Chelsea travel to Arsenal in the Premier League 7.45pm GMT kick-off
Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez start; Laurent Koscielny misses out
Follow all the action in our liveblog below
Alexis Sanchez, sports casual Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Arsenal host Chelsea at the Emirates tonight in what feels like a crucial encounter, particularly for the Gunners and their chase for a place in the Premier League’s top-four. Defeat would leave Arsene Wenger’s team six points behind the Champions League places before a brief hiatus for the FA Cup third round and EFL Cup semi-final first legs – in which Arsenal will travel to Chelsea for round two of three meetings in three weeks.
Chelsea have enjoyed a successful festive period, beating Brighton and Stoke without conceding a goal and could jump above Manchester United to second with a win in north London. Arsenal have not lost in the league since they were beaten by Manchester United on 2 December but their frustrating draw against West Brom on New Year’s Eve left a bitter taste, which they will want to make up for here.
It might seem like a tall order for the home side given Chelsea's current form, but the Gunners won this one 3-0 last year...
Follow all the action with Liam Corless below:
Live Updates
Thierry Henry on Mesut Ozil
"You expect him to carry Arsenal on his back alongside Sanchez. He sometimes has body language where he looks like he's not trying but that's just the way he plays.
"When you have that quality, people are going to talk about you at the end of the game whether Arsenal win or lose."
Quotes from Sky Sports
Alexis Sanchez arrives prior to tonight's match
Mesut Ozil arrives prior to tonight's match
Jack Wilshere arrives prior to tonight's match
Arsenal vs Chelsea - last five meetings
Chelsea 0-0 Arsenal, Premier League (September 2017)
Arsenal* 1-1 Chelsea (Arsenal win on penalties), Community Shield (August 2017)
Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea, FA Cup (May 2017)
Chelsea 3-1 Arsenal, Premier League (February 2017)
Arsenal 3-0 Chelsea, Premier League (September 2016)
The two teams drew 0-0 when they met in the Premier League back in September
Pre-match quotes from Eden Hazard
On returning to the team after being rested against Stoke: "I'm full of energy and I'm ready to play the game. I hope to have a good game for me and for Chelsea. We want to win the game."
On the fact he is yet to score at the Emirates: "It's not a problem if I don't score. I just want to win the game."
On the possibility of returning to second in the table with a victory: "We want to stay second. Man City are first with a lot of points. If we want to close the gap a little bit we need to win here. It won't be easy but we have the quality to win today."
Quotes from Sky Sports
Eden Hazard returns to Chelsea's starting line-up tonight
Pre-match musings from Jamie Carragher
On Arsenal's chances of making the top four: "It feels like a big game tonight coming here. It felt like it was Arsenal, Spurs and Liverpool fighting for that fourth position a few weeks ago.
"If Arsenal lose tonight they will be six points off Liverpool and they won't be able to catch Chelsea. If Arsenal lose tonight they've got a massive uphill task to make the top four."
Quotes from Sky Sports
Only Manchester City have got a better Premier League record than Chelsea since the opening day of the season and the Blues can return to second place with a win at the Emirates tonight.
Arsenal, on the other hand, struggled over the Christmas period, winning one and drawing two of their three matches. However, a win tonight would move them into fifth place - above North London rivals Spurs - and boost their top-four chances.
Arsenal's players celebrate after going 1-0 up in their New Year's Eve fixture against West Brom - a match they went on to draw in controversial circumstances
Chelsea subs: Caballero, Rudiger, Zappacosta, Drinkwater, Willian, Pedro, Batshuayi
Hello, my name is Liam Corless and I'll be running you through tonight's match.
Team news should be with us in around 10 minutes' time so grab yourself some refreshments, strap in and enjoy!
The calm before the storm
Good evening! It's an all-London showdown tonight at the Emirates as Chelsea travel to Arsenal seeking to put a sizable dent into the Gunners' top-four ambitions. It is the first meeting between the two sides of three in three weeks, with their two-legged EFL Cup semi-final on the horizon. They are about to get very sick of each other.
Liam will be here shortly with all the team news and build-up ahead of kick-off at 7.45pm GMT. Strap in, it could be a blockbuster. And for some pre-match reading, here is the superb Jack Pitt-Brooke on life after a world-class duo:
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