middle.
The long-term ankle injury sustained by Giroud has given Welbeck his chance to make the role his own. Certainly, Arsenal's best combination in attack would seem to be Welbeck flanked by Sanchez and Oxlade-Chamberlain, with Ozil playing behind.
Sky Sports pundit and Welbeck's one-time Manchester United teammate, Gary Neville believes the England forward's pace can trouble Chelsea, per Goal.com:
"He's unplayable at times, he's a nightmare. He plays against John Terry and Gary Cahill on Sunday - they will not want to play against him. He's quick, he's strong, it's just the last bit has got to be delivered more consistently
"
Neville was speaking on Sky Sports after Welbeck had netted a hat-trick for the Gunners against Galatasaray in the UEFA Champions League. If the Gunners can play a slightly more direct game, and quickly get the ball to their pacy trio, Welbeck can indeed cause a surprisingly vulnerable-looking Chelsea defence problems.
However, given his team's recent history in this fixture, Wenger will be more concerned about how well his own defence resists Chelsea's rampant attack. If Arsenal can weather the early storm and not lose the game in the first 20 minutes, the Gunners will run Chelsea very close.
Predicted Final Score: Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal
