John Terry has identified two areas where Chelsea can “exploit” Arsenal in today's London derby at the Emirates Stadium, as the Blues look to test their title credentials against the defending Premier League champions.
Arsenal have opened their title defence with wins over Coventry and Aston Villa, while Chelsea have also made a strong start under new manager Xabi Alonso, beating Fulham and Brighton.
Terry's tactical blueprint
Former Chelsea captain Terry believes his old side can cause Arsenal problems by targeting the space out wide and attacking on the counter.
“How do you expose these centre-halves? Down the channels and down the outside, where I think we’re really strong in terms of Neto, Estevao and Morgan Rogers down that side as well, I think is going to be real key for me,” Terry said on his YouTube channel.
“So if they’ve got 60, 70 minutes in, you want to drag centre-backs out of those central positions where you’re really comfortable, you’re protected, you’ve got each other side by side.
“As soon as you get pulled into those wide areas, it feels very alien and you feel a little bit more exposed.”
Confidence and prediction
Arsenal are unbeaten in their last nine Premier League meetings with Chelsea, but Terry is backing his former side to upset the odds, with the fanbase “excited” by the start under Alonso.
“I think the boys can only take confidence from our first two games,” he added. “I’m excited, Chelsea fans are excited. The players will feel that on the pitch. So when you’re there before the game, soak it up, soak up the atmosphere because I know the Chelsea fans are buzzing.”
“We’ve had a good window and this is a big test for us. Now, is it going to define our season whether we win or lose? No, it’s not.”
“But we have to respect them. As I said, they’re a really good side. They’ve got goals in their side, good defensively, and a great midfield.”
“So it’s going to be a tough test, but a first real test. But more importantly for us, they have to feel excited because it’s been really good in the first couple of games.”
“I’m going 2-1 Chelsea win. I’m going Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer with the goals for Chelsea.”
