Arsene Wenger’s record against Jose Mourinho as manager of Chelsea is extremely poor – the Arsenal boss has never beaten the Portuguese coach – but here’s a look at why that could finally change when the two sides meet at the Emirates Stadium this weekend…
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1) Chelsea have been lucky lately
Chelsea were fortunate to win at Queens Park Rangers and at home against Manchester United, both by 1-0 scorelines after one moment of attacking brilliance got them out of jail. It’s hard to imagine even a strong defensive Mourinho side can keep that going against better teams, and there are few better than Arsenal at the moment after a fantastic start to 2015.
2) Arsenal look bang in form
Arsenal tend to come into their own in the final games of the season, and they are currently on an absolutely brilliant run. With eight straight wins in the Premier League, the Gunners may never go into a game against Chelsea feeling this confident, and one feels their fast, fluid attacking play will surely be too much for the Blues, even if Mourinho’s side are traditionally great at shutting out even the best attacking sides. Olivier Giroud looks a striker who can finally make an impact for Arsenal in a game of this size, while Alexis Sanchez and Santi Cazorla can also provide moments of inspiration to win games in an instant.
3) Diego Costa injury a big blow
Chelsea have done best against Arsenal with Didier Drogba at his peak playing upfront against the Gunners. Although the Ivorian is likely to start at the Emirates Stadium this weekend, he is no longer at his best and looked poor in the games against QPR and United. Diego Costa’s injury is a big miss for Mourinho as he is exactly the kind of player Arsenal struggle to cope with, and his excellent goalscoring form this season has seen them through some difficult games.
4) Law of averages?
Over a long enough period of time, runs as crazy as Chelsea’s against Arsenal simply can’t go on. Manchester United are another team with a great record against the north Londoners, but recently saw their luck run out in an FA Cup clash at Old Trafford, with the visitors triumphing 2-1. Arsenal must believe that they can now end this barren spell against Chelsea, and Mourinho in particular, who is not so superior to Arsene Wenger as their records suggest.