Arsenal will welcome Chelsea to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, September 6, 2026, in what promises to be a compelling Premier League opening London derby — with both clubs carrying flawless records into matchday three of the 2026/27 season.

Arsenal: reigning champions with a clean sheet run

Arsenal enter this fixture as the defending Premier League champions, having picked up maximum points from their opening two matches without conceding a single goal.

Mikel Arteta's side opened the campaign with a commanding 3-0 victory over newly-promoted Coventry City, with Kai Havertz breaking the deadlock before Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard added further gloss. A hard-fought 1-0 win at Aston Villa followed, with Saka again proving decisive in the second half.

Arsenal are one of only two sides yet to be breached — newly-promoted Hull City being the other — heading into Sunday's contest.

Chelsea: seven-goal thriller announces Alonso's era

Chelsea have matched Arsenal's perfect start under the guidance of Xabi Alonso, the former Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid head coach now in charge at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues opened with a 3-2 win over Fulham — Joao Pedro, Cole Palmer, and record-signing Morgan Rogers all getting on the scoresheet — before a 2-0 Carabao Cup victory over League One side Luton Town. They then produced a seven-goal thriller against Brighton and Hove Albion in their second Premier League outing.

That haul made Alonso only the fourth manager to oversee seven or more goals across his first two Premier League matches, joining Sir Bobby Robson, Michael Laudrup, and Marcelo Bielsa in that exclusive group.

Head-to-head: Arsenal's dominance in recent meetings

The two clubs have met 212 times across all competitions. Arsenal have won 87 of those encounters, Chelsea 64, with 61 ending level. The recent head-to-head record strongly favours the Gunners — Chelsea have failed to win any of their last 11 meetings with their arch-rivals.

The most recent clash ended 2-1 to Arsenal: William Saliba opened the scoring, Piero Hincapie's own goal levelled matters, and Jurrien Timber's second-half strike proved the winner. Before that, Arsenal eliminated Chelsea home and away in the Carabao Cup semi-final, winning 3-2 at Stamford Bridge and 1-0 at the Emirates.

Key players to watch

Saka arrives in fine form, having scored in both Premier League fixtures this season. The 24-year-old winger already has two goals and four assists to his name against Chelsea and will be eager to strengthen his case in Arteta's starting eleven.

Riccardo Calafiori has been equally influential, contributing three assists across all competitions this season — including the Community Shield — and providing defensive solidity as Arsenal maintained back-to-back clean sheets.

For Chelsea, Joao Pedro brings two goals and two assists into Sunday's game and has prior scoring form against Arsenal. Palmer, meanwhile, claimed the Player of the Match award on his first outing and has already contributed two goals and an assist in his two appearances.

Team news and possible XIs

Arteta faces defensive disruption ahead of the derby. Both Jurrien Timber and William Saliba have been ruled out through injury. Ezri Konsa, who came on as a substitute at Villa Park after Cristhian Mosquera was forced off, is set to slot into the starting lineup. Havertz leads the attack with Christian Tzolis, Odegaard, and Saka operating behind him — though Tzolis was withdrawn at half-time in the previous outing.

Alonso, meanwhile, must manage a significant injury list of his own. Jordan Henderson, Marco Palestra, and Moises Caicedo are all unavailable, with no direct replacement signed for Enzo Fernandez following his deadline-day sale to Manchester City. Reece James, rested last weekend, is expected to return to the starting lineup. Palmer, Rogers, and Pedro are set to keep their places in attack.

Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Raya; White, Konsa, Gabriel, Calafiori; Rice, Lewis-Skelly; Saka, Odegaard, Tzolis; Havertz

Chelsea (3-4-2-1): Martinez; Fofana, Lacroix, Colwill; Neto, James, Lavia, Hato; Palmer, Rogers; Pedro