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Two of the Premier League's frontunners meet today as Chelsea host Arsenal in the Premier League.
Mikel Arteta's men have made an excellent start to the season and lead the way heading into the busy festive period. Chelsea have made a decent start too and came into this weekend's fixtures second in the table, behind Arsenal.
There won't be many happier than Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca to see Cole Palmer back in contention — here is what the Italian had to say on Friday.
💬 “Everyone is happy. His team-mates are happy. We are all happy and the most important thing is that Cole is happy because at the end they want to play games and take part in sessions every day.
“What kind of contribution do I expect? A lot, a lot. He is probably our best player. We are happy that he is back. Now we need to give him time to be 100 per cent fit. He has done fantastic in the past and no doubt he is going to do very well for this club in the future.”
As injury news goes, that's as good as it gets for Chelsea. They have only managed to get two full games out of Cole Palmer this season, so his return comes as a huge boost for Enzo Maresca and his players.
They have been doing pretty well without him in the last few weeks, so that will bring even more confidence into the group ahead of probably their toughest test of the season so far.
There will be trepidation around Palmer's return to the side, though, given his comeback from injury earlier in the season lasted less than a game and a half.
Big news for Chelsea from Friday's pre-match press conference as Enzo Maresca confirmed Cole Palmer is fit and available to start today's game.
The England midfielder hasn't played in over two months after coming off injured in September's defeat to Manchester United. The other good news from Maresca on the injury front concerned Dario Essugo who has been back in training with his team-mates.
That leaves just Romeo Lavia and Levi Colwill on the injury table.
There was a full complement of European fixtures in midweek, so that means we've got a few games to enjoy in the Premier League today.
Slightly unusual kick-off times, too, with the early game starting at midday.
12pm GMT
2:05pm GMT
4:30pm GMT
Stamford Bridge, London
A short trip for the Arsenal players and fans today as they travel eight miles south west to the home of one of their biggest rivals, Chelsea.
This place was rocking a few nights ago when Barcelona were in town and you can expect more of that same atmosphere today for this huge Premier League clash.
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Here is how you can watch today's game depending on where you are based:
This one has been reserved for primetime Sunday afternoon viewing, which is 4:30pm GMT.
Those of you hoping to tune in Stateside, that's 11:30am ET on the east coast and 8:30am PT on the west.
Hello! And welcome back to The Athletic where are covering another London derby.
This time last week, we watched Arsenal take apart their biggest rivals Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium and now Mikel Arteta's men are up against another of their peers from the capital.
They will be expecting a tougher test this time around as they travel to Stamford Bridge to face a Chelsea side that have made a strong start to the season.
We're still a few hours away from kick-off in west London, so stick with us for all the build-up.
Game Details