Your Chelsea side tonight! 👊@ParimatchGlobal | #ArsChe https://t.co/4Gok45hkKK
Chelsea fans are bemused to see defender Cesar Azpilicueta named in the starting lineup to face Arsenal in a Premier League clash at the Emirates on May 2.
The Blues enter the contest on the back of five consecutive defeats as they search their first win under caretaker manager Frank Lampard. They are currently 12th in in the league table with 39 points from 32 games. They are determined to get a positive result against the Gunners to finish the season in a strong manner.
Kepa Arrizabalaga starts between the sticks for Lampard's side against Arsenal. Captain Cesar Azpilicueta, Wesley Fofana, Thiago Silva, and Ben Chilwell are the four defenders. N'Golo Kante, Enzo Fernandez, and Mateo Kovacic form the midfield. Noni Madueke, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and Raheem Sterling are the three players starting in the attack.
Fans, however, are unhappy with Azplicueta's inclusion in the starting XI. They pointed out that the 33-year-old is too old for a high-intensity game like this. One fan wrote on Twitter:
"Azpi… yeah it’s over for us never mind."
Another claimed:
"Back 4 with azpi and chilwell fullbacks? Yeah we conceding 6."
The Spaniard has made 27 appearances across competitions for the Blues this season. Fans, however, are reluctant to rely on him. Here are some of the best reactions across Twitter as Chelsea's starting XI to take on Arsenal was announced:
Frank Lampard is Chelsea's fourth manager this season. Permanent managers Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter were sacked while interim manager Bruno Saltor was in charge for one game. Hence, it has been difficult for the legendary midfielder to impose his style of play.
The results show the same as the Blues have lost all five games across competitions under the Englishman. Speaking to the media ahead of the Arsenal clash, he expressed a desire to play more free-flowing football. Lampard said (via the Blues' website):
"Do I want to play more free-flowing football? Yes. When I was here before people maybe thought we were almost too free-flowing at times. I know that when I looked at the underlying nature of how we were playing in my first season here, we had one of the highest xG totals in the league and one of the lowest xG against, but we were conceding more goals than we should have done. There are different reasons sometimes."
Whether Chelsea can make a change in their fortunes and come up with problems for Arsenal remains to be seen. It won't be an easy task to do against Mikel Arteta's team at the Emirates.
