A North London Title Fight: Chelsea vs. Arsenal | OneFootball

Chelsea host Arsenal in a battle of what was first vs second going into the Premier League weekend, and will be looking to get their first home win against the Gunners in over seven years.

The last time Chelsea beat Arsenal at Stamford Bridge was in August of 2018. Since then the two sides have faced off 15 times in all competitions, and the Blues have prevailed on only three times. It is a torrid record for Chelsea, and highlights the gulf that has emerged between the two clubs since Mikel Arteta took over Arsenal in December 2019.

Trophy Envy

Despite their dominance in head-to-head games, Arsenal have often been criticized for their lack of trophies. Their only major silverware success during that period has been the 2020 FA Cup. Chelsea, on the other hand, have won the Champions League, Conference League, and Club World Cup over that period and not being at their best.

Promising Start for Arsenal

Arsenal have finished second in the league on three successive seasons now during Arteta’s tenure. The general feeling is that they certainly should have won at least one Premier League title. This campaign looks like the one that could break the curse, as Arsenal are top of the league looking head and shoulders above any challengers. A win this weekend would make it a nine point lead over second place Chelsea – and put the rest of the league on alert.

Last season’s champions Liverpool have been catastrophic this year. They are already 11 points behind the Gunners, and out of the race. Manchester City are lacking consistency. After a good run where they won four in a row, including victories over Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool, they have dropped their last two against Newcastle and Bayer Leverkusen. It looks as though they are being carried by the goals of Erling Haaland, and if he is not playing or scoring, they are in trouble.

Meanwhile, Arsenal have no discernible weaknesses. They have scored the joint-most goals in the league. In conceding only six goals in twelve games, they have by far and away the best defensive record. Their squad depth is impressive, and will be strengthened when some of their key forward players such as Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus and Viktor Gyokeres return from injury. They just soundly defeated Bayern Munich, the most in-form team in the world, 3 – 1 in the Champions League.

It looks a difficult proposition for anyone to stop them on their journey to the Premier League title this season, and somewhat surprisingly, Chelsea are emerging as the closest challengers.

A Robust Challenger in Chelsea

Enzo Maresca only took over last season, and their first half of last campaign was very impressive. They were second, behind only Liverpool, as late as 26 December 2024. After that they tailed off completely and fell way behind the chasing pack.

It looked as though the season would end in disappointment, before an incredible few months that saw them revive their league form to finish fourth. They also won the Conference League and Club World Cup – in which they beat PSG 3-0 in the final.

The Chelsea “project” with their new owners Clearlake Capital has been in motion for three and a half years now. Although it seemed to be going nowhere for the first two years, things are now quickly improving.

Whilst their young signings are still very much hit and miss, they have bought two genuinely world-class talents in Cole Palmer and Estévão Willian. Players such as Robert Sanchez and Trevoh Chalobah are improving, whilst Reece James has been fully fit and back to his best for over a year. Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez are both playing to their highest level, and Alejandro Garnacho looks to be finding his feet.

Maresca has proven he is an elite-level manager after brilliant coaching performances in the 3-0 Club World Cup final win over PSG, as well as in the 3-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League this week. Mix all that talent with leadership and Chelsea now look ready to start competing.

Whether they have the consistency to stay in the hunt remains to be seen, and they have recently suffered disappointing results against the likes of Sunderland and Qarabag.

North London Derby with Meaning

This year may be too early for them to really push Arsenal, but they will certainly be looking to end their terrible home form against their rivals.