Arsenal vs. Chelsea, Premier League: Confirmed lineups

Welcome to 2018.

It’s time for the first of three games against Arsenal in January. This one’s for the league, with a win vaulting Chelsea back to second, ten points ahead of the Gunners in sixth. We’re not going to contemplate any other outcome at the moment.

Here we go.

Arsenal starting lineup (3-4-2-1):
Cech | Holding, Mustafi, Chambers | Maitland-Niles, Wilshere, Xhaka, Bellerin | Alexis, Ozil | Lacazette

Substitutes from: Ospina, Mertesacker, Coquelin, Elneny, Walcott, Iwobi, Welbeck

Chelsea starting lineup (3-5-2):
Courtois | Cahill (c), Christensen, Azpilicueta | Alonso, Bakayoko, Kante, Fabregas, Moses | Hazard, Morata

Substitutes from: Caballero, Rudiger, Zappacosta, Drinkwater, Willian, Pedro, Batshuayi

Date / Time: Wednesday, January 3, 2018, 19:45 GMT; 2:45pm EST; 1:15am IST
Venue: Emirates Stadium, London, England
Referee: Anthony Taylor
On TV: Sky Sports Main Event (UK); NBCSN, Universo (USA); Star Sports Select HD1 (India); elsewhere
Streaming online: Sky Go (UK); NBC Sports Live Extra, Universo Now, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo (USA); Hotstar (India)

As expected, Conte opts for the strongest first-choice 3-5-2, with Cahill and Bakayoko starting. Strong bench as well.

Arsenal stick to their version of the 3-4-3, with both Ozil and Alexis starting.

COME ON, CHELSEA!