The season’s first meeting between members of the Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ is staged at the Emirates Stadium when Arsenal host London rivals Chelsea.

Basque managers collide when Mikel Arteta and Xabi Alonso share the dugout on Sunday, and both coaches have masterminded perfect starts to the campaign for their respective clubs.

The Gunners have kept customary clean sheets in victories over Coventry City and Aston Villa as they ease into their title defense, but this will prove a mightier test of their credentials. Chelsea’s attacking firepower has been on full view during 3–2 and 4–3 victories over Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion respectively, with even Arsenal’s defense set to struggle against a fearsome forward triumvirate.

Chelsea, however, will have to overcome their hoodoo in this fixture to maintain their unbeaten start to the new season. They have won just one of their last 16 against Arsenal across all competitions and failed to triumph in any of last season’s four meetings.

Arsenal vs. Chelsea Score Prediction

Dramatic Draw Staged in North London

It appears a case of Arsenal’s watertight defense vs. Chelsea’s dazzling attackers this weekend, and the result should be a highly-entertaining affair brimming with drama.

Chelsea have exhibited some spectacular, free-flowing soccer under Alonso to date and while Arsenal’s rearguard will be their sternest opponents yet, one would expect them to break through at least once at the Emirates.

Defensively, the Blues have been found wanting in their opening two matches, and a lightly-stocked midfield will offer Arsenal plenty of encouragement, especially on their own patch. An in-form trio of Myles Lewis-Skelly, Declan Rice and Martin Ødegaard should dominate and create plenty of openings for the likes of Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz.

We’re predicting an end-to-end encounter, which could end without a winner.

• Head-to-head record: Chelsea have seldom enjoyed recent journeys to the Emirates, losing all of their previous five visits. However, they have won two of their last seven trips in the Premier League, offering a sliver of hope for Alonso’s new-look outfit.
• Chelsea’s attacking spark: Only two Premier League sides have produced more expected goals than Chelsea (5.2) so far this season, while they also rank highly for big chances (10) and first, rather ironically given their upcoming opponents, for set-piece goals (three).
• Arsenal industry: Arteta’s defense could hardly be more confident heading into the clash. They have allowed just 0.5 xG so far and conceded zero shots on target against Villa most recently. Having also covered more distance per match than anybody else, they know they can overpower their visitors.

Prediction: Arsenal 2–2 Chelsea

Arsenal Predicted Lineup vs. Chelsea

Arsenal were without both Bruno Guimarães and Cristhian Mosquera during Thursday’s training session and there are doubts over their involvement against Chelsea. The latter appears likely to be replaced at center back by summer signing Ezri Konsa.

William Saliba remains missing in the defense and Jurriën Timber could sit out again despite returning to full team training, but injuries haven’t upset the balance in Arsenal’s backline. Ben White, Gabriel and Riccardo Calafiori have all impressed so far.

Christos Tzolis should retain his starting berth despite being replaced by Eberechi Eze at half-time on Monday. The Greek winger was merely withdrawn due to being on a yellow card and has shown enough early in his Arsenal career to have earned Arteta’s faith.

Havertz will continue ahead of Viktor Gyökeres in the center forward position, with the Swede yet to play a single minute in the league this term.

Arsenal predicted lineup vs. Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Raya; White, Konsa, Gabriel, Calafiori; Rice, Lewis-Skelly; Saka, Ødegaard, Tzolis; Havertz.

Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs. Arsenal

Chelsea could well be without the influence of Moisés Caicedo in midfield after he aggravated an existing injury against former club Brighton last weekend. With Enzo Fernández having departed and a replacement not sourced, Reece James appears likeliest to partner Roméo Lavia in the center.

Jordan Henderson still awaits his Chelsea debut due to an arm injury sustained at the World Cup, while Marco Palestra is a doubt after missing the opening two games due to a knock.

Malo Gusto might feature at right wingback ahead of Pedro Neto, offering Chelsea greater defensive security, while Emiliano Martínez will make his second appearance for the club between the sticks.

An outstanding forward three of Cole Palmer, João Pedro and Morgan Rogers won’t be disrupted.

Chelsea predicted lineup vs. Arsenal (3-4-2-1): Martínez; Fofana, Lacroix, Colwill; Gusto, James, Lavia, Hato; Palmer, Pedro, Rogers.

What Time Does Arsenal vs. Chelsea Kick Off?

• Location: London, England
• Stadium: Emirates Stadium
• Date: Sunday, Sep. 6
• Kick-off Time: 4:30 p.m. BST / 11:30 am. ET / 8:30 a.m. PT
• Referee: Chris Kavanagh
• VAR: Darren England

How to Watch Arsenal vs. Chelsea on TV, Live Stream