Kick off delayed

“Blackstenius rather than Russo – not a choice many Arsenal fans would nod sagely at,” writes Charles Antaki. “It’s true that Blackstenius scored three against Villa the other day, but Chelsea are a nut of a much tougher variety. She’s admirably tireless and committed, but tends to run straight lines; Russo is the more subtle and elusive player. We all know what Chelsea are like, so unless Russo is out of sorts for one reason another, this does look like an odd choice.”

As does Jonas Eidevall

The loudest supporters tonight will be them [points to the away end].

[On Blackstenius and Russo battling for a place up front] Competition in a squad is really good so long as you don’t lose self-confidence as a player. The moment you lose self-confidence, it doesn’t matter what ability you have – especially as a striker. If you lose the bravery and start overthinking, you lose your edge.

We try to communicate about their strengths and what we want to see; make sure they don’t need to have second thoughts. That’s the art of coaching. I’m not saying I’m doing it perfectly but it’s a really, really important aspect of the game. If you want to win thing you will need to get that right.

[On Emma Hayes] She is so flexible tactically. As soon as something is not working for Chelsea, she will change personnel, formation or the way of playing. We expect them to change as the game goes on – she will be very proactive. Me and Emma are slightly different as coaches. I will stick with plan A for longer because I believe so much in it and the reason we have that plan.

Emma Hayes talks to Sky Sports

I believe every single one of our players is ready. I hope we use the crowd – we have to create the noise and give them something to be excited about. If we carry out the things that really, really matter, and are important to me, it’ll be a cracker of a game.

[Lauren James] is good, she’s ready to go. She’s had her hair done. She’s got it ready for the crowd!

Read the great Karen Carney on the title race

Arsenal have arguably the best squad in the league and the opportunity to chase down the other two. Their home victory over Chelsea was the performance of the season and they need to replicate that. The Gunners have great variety in attack, making them able to adapt to circumstances. Whether they need runners in behind or more crosses into the box, they have a squad of problem-solvers.

Team news

Preamble