Petr Cech settles Moises Caicedo and Declan Rice debate ahead of Chelsea's trip to Arsenal

"Petr Cech, who despite being a Chelsea legend did play for both sides, was asked by LiveSport and Canal+ to rank each side's players against each other, including the match-up between the two midfielders. He selected Caicedo over Rice for his starting side, with him actually including more Chelsea players in the XI than Arsenal ones."

"The Blues are desperately going to miss the Spaniard, who has already been ruled out of the game, with him being one of the best examples in world football of dealing with Bukayo Saka."

"It is perhaps better to listen to those who play on the pitch both with and against the duo though, and this is where it starts to lean back into Caicedo's favour. Alexis Mac Allister selected Caicedo out of the trio that involves Rice and Rodri, with him having the pleasure of playing alongside him at Brighton."

Chelsea face Arsenal with Moises Caicedo set to battle Declan Rice in midfield. Caicedo was sent off in the reverse fixture, a 1-1 draw. Petr Cech, who played for both clubs, ranked the players in a combined XI and selected Caicedo over Rice. Cech included more Chelsea players overall, choosing Reece James over Jurrien Timber, Marc Cucurella over Riccardo Calafiori, Cole Palmer over Ebere Eze, Pedro Neto over Gabriel Martinelli, and Joao Felix over Viktor Gyokeres. Cucurella's absence through injury is significant given his effectiveness against Bukayo Saka. While pundit Paul Merson favored Rice, players who have competed alongside both midfielders, including Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton, lean toward Caicedo.

Read at The Chelsea Chronicle