Manager Arsene Wenger has been chided by some parties for overseeing a team that has appeared to be in continual transition for the last three years. Wenger though has always shown the utmost faith in his young charges and has maintained that their inherent quality will shine through.

The biggest area of concern was the middle of the pitch, primarily when stripped of possession, and while Cesc Fabregas is almost the complete midfield player even he needs a little help. The rise to prominence of Alex Song, the all-round ability of Denilson, Abou Diaby curbing his attacking instincts and Wenger’s switch to a three man midfield has seemingly corrected this imbalance.

The arrival of Nemanja Vidic lookalike, Thomas Vermaelen, has reinforced another traditionally weak area of the Arsenal squad, - central defence. The Belgian has struck up an immediate rapport with the talented but turbulent William Gallas who, allegedly, was the catalyst behind Kolo Toure’s fall from grace in north London.

As well as looking dependable at the back, Vermaelen has also chipped in with five goals already including one stupendous strike from 25 yards against Wigan in September.

But it will be his defensive acumen that will be examined most thoroughly on Sunday when he comes up against the bulldozing Didier Drogba. The Chelsea striker has a fantastic goalscoring record against Arsenal having netted eight times in nine starts against them including the winner in last season’s FA Cup semi-final.

Of all of Wenger’s defenders, Philippe Senderos has endured a more torrid time than most against the muscular Ivorian so this might be one fixture he would be glad to watch from the sidelines.

As with the majority of games at this level though the match will be won and lost in midfield and this is where the intrigue really lies. The new Chelsea formula is more exhilarating than that of previous regimes but it is still based on keeping things tight.

Whether Carlo Ancelotti opts to play with a diamond or with a central three forcing Nicolas Anelka to drop in to help the midfield we will have to wait and see but I suspect that it will be the latter. Arsenal may have got tougher in that area but they can still outpass most teams in Europe; Ancelotti will be keen that his team are not outnumbered in this crucial part of the field.

The Italian might be able to call on the services of Frank Lampard which would be an enormous boost to their prospects. Lampard – the fulcrum of the Chelsea team – tore a thigh muscle while on international duty and was fully expected to miss the date with Arsenal.

However, the new miracle horse placenta treatment emanating from Serbia may well have served its purpose as his recovery is well ahead of schedule. Lampard’s return will add even more physicality to an already imposing Chelsea midfield which is certain to feature Michael Ballack and Michael Essien in enforcing roles.

If Arsenal do manage to gain the edge in this department then they will then have the unenviable task of breaching Chelsea’s formidable back line.

With just ten goals conceded in 20 matches in all competitions this season - and just two in their last eight – Arsenal may well rue the injury to in-form Robin Van Persie. The Dutchman has visited the same Serbian doctor as Lampard but his return to fitness will be less swift.

If there is one area that Arsenal can exploit it is Chelsea’s right side of defence. Branislav Ivanovic is a solid defender but he lacks the pace of Jose Bosingwa and can be outflanked with a clever pass or a cunning touch. Andrei Arshavin will no doubt be primed by his manager to run at him on a regular basis.

Chelsea will simply be looking to play their powerful passing game, hoping their physical presence helps to dominate in midfield.

In Drogba and Anelka, Chelsea have the best strike-force in the Premier League and any slip in the Arsenal rearguard will be punished in the same fashion as last season when Chelsea emerged from the Emirates Stadium with a 4-1 victory.

A similar scoreline is out of the question but a Chelsea win would put them 11 points clear of their London rivals and almost out of sight.

The clever money should go on a keenly fought draw but with two such talented teams it really could go either way.