The top four race in the English Premier League has been blown wide open following Chelsea’s defeat to Newcastle in match week 23. With the Blues dropping points, the likes of Manchester United, Tottenham and Sheffield United are all within hot on their heels.
Similar is the case in the Indian Super League, where Mumbai City upset the champions Bengaluru FC to get their season back on track. With the final few gameweeks left now in the group stages, things seem to be heating up in the ISL with five teams vying for the top four places. With so many exciting match-ups this week in the footballing world, here’s a look at two fixtures to keep an eye out for.
Chelsea vs Arsenal
Games between these two London rivals have been fiery and full of goals in the past, and tends to favour the home side. Since 2016, the side playing at home has won on all but one of the occasions. That streak however was put to bed when the two teams met in December, as two late goals from Jorginho and Tammy Abraham helped Chelsea steal a 2-1 win at the Emirates.
Since that loss, Arsenal have been performing better under new manager Mikel Arteta, getting a win and two draws. The Gunners have scored 30 goals throughout the season thus far, but 13 of those have been scored by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Gabonese striker however will be unavailable for the Chelsea game after getting a red card and a three match ban in the Crystal Palace game. With Aubameyang out, the impetus on scoring falls on Alexander Lacazette and Nicholas Pepe, but they average a goal in 206 minutes and 390 minutes respectively; and against a top four side in Chelsea, one can expect that barren run to continue.
Chelsea too have not been very convincing this season, with their home record being below par. They have lost all the games in which they have conceded the first goal at home, and managed to get only 17 out of a possible 33 points at Stamford Bridge. The Blues have also found it difficult to get clean sheets at home, with just four thus far on home turf.
Watch out for:
Tammy Abraham: The 22-year-old forward has been at the thick of things for Chelsea this season, with 13 goals so far. He has however struggled against the traditional top six sides, but for one exception which came in the return fixture against Arsenal. The Gunners have just four clean sheets so far in the Premier League, and have on average conceded 1.3 goals per game. With such a porous defence, Chelsea’s Abraham would be licking his lips at the prospect of scoring a few more this week in this London derby.
READ: Has Tammy Abraham lifted the curse of Chelsea’s number 9 shirt?
Bengaluru FC vs Odisha FC
A scuffed shot from Bengaluru’s central defender Juanan made the difference when the two sides met last month. It was a close contest back then as both sides had their fair share of chances, but keeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu pulled off a few good saves to give his side a win.
Odisha FC however are now on a four match winning streak and seem to have found their footing at just the right time in the Indian Super League, with Aridane Santana and Xisco Hernandez firing on all cylinders. Odisha are the joint-third highest scorers in the league, but could find things difficult against the meanest defence of the league in Bengaluru.
Bengaluru suffered a loss in their previous game against Mumbai City, and will look to bounce back as soon as possible. The last time the champions were defeated, they followed that up with four wins on the trot, and with captain Sunil Chhetri finding his feet, a similar outcome can be expected.
Watch out for:
Aridane Santana: The Odisha FC forward became the top-scorer in the Indian Super League after scoring twice in the last game against Hyderabad FC. Odisha FC are second on the stats list for most passes and most crosses, and having a six foot plus striker in Santana has proved beneficial for that style of play. Bengaluru’s centre backs Rahul Bheke and Albert Serran could therefore have a significant disadvantage when it comes to aerial duels against the Spaniard.
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Feature image: AFP/ Adrian Dennis
