Chelsea
manager Graham Potter says it will take more than just the burning incentive
of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to beat Arsenal during this weekend's high noon
London derby showdown at Stamford Bridge.
Aubameyang faces his former club for the first time since his acrimonious
departure when Chelsea host the Premier league leaders on Sunday.
Potter, speaking to the media ahead of the game, insists Aubameyang is up
for the battle against Mikel Arteta's side, but stressed it will take more
than just the former Gunners striker to secure the three points.
"It's a London derby, two good teams," Potter said. "Arsenal are doing
really well and the history makes it an interesting one for Auba. But the
past is the past as far as we're concerned."
He added: "I don't think we should make it about him. He is an important
part of the team for us but it takes everybody, not just one person. I
understand the interest around him because it's Arsenal.
"I think he's looking forward to the game, excited for it. He's been pretty
normal I'd say, quite a quiet guy."
Former captain Aubameyang was dropped and later lost the armband - according
to Arteta, because of "certain moments where he has not fulfilled his
duties".
He joined Barcelona as a free agent in February after his contract was
cancelled, but returned to the Premier League with Chelsea in the summer and
will come up against his former club when the table-topping Gunners travel
to Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
His Arsenal exit came after Arteta had previously frozen out Mesut Ozil,
with midfielder Mohamed Elneny claiming in Arsenal's All or Nothing Amazon
documentary that the manager's decision to take the captaincy from
Aubameyang showed "balls".
In a video promoting this weekend's game, the Gabon international is seen
fronting up to the camera describing his switch to a London rival as
"nothing personal" and adding that he is "now back, Blue and ready".
When those words were put to Arteta at his post-match press conference
against FC Zurich, the Gunners boss said: "If you ask any of our players
what they feel about where they are, they will say the same."
Arteta dismissed suggestions it was challenging to manage Aubameyang towards
the end of his time at the club, adding: "We made decisions. We discussed
things and we made a clear decision between all of us."
When asked about the threat he still poses aged 33, Arteta said: "He's very
dangerous. You know, if Auba's got something it's the ability to put the
ball in the back of the net and he's going to be doing that until the day
that he decides he's had enough of football."
Elneny: We don't have big egos
Elneny, meanwhile, has said there are no egos allowed in the Arsenal
dressing room - revealing players are "scared" to step out of line after
Arteta axed Aubameyang.
Speaking ahead of Sunday's London derby, the Egypt midfielder said the
Arsenal squad was now benefiting from a feeling of togetherness as they look
to remain at the Premier League summit.
"We don't allow big egos," he said. "This is the dressing room we have now.
Everyone loves each other and everyone works for each other.
"This is what actually makes our squad really strong, because we don't have
egos in the team.
"Now everyone looked at themselves because Mikel did that to the captain of
the team. What is he going to do with another player?
"This showed that now we can't play around, now we have to be calm with the
team and the way the team is going we have to stick with the team, not do
something different."
While many outside of Arsenal were surprised with the decision to release
their captain, first-choice striker and highest-paid player, Elneny believes
it showed the squad that Arteta is boss.
Asked if the incident unified everyone at the club, the 30-year-old - who is
currently Arsenal's longest-serving player - replied: "I think so, because
now everyone was scared!
"Everyone is scared with their position because this happened to Aubameyang.
Of course if anyone is not the captain of the team, does a small mistake,
they are going to have the same problem, and no one needs that problem.
"We agree with what Mikel decided because he is our boss and we just have to
agree what his vision is for us."
Potter: Chelsea players shouldn't hold
back
Potter does not expect Premier League players to hold back ahead of the
World Cup despite concerns that injuries might rule them out.
Ben Chilwell's dream of making the England squad for Qatar has potentially
been crushed after he sustained a hamstring injury in the Blues' Champions
League clash with Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday.
He is one of several top-flight stars who have late fitness concerns ahead
of the finals, with Tottenham's Son Heung-min having undergone surgery for a
facial fracture sustained at Marseille on Tuesday.
It has sparked calls from some corners for the Premier League to postpone
the final round of matches before the break.
But Potter said: "I don't think it's fear (from the players), I just think
it's part of the challenge, it's how it is. It's very difficult to play
Premier League football, or Champions League football, and go at it
half-hearted.
"That's pretty much impossible, then at the same time you know there's a
World Cup a couple of weeks away, so that's a tricky position for
everybody."
Chilwell was due to undergo a scan on Friday to evaluate the severity of his
injury, though Potter did not sound especially optimistic about his
defender's prognosis.
He said: "He feels OK, he's aware of the injury, we need to let the swelling
settle down and we'll know more after that.
"I wouldn't say he fears the worst. Until we get the scan, it's difficult to
say. At the moment, we are hopeful and fingers crossed. It's disappointing,
of course."
Chelsea host Arsenal a week after suffering a 4-1 defeat at Brighton in
Potter's first trip back to his former club, though the Blues bounced back
with a 2-1 midweek win over Dinamo.
"(Brighton) was a defeat we didn't like and didn't enjoy," said Potter. "Be
strange if we did. So, they've responded well, their performance in Zagreb I
think was a solid one and a professional one.
"It had intensity, it had enthusiasm, and everybody has trained well,
everybody has been responsible."
It will conclude a packed run of games for Potter's side, who will have
played 13 times across all competitions since the beginning of October.
The Blues boss agreed that even the 24-hour difference between a Saturday
and Sunday kick-off offered a modicum of relief.
"The fact that we've all been playing so much it's almost like rearranging
the deckchairs on the Titanic to a certain extent," he said.
"I don't think it's that big a deal but it's helpful in a way. It's an extra
24 hours. We take what we can at this point in the season.
"I don't think it has an impact on anything, we're all used to the quick
turnaround, we're all used to the short space in between games, but any time
you have you have to use it well."
top