The last time Arsenal played Chelsea, Blues defender Trevoh Chalobah criticised how few chances the Gunners created.
Sunday afternoon’s meeting between Arsenal and Chelsea will be the fourth of the season, as the two clubs met in the Carabao Cup semi-final.
Arsenal came out on top in both legs of the tie, winning 4-2 on aggregate, reminding their rivals who run London.
Despite controlling the tie, Arsenal didn’t avoid criticism, and given that the critique was about how few chances the Gunners create in attack, it’s still topical.
Fill the blanks: On Sunday, the score will be Arsenal _ Chelsea _.
Arsenal must prove Trevoh Chalobah wrong and put on an attacking show against Chelsea
After the Gunners’ 1-0 win at the Emirates in the semi-final second leg, Chalobah claimed that Arsenal didn’t create many chances.
To some degree, the Chelsea defender was right, as Arsenal only recorded three big chances; however, their rivals created fewer with just one.
The only goal for Arsenal against the Blues this time around is to earn three points, but for me, I desperately want a five-star attacking performance to accompany a win.
Putting the 4-1 North London Derby win aside, it’s been far too long since we’ve seen Arsenal consistently wow going forward.
Agree or disagree, Arsenal can kiss goodbye to the title if they don’t improve in attack
It’s for that reason that I want Chalobah’s prior criticism to be proven wrong on Sunday.
From Paul Scholes saying that Arsenal would be the worst Premier League champions in history, to Jamie Carragher saying Arsenal have no superstars in attack, the narrative is that the Gunners are underperforming in some way.
It’s not ‘some way’, however, it’s one way, and that way is the attack, something that must be rectified if we are to go on and win the league.
Chalobah’s, Scholes and Carragher’s criticism must fire Arteta and his players up enough to create chances more effortlessly, something they haven’t been doing enough.
Arsenal have got to exploit Chelsea’s defensive weaknesses
Fortunately, Chelsea present themselves to be the perfect opponent for Arsenal when it comes to needing to prove a point going forward.
In their previous five Premier League games, Chelsea have failed to keep a single clean sheet.
In fact, Chelsea’s last clean sheet in the league came over a month ago, signalling a clear weakness that Rosenior’s side have.
For Arsenal, the task is clear: get three points and put on an attacking show in the process to prove to doubters, and to fans, that they are capable of building on the Tottenham demolition.
On paper, it’s easy, but it’s never simple in the Premier League, so it’s rather a test of how suitable Arteta’s side is to the title of Premier League champions-elect.
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