This is the thirteenth piece in our season-long survey of the big games this season in European football. Check out the FoxSoccer.com archive for past installments, and stay with the Fox family all season long for in-depth introductions to the clubs, the players, and the history of the European game for American readers.
Arsenal meets Chelsea Monday night in what will be a closely watched top-of-the table clash between the two bitter London rivals.
Arsene Wenger presides over one of the slickest midfields in the game, but his side shows a distressing lack of confidence when it comes to pulling the trigger, and looks lost when the counters are heading toward its net. Captain and must-play midfielder Cesc Fabregas struck a defeatist tone when he complained after his team's 1-0 loss to United that the Gunners were “scared of losing big games.”
Guess what? Arsenal should be scared Monday night.
They haven’t won a Premier League game against Chelsea since November of 2008, and have been outscored 11-1 in their last four meetings. Drogba has been particularly lethal in this fixture, dropping 13 goals on the Gunners in their last 11 games. In 18 meetings, Arsenal has won exactly twice.
Thomas Vermaelen is out indefinitely with an Achilles’ injury, and his cover, Sebastien Squillaci, has been involved in some of the great howlers of the season. His partner, Laurent Koscielny, is far better, but is not quick enough to hold down the entire area by himself. Wing back Gael Clichy has also shown vulnerability -- he was burned repeatedly by Nani a fortnight ago at Old Trafford, leading to United’s winner.
One place where both teams have power is in the nets. Everyone expects Petr Cech to be great for Chelsea, but few expected such out of a man fans once derisively called “Flappy.” Lukasz Fabianski has nailed down Arsenal’s No. 1 slot, relieving the team of the mercurial and messy Manuel Almunia, with a series of calm and assured performances.
All this allowed, this game is too close to call. Chelsea is in the midst of one of its worst runs since Abramovich began paying the bills, taking only six points from its past seven games. Worse, the Blues have struggled against teams they once would have easily vanquished. Arsenal is schizophrenic at home, 3-0-3 in its last six league outings at the Emirates. Strangely, the Gunners have been pretty good away most of the time, but their level of attacking football has plummeted in the last 18 months.
Which teams will show up Monday? The imperious Blues? The dazzling, pass-happy Gunners? Or two soggy teams, looking for confidence and praying for help?
Jamie Trecker is a senior writer for FoxSoccer.com covering the UEFA Champions League and European football.
