Kick-off in north London is at 4:30pm local time on Sunday, September 6, with two clubs level on six points from two matches but on very different curves. Arsenal have scored four and conceded none. Chelsea have scored seven and conceded five.

Alonso only took over at Stamford Bridge on July 1 on a four-year deal, and his first two matchdays have already looked like the football that made his name at Bayer Leverkusen: fluid, front-foot, and willing to leak at the back. He opened with a 3-2 away win at Fulham on August 24, then a 4-3 home victory over Brighton six days later in which Chelsea were outclassed on possession and still scored inside four minutes.

“It was good to finish with the win but many things happened,” Alonso told reporters after the Brighton game. “It was a brilliant first half hour. We could have scored more than three. But we were sitting too deep after that. But this is a process. We need to develop with these wins which give you the confidence.”

The project has been backed by the biggest cheque in the league. Chelsea are the Premier League’s top summer spenders this window, with Aston Villa attacker Morgan Rogers arriving on a club-record deal and scoring on his league debut at Craven Cottage. Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez joined from Villa too, and his debut in the Brighton win did not stop his side conceding three.

Read also: He turned 40 on Tuesday, then won at the US Open: Monfils matches a Jimmy Connors record

Arsenal have yet to trail

Arteta opened his title defence with a 3-0 home win over Coventry City on August 21, then went to Villa Park last Sunday and took the three points through Bukayo Saka’s 59th-minute finish from a Riccardo Calafiori low cross.

“Really happy. A massive win. A tough place to come and earn the three points. We deserved it,” Arteta said afterwards.

Two matches, two clean sheets. The Villa game also produced a VAR review that denied Arsenal a penalty three minutes before Saka’s goal, so nothing has come easily, but nothing has gone in either.

Timber and Saliba out, Enzo unresolved

Arsenal are without Jurrien Timber and William Saliba. Chelsea’s absentee list is longer: Jordan Henderson and Marco Palestra are unavailable, Moises Caicedo went off against Brighton with what Alonso described as a recurrence, and Enzo Fernandez sat out both opening games amid speculation over a Manchester City move.

Read also: Norris still 83 points behind, but Monza hands him a rare opening

“We will see. We want the best for team,” Alonso said of Fernandez. “If anything that will happen or develop, we are not sure. We are preparing for all the scenarios.”

The Emirates kick-off is live on Sky Sports, part of a Super Sunday schedule that also carries Manchester United vs Manchester City later in the month.

Read also: Successful clavicle surgery for Pogacar in Barcelona, but hospital stay continues