Chelsea vs. Arsenal: Liam Rosenior claims 'Set-Piece FC' label does Mikel Arteta's side disservice

Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior has insisted that Arsenal are "good at everything" ahead of Wednesday's EFL Cup semi-final.

The Blues and the Gunners are preparing to square off at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of their last-four tie.

Rosenior kicked off his reign at Chelsea with a 5-1 victory at Charlton Athletic on Saturday evening, but that game was played with one eye on this fixture.

While Rosenior has talked up the qualities of his squad ahead of this match, Arsenal are the favourites to prevail given their six-point lead at the top of the Premier League table.

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Rosenior says Arsenal far more than 'Set-Piece FC'

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Rosenior was inevitably questioned on Arsenal's strong record from set pieces.

In response, the Englishman heaped praise on the overall package that Mikel Arteta's team offers, while also admitting that he was envious of the numbers that they are producing in that area of the game.

Rosenior told reporters: "Arsenal are good at everything. They're good at everything. They have a good team. It's not about taking the game back in time. You have to manage your 1% to be as good a team to win as many different ways as possible.

"I respect them. I think they'll respect us, we're a good team as well. But no, people can talk. I don't know who's calling them Set-Piece FC. I'm definitely not.

"I think they're a team who are very good without the ball. I think they have a really, really clear idea in the way they want to play with the ball. On top of that, they're very, very well organised with good deliveries on set-pieces. That's what you want to be if you want to be successful. That's the idea for every coach."

© Imago / Mark Pain

Chelsea bidding to end dismal Arsenal record

As recently as November 30, Chelsea defied playing with 10 players for over half the match to earn a 1-1 draw with Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.

Nevertheless, since the start of 2020, Chelsea have only won one of 13 matches against Arsenal, that being Romelu Lukaku's debut at the Emirates Stadium in August 2021.

Arsenal are currently on an eight-match unbeaten streak versus Chelsea, who have lost five of those fixtures.