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Football London
Football London
Sport
Josh Holland & James Quinlan

Frank Lampard explains Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Noni Madueke Chelsea decision for Arsenal

Chelsea interim boss Frank Lampard has explained his reasoning behind his squad selection for tonight's Premier League clash at Arsenal.

Lampard made two changes to the side that fell to a 2-0 home defeat to Brentford last week. Former Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang comes in for his first start since the last meeting between the two teams, with Noni Madueke making his first start under Lampard.

The Blues look set to play in a back four with Trevoh Chalobah and Conor Gallagher dropping out of the starting XI. The move means Chelsea will attack with a natural No.9 in Aubameyang, something they've lacked all season.

READ MORE: Arsenal vs Chelsea LIVE: Confirmed line-ups as Aubameyang starts, Holding and Martinelli dropped

Speaking to Sky Sports before the game, Lampard explained why the Gabonese was selected. "I think we all know Auba coming in fresh for us in the last few weeks has been - he hasn’t played so much as a No.9 which is the main position that you need to have that sharpness in match days," he said.

"He’s shown a little bit of that against Brentford, and he’s a reference; he’s got a history of scoring goals, [there] may be motivation for him to play here.

"With Noni [Madueke] he’s trained really well, and when you come into a big squad you need players to show something in training, and he’s shown that."

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