Arsenal know a win at Chelsea will put them in a similar position to Liverpool

In what has been billed by many as one of the biggest weeks (if not the biggest) of Mikel Arteta’s still relatively short managerial career, things couldn’t have gone much better for the Spaniard.

North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur were brushed aside last Sunday, as an Eberechi Eze masterclass of a hat-trick ensured a 4-1 win, whilst goals from Jurrien Timber and the returning Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli ensured that Bayern Munich tasted their first UEFA Champions League defeat of the season on Wednesday.

And it will be a bittersweet evening for Madueke on Sunday, when Arsenal round off their hectic week with a trip to his former club Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, with the Blues sitting second behind Arsenal in the Premier League table currently.

The Gunners know that a win could extend their advantage at the top of the table to nine points, although it does depend on how Manchester City and Aston Villa fare in their earlier weekend fixtures.

This could really be Arsenal’s statement weekend

The fact that the aforementioned Villa could be in second place come kick-off at Stamford Bridge is further proof that the quality in the Premier League this season is nowhere near what it has been - as the side from the Second City were seemingly in crisis mode at the start of the season.

And that is only good news for Arsenal as they look to extend their lead at the top of the table, with some patterns appearing this campaign that are surprisingly close to last season.

At this exact time last year, Liverpool had just beaten one of the best teams in Europe in the Champions League at home (Real Madrid) and went into the weekend’s showpiece Sunday evening clash against another title contender (Manchester City) hoping to extend their advantage further.

That they did, winning 2-0 at Anfield thanks to goals from Cody Gakpo and Mo Salah, and thus put it into the minds of neutrals that they were going to run away with the league, which they did in the end.

Arsenal will be looking at this weekend’s clash at Stamford Bridge as exactly that, especially given the form that the West Londoners are showing - having comfortably defeated Barcelona 3-0 in the week.

Conversely, Enzo Maresca knows that a win against Arsenal will be as much of a ‘statement’ as the Gunners getting all three points, as they could close the gap to only three points and really show that they are in the fight for this title.