Laurent Koscielny in a match fitness race

Laurent Koscielny

Arsenal centre back Laurent Koscielny will need to heal quickly to be included in the lineup for The Gunner’s critical December 23rd matchup vs. Chelsea. With the two sides separated by two points atop the Barclays Premier League table, this is clearly Arsenal’s biggest match of the season. The last biggest game didn’t go swimmingly, with Arsenal getting romped 6-3 against Manchester City.

Koscielny was injured in that loss at The Etihad, sustaining a deep gash in his right knee. After the match and receiving initial treatment, the defender tweeted a picture of his nasty injury. Included was the message: “Not too serious injury for Laurent.”

Unfortunately, the injury needs to heal proficiently for Koscielny to play Chelsea. The wound needs to be prevented from re-opening when he runs or stretches on the pitch.

For Arsenal, it’s critical that the French international is healthy. His partnership with Per Mertesacker has been a revelation this season, a great mixture of the heat-seeking attacking defence of Koscielny with the aerial dominance and organization of Mertesacker.

They’ll have their hands full with Chelsea too, who have scored 17 goals in their last six Premier League games. They boast attacking dynamos like Eden Hazard, Juan Mata, André Schürrle.