Arsenal Host Chelsea with Perfect Record and a New Face in Defence
Arsenal welcomed Chelsea to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, September 6, kicking off at 4:30 pm with a perfect Premier League record and a defence that had barely been troubled all season (The Guardian).
Two games played, two wins, zero goals conceded. Arsenal had beaten Coventry 3-0 on the opening day and then ground out a 1-0 win at Aston Villa, where Bukayo Saka scored just before the hour. Across those 180 minutes, Arsenal faced only 11 shots and a single effort on target — a measure of how little their back line has been asked to absorb (Flashscore).
The one change Mikel Arteta made told its own story. Ezri Konsa came in for his first Arsenal start, replacing the injured Cristhian Mosquera in defence. That was the only adjustment from the Villa win on August 31 (The Guardian). Bruno Guimaraes, a summer signing from Newcastle, was fit enough for the bench.
Arsenal lined up in a 4-3-3: Raya in goal; White, Konsa, Gabriel and Calafiori across the back; Odegaard, Rice and Lewis-Skelly in midfield; Saka, Havertz and Tzolis up front. The inclusion of Tzarylakis — a forward fans will be watching closely — gave the attack a fresh dimension.
Chelsea, meanwhile, arrived with changes of their own. Enzo Maresca brought Josh Acheampong and Reece James into the starting lineup, dropping Levi Colwill and Malo Gusto. The visitors set up in a 3-4-2-1 — a back three with wing-backs — lining up as Martinez; Acheampong, Fofana, Lacroix; Neto, James, Lavia, Hato; Palmer and Rogers behind striker João Pedro (The Guardian).
The history between these two at the Emirates made Chelsea's task look steep. Arsenal were unbeaten in their last 10 meetings with Chelsea across all competitions, dating back to 2021 — the last year Chelsea won a league game at the Emirates, in August of that year (Arsenal.com). Chelsea had lost their last four away league games against Arsenal by an aggregate score of 11-2. When they last met here, in March 2026, Arsenal won 2-1 with Jurriën Timber scoring the decisive goal and Chelsea's Pedro Neto seeing red (The Guardian).
Earlier in the day, Everton and Manchester United were level at 0-0 at half-time in the early Premier League kick-off — a result that, if it held, would keep Arsenal's early-season advantage intact regardless of what happened at the Emirates (The Guardian).
Arsenal also entered this match with a Community Shield trophy already in the cabinet this term, having beaten Manchester City 3-0 on August 16 (The Guardian).
For Chelsea, the fixture began a demanding stretch against a side that has made a habit of turning these encounters into one-way traffic. For Arsenal, it was a chance to extend a start that has been close to flawless — six points, four goals scored, none conceded, and a defence that Konsa had just been asked to reinforce.
Chris Kavanagh was the referee (The Guardian).
