Arsenal host Chelsea in the second leg of their EFL Cup semi final on Tuesday might and The Gunners come into the game with a 3-2 advantage.
Prices quoted are correct at the time of publication but subject to change.
Newcastle and Manchester City are the other semi finalists and the second leg of their match takes place in Manchester on Wednesday with City 2-0 up
Arsenal
Arsenal got the job done away from home in the first leg with ben White giving them an early lead which was doubled by Viktor Gyokeres just after half time. Chelsea pulled a goal back before Martin Zubimenda made it 3-1 but a late Chelsea goal saw the deficit reduced and it finished 3-2 to the Gunners.
Arsenal’s EFL cup run began with a 2-0 win at Port Vale before they came out on top in home fixtures against Brighton (2-0) and then Palace in a penalty shoot out after a 1-1 draw.
The Gunners are also involved in the FA Cup and breezed through UCL qualification for the Round of 16 with a 100% record. In the EPL, since the first leg Arsenal were held to a 0-0 draw at Forest before losing 3-2 at home to Man united. Normal service was resumed at the weekend with a 4-0 win at Leeds where Saka was withdrawn after going down with a niggle in the pre-match warm up. Depending on how Maan City and Villa get on in their league matches on Sunday Arsenal will be anything from 4 to 7 points clear in the title race.
Chelsea
Alejandro Garnacho scored both of Chelsea’s goals in the first leg where keeper Robert Sanchez had a game to forget as he could have done far better with two of the Arsenal goals. Arsenal had more shots, on and off target and also were awarded more corners, 9 to 6 whilst both sides picked up 4 yellow cards.
Chelsea had been drawn away from home in each of the three previous rounds and they won at Lincoln (2-1), Wolves (4-3) and then Cardiff (3-1).
Chelsea also made progress in the FA Cup and they will join Arsenal in the Round of 16 after clinching automatic qualification with a 3-2 win at Napoli last weekend. In the EPL Chelsea have reeled off 3 straight wins under Liam Rosenior who was appointed just prior to the first leg. They won at home to Brentford (2-0), away at Palace (3-1) and most recently they came from -0 down to beat West Ham 3-2 at Stamford Bridge to go back into the top 5, albeit 13 points behind Arsenal.
Recent Head to Head
Aside from the first leg the teams met in the EPL at Stamford Bridge on the 30th November and it finished 1-1. Chelsea had Caciedo sent off in the first half but took the lead through Chalobah early in the second period but Merino soon had Arsenal level and there was no further scoring.
The Betting
At the time of writing Arsenal are 7/10 to win the second leg with the draw at 30/10 and Chelsea can be backed at around 41/10.
A game of 3 goals or more is priced at 15/20 and it’s the same price for both teams to score.
Above are regulation time markets, odds subject to change
The Verdict
Chelsea came from behind to win at Napoli in the UCL and also against West Ham in the EPL so they will still hold some belief and given they need to win here it should make for a decent watch.
The form of Arsenal’s Gyokeres has improved in recent weeks, there is always the possibility of rotation but I would imagine he will feature at some stage and I will nibble at home to score with a header.
Bets: Player to score by a header Gyokeres at 10/1 with Pokerbet
Note, odds are correct at the time of writing but are subject to change