Xherdan Shaqiri could return to action against Chelsea after overcoming an injury.
Chelsea and Arsenal will kick off the ninth round of the English Premier League (EPL) at Stamford Bridge in London, England, at 1:30 a.m. ET on April 22. Arsenal is in second place in the league with 20 points, while Chelsea is in 11th place with 11 points.
Arsenal is still in contention for the title this season. Head coach Mikel Arteta took over during the 2019-2020 season and slowly built the team up, and he proved his plan right last season with a long run at the top of the EPL. Even if they didn’t win the title behind Manchester City, it was clear that Arsenal had developed into a team of quality.
This season, they’re in a fierce battle at the top. Alongside the established powerhouses of Man City and Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, who have been revitalized by manager Enzi Postecoglou, have also made a strong start to the season. Arteta has successfully integrated the likes of Declan Rice and David Luiz into the team’s tactics to build on last season’s form.
If there’s one player who has been indispensable to Arsenal’s run, it’s Xhaka. A product of Arsenal’s youth system, Xhaka has steadily risen through the ranks since Arteta’s arrival, and his ace down the right-hand side last season helped propel the team into contention for the title. He even broke a club record by playing 87 consecutive league games for Arsenal.
However, he missed the last game through injury. Xhaka’s streak of consecutive appearances in the EPL came to an end when he missed the last match against Man City after suffering a series of ankle, hamstring, and other injuries. He also missed the October A-League match due to these injuries, raising concerns about long-term damage.
Arteta was confident that Xhaka could return against Chelsea at the earliest. “Saka has been working hard to be in perfect shape for this game,” Arteta said in his pre-match 카지노사이트 press conference. “He had two days of rest, but the rest of the time he focused on treatment and training in preparation for Chelsea.”
“I’m sure Xhaka wants to play. There’s no player at Arsenal who doesn’t want to be in the starting lineup,” he said, adding that he expects Xhaka to start against Chelsea if his body allows him to, but emphasizing that the current Arsenal squad is in a healthy mental state.